A wealthy tech guru accused of killing his wife and her lover hires a troubled defense lawyer who gets him off the hook – The Lincoln Lawyer’s plot has the feel of a true story. The show premiered on Netflix, quickly rising to the top of trending shows and earning positive fan reviews on social media.
Mickey Haller earned the name Lincoln Lawyer because he prefers working in a Lincoln rather than an office. In the show, he drives a classic convertible Lincoln and hires a driver to chauffeur him in a modern Lincoln SUV. Haller frees his client from the murder charges, but justice gets served in the end.
The Lincoln Lawyer is based on a fictional book by Michael Connelly
Matthew McConaughey starred in the first adaptation of Michael Connelly’s books titled The Lincoln Lawyer. The 2011 film adapted the first novel in Michael’s series; the 2022 series adapted the second novel titled The Brass Verdict.
The character originated from Connelly’s imagination – there’s no real-life California defense lawyer with Mexican roots that works inside his Lincoln. And if there is, they didn’t inspire Connelly.
In Netflix’s adaptation, the showrunners cast an actor with Mexican roots to play Mickey Haller, attempting to stay true to Connelly’s story. Connelly, who’s an executive producer of the series, told The New York Times:
“We wanted to have our own Mickey Haller, to really give the viewer a new angle on this character. You’d think it’s not that genius to say, ‘Let’s go with what’s in the book,’ but it’s rare that Hollywood does that.”
As expected, the series also diverts from the book in some ways. For instance, Connelly calls the accused murderer Walter Elliot, but he’s Trevor Elliot in the series. In the show, Elliot is a video game designer, while he’s a studio executive in the novels.
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