Law & Order: SVU Could Fix Its Biggest Casting Mistake If Mariska Hargitay Gets Her Wish

Law & Order: SVU has the opportunity to fix a huge casting mistake if the producers listen to Mariska Hargitay’s wishes. Hargitay is the star most closely associated with the long-running police procedural and has also been an executive producer for SVU since season 18, which premiered in 2017. She is involved in many aspects of the show and has some input into casting choices, although the final decision about who will be part of the main cast rests with Dick Wolf.

The series recently wrapped up its 25th season, and Law & Order: SVU has been confirmed for season 26. The 25th season brought with it several casting changes, adding newcomer Renee Curry (Aimé Donna Kelly) to the team, making Agent Sykes (Jordana Spiro) a recurring team member, and re-introducing Amanda Rollins (Kelli Giddish) as a guest star in the second-to-last episode of the season. Rollins was a popular character who was written out at the end of season 24. Kelli Giddish has returned to Law & Order: SVU three times since leaving the series.

Law & Order: SVU Firing Kelli Giddish Is A Major Mistake

Law & Order SVU’s Amanda Rollins exit was one of the series’ most controversial casting decisions in recent years. Giddish had played Rollins for 11 years and was a popular character, and there was a segment of the fanbase that threatened to boycott the series once she exited. Rollins supposedly left to become a forensics professor rather than a cop even though she had no formal training or qualifications for the position. This story kept Rollins alive, which gave her the opportunity to return to the series, but did not satisfy those fans who were heartbroken that she was leaving.

Attempts to make new characters Rollins 2.0 are destined to fail, especially when it would be easier to bring Rollins back to the series full-time.

Law & Order: SVU has attempted to fill the hole Rollins left behind with other characters, but to no avail. Molly Burnett’s Grace Muncy was also written out by the end of season 24, and recurring character Shannah Sykes’ drinking problem and pain over her sister’s death came across as an attempt to recreate Rollins’ gambling addiction arc rather than create whole new stories. Attempts to make new characters blatant replacements for Rollins would be hard-pressed to succeed.

Rollins Still Has Plenty of Storyline Potential on Law & Order: SVU

Rollins’ recent guest appearance on episode 11 of the 25th season is the perfect opening for her return to Law & Order: SVU. Rollins was revealed to have turned down an offer of a tenured position and quit her job because she had no passion for teaching. However, she was so bored with being a stay-at-home mom that she tagged along on an SVU case for the hell of it, and that led to an interesting storyline where Carisi realized his wife was an asset to the team but feared for her safety during a sting operation.

Her guest appearance re-introduced her in a new phase of her life; Rollins he is a wife and mother who needs to find her purpose outside of raising her children, especially now that she has quit her teaching job. Her need to balance her desire for fulfilling work with safety concerns, raising children, and protecting her relationship with her ADA husband could lead to a Law & Order: SVU spinoff about her and Carisi’s life, but could also provide compelling storylines for her if she were to return to SVU full-time.

How Mariska Hargitay’s Plan to Bring Kelli Giddish Back To Law & Order Could Succeed

Mariska Hargitay couldn’t stop Kelli Giddish’s original Law & Order: SVU exit, but the lead actress has been vocal about wanting Rollins back for season 26. Rollins’ latest guest appearance opened the door for that to happen. It’s a good idea not only because Hargitay supports it, but also because Rollins continues to be a popular character whose stories generate interest.

Rollins’ last guest appearance on Law & Order: SVU ended with Rollins and Benson discussing the possibility of Rollins returning full-time to her old job, but Benson made it clear she only will rehire her if Rollins truly wants it and not if she’s looking for a temporary gig while she finds her true passion. This ending makes it relatively simple for Rollins to return.

Rollins would only have to convince Benson that she’s serious about her commitment to the SVU squad. The series could also stretch her return over several episodes by having 1PP express doubts about rehiring Rollins that force her to prove herself during a dangerous assignment before Benson gets the green light to rehire her. A storyline like this could take two or three episodes, which would generate extra interest in Rollins’ return.

Law & Order: SVU made a big mistake by writing Rollins out and has not been able to rectify it by adding new characters. Instead, the producers should listen to Mariska Hargitay’s desire to bring Rollins back into the SVU fold. This would please that segment of the fanbase that has never forgiven the series for writing Rollins out and open interesting storyline possibilities as the long-running police procedural heads into its 26th season.