“He’s Definitely a Formidable Foe for Elsbeth”: Carrie Preston Teases What’s Next For Judge Crawford [Exclusive]

Elsbeth is really making the most of its expanded episode count in Season 2, from having fun with more meta premises to injecting the procedural drama with a bit of festive energy. It’s not all fun and games, however, as the second season has also given Elsbeth Tascioni (Carrie Preston) quite the formidable foe in Judge Milton Crawford (Michael Emerson), a seemingly mild-mannered judge whom Elsbeth has every reason to believe might actually be a murderer. It’s only after confiding in Chief Wagner (Wendell Pierce) that the case Elsbeth suspects might involve Crawford is reopened, though how the terrifying judge will react to that news is anyone’s guess at this point — probably not well, though.

I had the chance to speak with Preston recently about Season 2, Episode 11, and our conversation turned to the rest of Season 2, generally speaking. Far from being a one-off menace, Crawford’s presence has seeped into the season, as the character proves to be a threat to Elsbeth and her friends, something Preston told would continue throughout the remaining episodes, as the stakes continue to grow:

“Judge Crawford is not going away. His power and his reach are pretty epic. He’s definitely a formidable foe for Elsbeth, and we’re going to continue to see the stakes ratchet up higher and higher for the rest of the season.”

Elsbeth Gets to Make the Most of Her Legal Know-How in Season 2

Season 2 has also given Elsbeth the chance to flex the legal muscles that viewers first saw on The Good Wife and The Good Fight. There was, of course, the episode that introduced Elsbeth to Crawford when she was summoned for jury duty and had to serve in the courtroom in a completely new capacity. And of course, the brilliant Uno-reverse she pulled on Mark Van Ness (Michael Park), a former client who threatened her livelihood if she failed to fall in line with a scandalous cover-up she was implicated in. Preston told me she enjoys playing these callbacks to Elsbeth’s time working as a lawyer, saying it makes her an even stronger detective:

“I’m always mindful of making sure that I and the audience remember that she comes from decades of working as a brilliant lawyer. That’s what I loved when we went to the courthouse. We got to see her being in a legal situation but without the power that she’s used to having in that situation. So, in this case, yes, it’s always good to do these callbacks to her legal mind, and when the writers put things in where she does think more like a lawyer than a detective, and she’s able to use her legal expertise to make her an even stronger detective.”

Will we see more of it as the season continues? Preston didn’t say, but hope springs eternal! The first eleven episodes of Elsbeth Season 2 are out now. New episodes premiere on CBS on Thursdays, and stream the next day on Paramount+.