Dick Wolf is known for his creation of sprawling TV universes, including that of FBI, which included FBI: Most Wanted until the show’s cancelation earlier this year, and Law & Order, which includes the spinoff series Law & Order: Organized Crime. Like many Wolf properties, the shows have some actors in common.
One such actor is Dylan McDermott. While in FBI: Most Wanted, McDermott played a hero and the leader of a team of FBI agents tracking down fugitives, he is at the opposite end of the legal spectrum in Law & Order: Organized Crime. McDermott makes a compelling villain, and it’s time for him to return to his other Dick Wolf series.
Dylan McDermott’s Richard Wheatley Is Still Law & Order: Organized Crime’s Best Villain
McDermott Starred In Law & Order: Organized Crime Seasons 1 And 2
When Law & Order: Organized Crime spun out of the events of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, it centered on the effort to bring down the criminal organization suspected of being responsible for the death of Elliot Stabler’s (Christopher Meloni) wife. McDermott played Richard Wheatley during those first two seasons.
Wheatley is the son of the leader of an organized crime family. While he spent his life rejecting his father’s world, he launched a criminal enterprise of his own, which largely centered on selling stolen drugs via digital platforms and doctors’ offices instead of on street corners.
Wheatley is a compelling villain to watch because of how he operates. He is responsible for the murder of his own father, he ropes his kids into working for him, and sees his family more as possessions than people. He is one of the darkest and most manipulative villains Organized Crime has featured to date.
Wheatley offers a fascinating counterpoint for both Stabler and Sergeant Bell (Danielle Moné Truitt). He and Stabler are both devoted to their work and have very short fuses. He and Bell are meticulous planners who will go out of their way to make sure they succeed. Positioning Stabler and Bell as a united front against Wheatley is perfect.
Wheatley’s time on Organized Crime does not end with his arrest or his death, either. The character is in a car that goes into the water, but Wheatley’s body is never found, leaving his story open-ended, just waiting for a resurgence.
Richard Wheatley is one of the most dangerous Organized Crime villains, and he has been in the wind for three years, making it the perfect time for his return.
Wheatley’s Return Can Fix Law & Order: Organized Crime’s Season 5 Mistakes
Organized Crime Season 5 Focused Too Heavily On The Stablers
While it’s still unclear if Organized Crime will get a season 6, Richard Wheatley’s return for a new season could go a long way toward improving the current state of the series. When Law & Order: Organized Crime made the move from NBC to Peacock for season 5, fans thought it would help the show.
Unfortunately, the move to Peacock did not do Organized Crime any favors. While the move could have allowed for darker storylines and more in-depth exploration of its ensemble, the story shifted to focus largely on the Stabler family, even removing some of the main members of the police ensemble for episodes at a time.
While bringing in a villain with a vendetta against Stabler might seem like a push to make it even more of the Stabler show, that’s not the case. The entire original Organized Crime team pushed to take down Wheatley and his organization. Wheatley getting away stings for a group of people who invest months, sometimes years, in undercover operations.
While some of those original characters might be gone, Bell and Stabler remain with new teammates they can trust. The current team knows the stakes of taking down someone like Wheatley.
Bringing in Wheatley for a potential Organized Crime season 6 could help bring the show back to basics. The show originated as a spinoff utilizing undercover operations to bring down organized crime. While yes, Elliot Stabler is the connective tissue between it and the other Law & Order shows, he is not the only piece.
The series firmly sets itself inside the Law & Order universe by bringing in characters from the other shows and allowing Stabler to cross over into them. Law & Order has never been a franchise that makes one family the center of its stories. The victims of crime and those working to bring them justice have always been the center.
Wheatley has a lot of victims, a lot of people he has manipulated, and he has likely been building himself a whole new criminal empire for three years. He is exactly the kind of character the show is made to take down.
He is also the kind of character that could bring back fans of the Law & Order franchise who might not have stuck with the show when it moved to Peacock. Since Wheatley is a fan-favorite villain, he could certainly draw in the audience.
Wheatley returning to the series is just what Law & Order: Organized Crime season 6 needs to get back to the success of its early seasons.
