Mariska Hargitay reflects on spending 25 years on ‘Law and Order: SVU’

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With Law & Order: Special Victims Unit returning for a record 26th season this fall, series star Mariska Hargitay is looking back at the show’s longevity.

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The Emmy winner has appeared in 550 episodes over 25 seasons (more than any other actor), but as she celebrated her Anniversary Tribute honour at this week’s inaugural Gotham TV Awards, Hargitay, 60, said she takes nothing for granted.

“The biggest thing for me to take in right now is that I get to work every day on a show that makes people feel less alone,” Hargitay said in her heartfelt speech (per Deadline). “That’s one of the most devastating effects on sexual assault and domestic violence is the isolation. Perpetrators depend on actual, literal isolation to commit their crimes and to leave victims with the trauma of deep, psychological isolation.”

After playing her for a quarter of a century, Hargitay said her role as Captain Olivia Benson has set a new benchmark for TV actors.

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“That is a high bar, people!” she said. “After 20, you’re like, ‘20 years?! Who gives a s—? Law & Order did that. Gunsmoke did that. Call us when you get to 25.’ Well, here I am, baby!”

Hargitay praised the Dick Wolf-produced show for telling “women’s stories.”

“I cannot tell you how gratifying it is, how important it is, that Law & Order: SVU, the longest-running scripted drama in television history, is a show that tells women’s stories,” she said. “It’s a show that tells survivors stories. It tells the stories of survivors all along the spectrum of gender identity.”

Speaking specifically about her character, Hargitay said, “I love that she’s equal parts outrage and compassion and strength and vulnerability.”

Since its debut in 1999, SVU has been a ratings powerhouse for NBC as one of the network’s most watched dramas. In January, Hargitay reminisced about her lengthy run playing Benson.

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“We’ve been on a parallel journey,” she said in an interview with PEOPLE. “There’s a thing WWOBD, what would Olivia Benson do? The fans would always talk about it, and one day it hit me. I also have those moments where I’ve sort of slipped into her. If there’s a crisis, I just take over and lead like that. Being strong and fearless. It’s sort of this perfect feminist story.”

To commemorate her time on the show, New York City’s Rockefeller Plaza was temporarily renamed Olivia Benson Plaza.

At its unveiling, Hargitay’s SVU co-star Ice-T (who plays Odafin “Fin” Tutuola) told the Today show that he didn’t expect the series to last as long as it has. 

“I remember when we got to 15 years, and Dick Wolf wanted the record (for the longest-running live-action prime-time TV series), and that was like 21, I said, ‘Let’s do 25.’ And we did it — so now I’m going for 35,” he said.

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