Legacy Season 3 – Should Harry Bosch Join Renee Ballard’s Cold Case Unit?

Titus Welliver has confirmed that Bosch: Legacy Season 3 will air in 2025, followed later that year by the spin-off series starring Renee Ballard. Ballard will initially be in Bosch: Legacy to get Harry Bosch's help in a case which will form the basis of the plot of their series. Titus Welliver has been confirmed for a recurring role as Bosch alongside Maggie Q's Ballard in the spin-off.

The Ballard series is based on Michael Connelly’s book, Desert Starand the character will set up a cold case unit at the LAPD. In the book Ballard offers Bosch the opportunity to join their team as a volunteer investigator and utilize law enforcement resources. However, it remains to be seen whether he will accept her offer in the television universe, as he is already established as a private detective in Bosch: Legacy.

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Renee Ballard will enlist Harry Bosch's help in the third season of Bosch: Legacy and he will have a recurring role in the Ballard spin-off

Renee Ballard will appear in the Bosch universe sooner than expected, with an appearance in the season finale of Bosch: Legacy Season 3 and appears to be the basis for upcoming storylines in Renee Ballard Bosch's spin-off. Ballard will lead the LAPD’s Cold Case Unit, and will team up with a retired detective named Thomas Laffont (John Carroll Lynch), who will give her advice.

The series will probably differ somewhat from Michael Connelly's Desert Star book on which it is based, but the essential core of the plot will likely remain the same. Renee Ballard will uncover a conspiracy and ask Harry Bosch for help in solving it. It involves a brutal killer who murders an entire family, and if the series follows the book, the case will be seen as Bosch's “white whale,” making his appearance in the spin-off seem entirely justified and natural. Bosch and Ballard will investigate the case together, but it remains unclear in what capacity Bosch will work.

Bosch does not have to join Ballard's cold case unit to work with her

The Desert Star In the book, Bosch has retired from the LAPD, which is his status in Bosch: Legacyand Ballard offers him the opportunity to join their underfunded cold case unit as a volunteer investigator. Bosch works as a private detective in Bosch: LegacySo he doesn't necessarily have to join the cold case unit in the Ballard spin-off. There is a possibility that he can use his own resources to assist the investigation, and after leaving the LAPD at the end of the original Bosch series, he might be hesitant to work with them again, even though the chance to utilize their resources would be tempting.

Another key factor that could determine the details of Bosch’s involvement in Ballard’s cold case unit could depend on whether other characters from Bosch: Legacy will appear in the spin-off. Nothing has been confirmed yet, but it's very likely that Bosch will want to enlist the services of his colleague Maurice “Mo” Bassi to help with Ballard's case, with his technical skills more than making up for the LAPD's lack of resources. The Ballard series may want to establish itself as a standalone product and show Harry Bosch only on the fringes of the story, and not his cohorts from Bosch: Legacy.

Titus Welliver's role in the first season of the Ballard series will be a recurring one, so it wouldn't really make sense to have him in the cold case unit. Welliver's appearance in Bosch is likely to help kick off the spin-off before he returns to focusing on his own cases in future seasons. Bosch: Legacy. If Bosch had indeed joined Ballard's cold case unit, this particular plot point would have to be undone by the end of the season to explain his possible absence in future seasons of the Ballard spin-off. In addition, Bosch would probably not join the unit as a volunteer since he has to run his own PI business.

The most logical explanation for the Bosch and Ballard crossover in the spin-off series would be that Bosch shows up from time to time to offer assistance on the case, but does not physically join the unit. Additionally, Bosch didn't leave the LAPD under the best circumstances, so his contribution may not sit well with the big shots and may not need to be included in the books. Ballard may make a peace offering to Bosch out of professional courtesy, as the case she's working on is one of his “white whales.” According to the books, Bosch and Ballard have a strained relationship, so it will be great to see them put aside their differences to solve a big case.

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