Virginia Sherwood/NBC Mariska Hargitay in Law & Order: SVU.
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is the longest-running drama on television today and is one season away from tying the mothership Law & Order for the longest-running show in television history. Despite playing the same character for nearly 20 years, Mariska Hargitay shows no signs of slowing down as Lt. Olivia Benson. The historic 19th season of SVU debuts on Wednesday, September 27 on NBC at 9:00 p.m. ET. Read on for a preview of tonight’s episode.
In the season 19 premiere, Fun (Ice-T) might have just pushed the envelope to far when he heads to Cuba to track down a man accused of rape. This kicks off a political tug-of-war that makes life a pain for Barba (Raul Esparza). Meanwhile, a friend from her past shows up when Benson is faced with surprising allegations.
The guest stars include Dean Winters as Brian Cassidy; Peter Jacobson as Randy Dworkin; Will Chase as Byron Marks; Mariela Garriga as Elana Marks; and Amy Smart as Karla Wyatt.
There are no big casting changes for this season of SVU, but there is a big behind-the-scenes change. Before season 18 ended, showrunner Rick Eid announced he was leaving the show to run another Dick Wolf show, Chicago PD. In May 2017, Michael Chernuchin, who ran the short-lived Chicago spin-off Chicago Justice, was named SVU showrunner.
SVU only needs one more season to tie the 20-season record set by Law & Order (1990-2010) and Gunsmoke (1955-1975).
SEASON PREMIERE DATE: Wednesday, September 27, 2017
TIME: 9:00 p.m. ET
TV CHANNEL: NBC – To find your local NBC affiliate, click here.
EPISODE DESCRIPTION: “Gone Fishin'”: “When Fin (Ice T) crosses international borders to catch a fugitive rapist, a political tug-of-war derails Barba’s (Raúl Esparza) legal case. Meanwhile, shocking allegations against Benson (Mariska Hargitay) lead to the return of an old friend.”
CAST:
Mariska Hargitay as Olivia Benson
Kelli Giddish as Amanda Rollins
Ice-T as Odafin Tutuola
Peter Scanavino as Dominick Carisi Jr.
Raúl Esparza as Rafael Barba
CREDITS:
Created by Dick Wolf
Executive Producers: Dick Wolf, Peter Jankowski, Julie Martin, Jonathan Starch, Arthur W. Forney, Mariska Hargitay and Michael Chernuchin
