LINUS ROACHE (�KIDNAPPED,� �BATMAN BEGINS�) JOINS REGULAR CAST OF NBC�S �LAW & ORDER� AS NEW EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT DISTRICT ATTORNEY

Roache�s New Character Will Fill Office Vacated by Newly Promoted District Attorney Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston)

BURBANK, Calif. � July 17, 2007 � NBC, Universal Media Studios and executive producer Dick Wolf announced that Linus Roache (�Kidnapped,� �Batman Begins�) will join the regular cast of NBC�s Emmy Award-winning �Law & Order,� returning Sundays, 8-9 p.m. ET at mid-season) to portray an executive assistant district attorney � the former office held by Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston) after McCoy was elevated to district attorney for next season.

"I've known Linus' work for several years,� said Wolf. �He is an actor who totally gets inside his roles. I think he and Sam are going to raise the bar and add intellect and passion in the back half of the show."

A native of Manchester, England (United Kingdom), the versatile Roache starred last season in NBC�s �Kidnapped� drama and the year before in the feature film �Batman Begins,� opposite Christian Bale. He also co-starred as the Levite priest Aaron in the television miniseries �The Ten Commandments,� the television movie �RFK� (in the title role) and in the feature film �The Chronicles of Riddick.�

Roache�s other television credits include the movies �The Gathering Storm,� �Shot Through the Heart� and the miniseries �How High the Moon.� His feature films also include �Beyond Borders,� �Blind Flight,� �Pandemonium,� �Hart�s War,� �Best� and �Priest.� As a child actor, he starred in the British television series �Coronation Street.�

"Law & Order," the longest-running crime series and the second-longest-running drama series in the history of television, will enter its 18th season on NBC.

The brainchild of creator Wolf, " Law & Order" is the most successful brand in primetime television. It is the 1997 Emmy Award winner for Outstanding Drama Series and the record holder for the most consecutive (11) nominations in that category for a primetime series (tied with �Cheers� and �M*A*S*H�). It has also turned into one of entertainment�s preeminent brands, with its successful spinoffs "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" and "Law & Order: Criminal Intent."

Filmed entirely on location in New York, the realistic program looks at crime and justice from a dual perspective. In the first half-hour, Detective Edward Green (Jesse L. Martin) and his new partner (played by series newcomer Jeremy Sisto, who reunites with former �Kidnapped� cast member Roache) investigate crimes and apprehend suspects under the supervision of their precinct lieutenant, Anita Van Buren (S. Epatha Merkerson). In the second half-hour, the focus shifts to the criminal courts, as Executive Assistant District Attorney (Roache) and the Assistant District Attorney Connie Rubirosa (Alana De La Garza) work within a complicated justice system to prosecute the accused under the guidance of the newly appointed District Attorney Jack McCoy (Waterston).

"Law & Order" is a Wolf Films production in association with Universal Media Studios. Dick Wolf is creator and executive producer; Rene Balcer, Fred Berner and Peter Jankowski are the executive producers.