Los Angeles plays a starting role as season 4 of ‘The Lincoln Lawyer’ launches
With the city of Los Angeles serving as not just a background but as the heart of the show, season 4 of Netflix’s “The Lincoln Lawyer” series kicked off Feb. 5 and viewers can expect to see local landmarks play a starting role while the show’s star goes through some challenging times.
It’s all based on the bestselling novels by renowned author Michael Connelly.
“It’s really a love letter to L.A. because Michael’s novels are in some ways a love letter to L.A. They’re very much gritty crime-noir novels but they all take place in L.A. and they all make extensive use of realistic L.A. not just locations but situations and people, ” said Ted Humphrey, who along with Dailyn Rodriguez are co-showrunners for the series.
The show, which premiered in 2022 , follows attorney Mickey Haller as he defends his clients and drives around the city in his blue Lincoln Continental convertible as well as his more modern Lincoln Navigator.
The fourth season is based on Connelly’s sixth book in The Lincoln Lawyer series, “The Law of Innocence.” Haller, portrayed by Manuel Garcia Rulfo, now finds himself in trouble with the law and faces his toughest case as he and his team work to prove his innocence in the murder of a former client, Sam Scales.
“I think it’s our most emotional season yet and I think it’s the highest stakes for Mickey yet,” Humphrey said.
While he faces time behind bars, the series still dives into the core of the city and was shot entirely on location in L.A. and surrounding areas, just as seasons 1-3.
The legal drama has filmed at more than 50 locations across Los Angeles since its debut, including Season 4 stops like Dodger Stadium, Grand Central Market, the Bradbury Building, Langer’s Delicatessen-Restaurant, Los Angeles City Hall, Redbird, the Los Angeles Times building, Hop Woo, and the Vincent Thomas Bridge.
The showrunners say the city is an essential part of the storyline.
“I’ve always been a fan of shows that are very specific to the place where they shoot,” Rodriguez said. “It gives authenticity to the show,” she added.
As self defined foodies, Rodriguez and Humphrey have gravitated to shooting scenes in various well-known food spots.
“We like to shout out local businesses, we like to shout out Latino businesses. So a lot of it is our own curiosity about the city that has seeped into the show,” Rodriguez said.
Some of the restaurants that will appear in season 4 include Langers Deli, Hop Woo, Redbird and Grand Central Market. Season 4 also features an appearance from Nancy Silverton, one of the city’s most famous chefs who pops up as herself at her world-renowned spot Osteria Mozza.
“Ultimately what makes us choose any location is story, story first. We choose the locations based on what’s right for the story,” Humphrey said.
And no matter what this season, or season 5 — which has just been renewed by Netflix — brings, the showrunners say L.A. will always have a starring role in the show.
“I think it’s essential for the story to be shot in L.A. There are storylines we can pursue that would take place somewhere else, like we’ve shot in Las Vegas and Palm Springs,” Humphrey said. “But Mickey Haller’s life is always going to be in L.A. and therefore we’re going to shoot that here,” he added.