Why The Good Fight avoided doing a story about ICE this season

The Good Fight is a master at integrating modern-day politics into its series about Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski) and the African-American law firm she works for in Chicago. Last season, a whole episode was devoted to Reddick, Boseman & Lockhart making a case for Donald Trump’s impeachment. (Unfortunately, they failed to persuade the DNC). This season, a “Trumpian figure” by the name of Roland Blum (played by Michael Sheen) will join the firm, voter suppression will be addressed, and Lucca Quinn (Cush Jumbo) will take over the firm’s matrimonial law unit and represent a woman who purports to be Melania Trump.

But there’s one hot-button topic that creators Robert and Michelle King will avoid this season: the trend to address — or take down — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE. It’s been a go-to plot point on several broadcast TV shows in the last year. The season finale of The Conners in January featured an ICE-themed plot point involving the immigrant father of Becky’s baby, while Murphy Brown tackled the subject of deportation during its Thanksgiving episode. And on the April 12 episode of Grey’s Anatomy titled “Beautiful Dreamer,” an ICE agent arrived at Grey-Sloan Memorial Hospital to pick up Dr. Sam Bello (Jeanine Mason), a surgical intern and illegal immigrant.

For season 3 of The Good Fight, Robert King admits to EW that they considered a story involving the relevant issue of illegal immigrants getting their day in court but feared “we would be behind the curve.”

“[The firm] were going to be in court and, because of this whole thing where children have to represent themselves on the border, which is a Catch-22 like absurdity,” explains Robert King. “Boseman [Delroy Lindo] was going to be in immigration court representing a rich client when he sees this 3-year-old who’s got a counselor but has no lawyer, and he starts finding himself representing kids. The problem we have is there’s so much earnestness behind it, you’re always looking for something that takes it out of that earnestness.”

Besides, the CBS All Access show already tackled the subject of illegal immigration and border politics last year with a storyline involving Jay (Nyambi Nyambi, above), the firm’s investigator who was born in Nigeria and unknowingly had his birth certificate faked by his parents.

“With Jay last year, it was that it was a personal story, but it was also a race around the clock and all of these dozens of different courts,” explains Robert King. “Here it was difficult because it’s hard for us to stay above the fray on that.” Adds Michelle King, “There’s no other side that was palatable to us. And then you’re doing a screed, and that’s not interesting for anybody.”

The third season of The Good Fight will begin streaming March 14 on CBS All Access.

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