Line #16 Trivia/LawandOrderSpecialVictimsUnit


1	* AccidentallyCorrectWriting: In the episode “[[{{Recap/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnitS20E10AltaKockers}} Alta Kockers]]” Olivia is interrogating an elderly Jewish suspect. At one point the suspect calls a black person a “shvatzer”. Olivia gets angry and says “That is unacceptable” to which the suspect replies “It’s unacceptable to be a shvatzer? What’s the matter with you?” The joke is supposed to be based on DeliberateValuesDissonance, that an old man would see nothing wrong with using an ethnic slur. In fact, “shvatzer” isn’t an ethnic slur at all, it’s just Yiddish for “black”. While there have been instances of the word being used as a derogatory term by American Jews who don’t speak Yiddish, this is not nearly as common as many people think it is, and Olivia’s ignorance obviously reflects that of the writers. So the dialogue between Olivia and the suspect still makes sense, but the writers were wrong about who was the clueless one.
2	* ActorAllusion: When Nick returns from California for the 500th episode, he tells Olivia he now works with cold cases, a nod to Danny Pino's pre-SVU role as Scotty Valens on ''Series/ColdCase.''
3	* ActorSharedBackground:
4	** Creator/RichardBelzer has openly stated that JustForFun/JohnMunch is basically "me as a cop." Thankfully, Belzer doesn't share the darker elements of Munch's backstory.
5	** Fin was in the Army, just as Music/IceT was.
6	** Creator/KelliGiddish is from Georgia, as is Rollins.
7	** Both Amaro and Barba are Cuban-Americans who speak fluent Spanish, reflecting that Creator/DannyPino and Creator/RaulEsparza are as well. There's also a good bit of subtext about Barba [[AmbiguouslyBi probably/possibly being bisexual]] (or some other form of queer). Esparza is bisexual in real life.
8	** The Irish Declan Murphy is played by second-generation Irish immigrant Creator/DonalLogue.
9	** Kat Tamin is a Lebanese-American like Creator/JamieGrayHyder.
10	** In the episode "Inheritance", Creator/MarcusChong (best known as Tank in the The Matrix) plays a character whose heritage (half African-American, half Chinese-American) matches his own exactly, even to the point of each parent's race (his father is the former, his mother the latter).
11	* AdoredByTheNetwork: Creator/USANetwork and Creator/IonTelevision absolutely '''adores''' marathons of this series. Justified, as [[Series/LawAndOrder like its original series]], the series is a ''huge'' money maker on syndication thanks to its huge episode count.
12	* BillingDisplacement:
13	** Despite being a cast member since Season 2, Music/IceT has been billed below several cast members who joined in later, specifically Creator/DianeNeal (Seasons 5-9), Creator/MichaelaMcManus (Season 10), Creator/DannyPino (Seasons 13-16), and Creator/KelliGiddish (since Season 13). Pino and Giddish were also billed before original cast member Creator/RichardBelzer until Belzer's departure in Season 15.
14	** Likewise, both Creator/BDWong and Creator/TamaraTunie were part of the cast since Season 2. Though they only got their PromotionToOpeningTitles in later seasons (Seasons 4 and 7, respectively), they were still billed below cast members who joined in later, specifically Creator/DianeNeal, Creator/AdamBeach (Season 9), and Creator/MichaelaMcManus. It even applies between Wong and Tunnie themselves, as Wong was billed and promoted before Tunnie despite the latter debuting much earlier and having more screen time.
15	* CastingGag: Creator/AlexKingston was cast as attorney Miranda Pond. Prior to this she had also played Dr River Song in Series/DoctorWho, who's real name was eventually revealed to be Melody Pond.
16	* TheCastShowoff:
17	** SVU has had exactly three episodes featuring French (or Franco-African) characters, two of which just so happened to be when Detective Beck was on the show. Interestingly, it appears that the writers actually showed restraint on this one, seeing as Creator/ConnieNielsen speaks ''[[{{Omniglot}} eight]]'' languages.
18	** Benson is seen speaking Spanish and Italian on multiple occasions, demonstrating Mariska Hargitay’s multilingual talents.
19	** Averted when an episode shows most of the characters watching an {{Expy}} of ''Series/AmericanIdol''. The only one not shown singing along is Barba, who is played by Broadway legend Creator/RaulEsparza.
20	* CastTheRunnerUp:
21	** Creator/ReikoAylesworth, one of the actresses considered to play Olivia Benson before Creator/MariskaHargitay was cast, went on to play Season 1 RecurringCharacter Erica Alden.
22	** Creator/SamanthaMathis, another actress considered to play Olivia, went on to have guest appearances in Seasons 5, 15, and 21.
23	** Creator/NickChinlund, Creator/ChristopherMeloni's runner-up for the role of Elliot Stabler, guest-starred as a VillainOfTheWeek in the Season 3 episode "Execution".
