We break down Lorna Crane’s big season with “The Lincoln Lawyer” star Becki Newton, including her passing the bar exam and the tragic ending to her first big case.
That’s counselor to you!
In The Lincoln Lawyer season 3, Lorna Crane (Becki Newton) steps into the spotlight when she makes the jump from legal aide to full-fledged lawyer. The season, which pulls from the fifth book in Michael Connelly’s The Lincoln Lawyer books, The Gods of Guilt, follows Mickey Haller (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), Lorna, and their team as they get to the bottom of who killed Mickey’s friend/former client Glory Days (Fiona Rene). “I knew she wanted more, but never in a million years did I imagine season 3 would be all about Lorna becoming a lawyer,” Newton tells Entertainment Weekly about her character’s arc in the new season.
The Lincoln Lawyer threw a lot at Lorna for her first major case as second chair. There were corrupt law enforcement professionals, a dangerous cartel boss, and a tragic conclusion that included a death in the courtroom. We spoke to Newton about Lorna’s budding legal career, the shocking end to the case, and the equally gut-wrenching season finale cliffhanger that sees the body of another client found in the trunk of Mickey’s car.
Lorna is a newly minted lawyer, and this season includes several moments where she gets to show off her intellectual and legal skills. How has Lorna’s past experience and work with Mickey at the firm prepared her for this?
BECKI NEWTON: One of the things I’ve loved about this character from day one is her belief in herself. Lorna always knew that she could be an amazing lawyer and she’s never doubted her own abilities. We learned in season 2 she dropped out of law school and we saw there was always a part of her that wanted to go back. Her drive for the truth and how much she loves the law, that’s been evident from day one. In season three, we really see that she’s ready to be a lawyer in her own right.
One very memorable thing about Lorna’s first day as a lawyer is her incredible outfit!
We talked a lot about Lorna’s version of a power suit and I appreciate the wardrobe department for having such a great imagination. Her lack of apology is what makes it believable. She believes that this is her power. When we were first meeting about it, we referenced Madonna’s “Express Yourself.” That clothing really did exemplify how Lorna would feel her most powerful, because she’s completely covered up. There were multiple lawyers, but she feels powerful and she feels sexy in her power and intelligence. Someone handmade that suit. A wonderful seamstress made it just for Lorna and it felt exactly right.
We’ll get to the shocking end of her first big case in a moment, but by the end of the season, Lorna has found her footing as a lawyer a bit and even found a new revenue stream in working on divorces. In terms of her journey as a lawyer, where is Lorna at the end of season 3 from your perspective?
Lorna is open to any case. She’s like a sponge, so any case that will allow her to get her hands dirty as a real lawyer is the right case. I don’t know that she’s thinking too much about lanes, but she is aware that [in] this is one lane of divorce law there is potentially a lot of money. It’ll be really interesting to see what types of cases she gets as we move forward.
Between Mickey and Lorna working together in the courtroom to how supportive he is of her legal goals (given she is his ex, after all), this season is full of so many great moments between the pair. What do you love about their dynamic?
I’ve loved that from the beginning. There’s a maturity to their relationship mixed with a lot of love and backstory that I don’t really know about. It’s very clear that Lorna respects Mickey as a lawyer and believes in him often more than he believes in himself. Lorna also thinks she’s smarter than everyone on Earth, but Mickey might be the one person that she doesn’t necessarily think she’s smarter than. She’s not afraid to challenge him.
When we get to season 3 and she sees how much money Mickey’s offering her, there’s so many things tied into that moment. He’s offering her that bonus because of their collective success and he’s sharing that success with her because I believe Mickey knows that none of it could have happened without Lorna’s support, both personally and professionally.
Mickey and Lorna get to the bottom of who kills Glory Days, but the case has a tragic end when Neil Bishop (Holt McCallany) shoots himself while on the stand. What stands out to you about filming that harrowing scene?
It was really intense and really well done. Ted [Humphrey], the director, was so respectful in how we shot it. We did it slowly, carefully and [I] really admired the crew and my fellow actors. It was really shocking. When I got the script, I couldn’t believe the turn of events and we all wondered how we were going to shoot it. They kept it very close, so when we shot the close ups, a lot of the core members were not there. I was really proud to be part of it because this show has allowed me personally to do so much. I’m able to do comedy, I get to hold a funny-looking dog, I get to wear amazing costumes and also get to do this incredible dramatic work.
That’s not even the biggest twist, given the cliffhanger when client Sam Scales (Christopher Thornton) was found dead in the trunk of Mickey’s car. What was your reaction to how the season ended?
It’s a great cliffhanger and incredible to see Mickey as the person who needs to be defended. Again, I was completely shocked and completely thrilled. We had a lot of conversations that Lorna would assume that he’s innocent. I can’t wait to see how the office responds. I trust the writing so much and the way these stories have been put together. Michael Connelly is just incredible and [so are] all the writers. Every script is better than the one before. I hope we get a chance to explore what happens next.
Speaking of Sam, he was a bit of a thorn in Lorna’s side during her very busy first day as a lawyer. What was working with him this season like?
Love working with him. We worked together in season 2, and I was so grateful that he came back and we could have these scenes, which were incredibly important for me, because it was Lorna’s first real experience as a lawyer. In all the seasons, there are characters that weave in and out, and there are flashbacks. I’m hoping we see more of Sam Scales even though he winds up dead in the trunk.
We don’t know if there will be a season 4, but there’s a world where Lorna needs to step up to defend Mickey. Is she ready for that?
Lorna’s instincts when it comes to Mickey will propel her to lose all of her insecurities and save this innocent man, so I believe that Lorna will step up and be her best self as a lawyer because of her emotional connection to Mickey. She has the confidence to say “pipe down, Mickey. I’m in charge here.” There’s nothing they haven’t already said to each other and they’re not too concerned about offending the other one or hurting feelings. It creates freedom within the relationship to be very truthful and not dance around words. It creates a lot of comedic moments and also really, really tender ones.