24	* {{Corpsing}}: In "Popular", Olivia's lips noticeably twitch when delivering a cheesy pun based on student body. An outtake shows Mariska Hargitay couldn't make it through without breaking down giggling.
25	* CreatorBacklash:
26	** Music/IceT (who's a gamer himself) wasn't fond of "Intimidation Games," as he made clear on his Twitter after it aired.
27	** Creator/MarciaGayHarden regrets her final appearance as Dana Lewis, feeling that the show did the character an extreme disservice.
28	* TheDanza:
29	** In the episode "Friending Emily," Creator/TaylorSpreitler guest stars as the victim's sister, Taylor Culphers.
30	** The VictimOfTheWeek in "Agent Provocateur", Madison Baker, is played by Madison Grace.
31	* DawsonCasting:
32	** Elliot Stabler (b. 1966) is played by Creator/ChristopherMeloni (b. 1961).
33	** Olivia Benson (b. 1968) is played by Creator/MariskaHargitay (b. 1964).
34	** Creator/SarahHyland in both of her guest appearances. She was 10 years old playing 7 in the Season 3 premiere "Repression", and 18 (turning 19 in five weeks) playing 14 in Season 10's "Hothouse".
35	** In season 4's "Fallacy," Creator/KatherineMoennig plays 19 year old Cheryl Avery. Moennig was 26 at the time.
36	** The Season 6 episode "Obscene" revolves around 16-year old starlet Jessie Dawning, played by then 21-year old Creator/MaggieGrace.
37	** Then 18-year-old (and turning 19 in a month) Creator/AmandaSeyfried played a 16-year old VictimOfTheWeek in the Season 6 episode "Outcry".
38	** Creator/ConstanceWu (b. 1982) played a hooker whose birth year is listed as 1987 in the Seasons 8 episode "Underbelly".
39	** In-universe: In the episode "Demons", they try to see if a rapist is guilty by baiting him with an adult cop who can pass for a teenager.
40	* DiedDuringProduction:
41	** Creator/NedEisenberg, who played the longest-tenured RecurringCharacter Roger Kressler, passed away on February 2022. Season 23 episode 14 [[InMemoriam was dedicated to his memory]].
42	** Creator/JoannaMerlin, who played Judge Lena Petrovsky in 43 episodes across 11 seasons, died in October 2023. Creator/HarveyAtkin, who played Judge Alan Ridenour in 18 episodes (as well as 2 episodes of ''Criminal Intent''), died in 2017.
43	** And of course, though his character had long since been written out, original cast member and longtime series regular Creator/RichardBelzer passed away in February 2023.
44	* DirectedByCastMember:
45	** Creator/MariskaHargitay directed Season 15's "Criminal Stories", Season 16's "Padre Sandungeuro", Season 17's "A Misunderstanding" and "Sheltered Outcasts", Season 18's "Motherly Love", Season 21's "She Paints For Vengeance".
46	** Creator/ChadLowe, who guest-starred in the Season 2 episode "Pique", directed the Season 4 episode "Soulless".
47	** Creator/MonicaRaymund, who had a minor role in the Season 9 episode "Authority" (and later ''Series/ChicagoFire'' regular Gabriela Dawson), directed the Season 20 episode "Hell's Kitchen".
48	* ExecutiveMeddling: Everybody on the show, from showrunner David Graziano on down, was ''livid'' when The Powers That Be at the channel mandated that Creator/KelliGiddish would leave the main cast halfway through season 24, and made that fact abundantly clear on social media. The tearful goodbye scene between Amanda and Olivia at the end of her final episode as a main cast member is actually between Creator/MariskaHargitay and Creator/KelliGiddish, who became extremely close friends over their years on the show.
49	* FakeAmerican: Creator/AdamBeach, who played Chester Lake, is from Manitoba.
50	* FandomNod: in 11x13, "P.C.", [[spoiler:Creator/KathyGriffin's lesbian character [[HoYay coming onto Liv]]. The reasons she gives for her mistake are pretty much the same ones fans have been using for their SlashFic since, oh, the start of the show.]] Olivia asking, "Why does everyone think I'm a lesbian?", Olivia fooling the suspect into confessing by ''pretending'' to be a lesbian, swaggering into the interrogation room in a leather jacket, it has it all.
51	* HideYourPregnancy:
52	** Why Olivia disappeared for part of season 8.
53	** Averted in season 17 with Creator/KelliGiddish's pregnancy. There's almost a RunningGag of the characters telling Rollins to stop pushing herself so hard when she's pregnant. The gag becomes much less funny when she has to be put on bed rest.
54	* InMemoriam:
55	** The entirety of Season 3 was dedicated to the victims and heroes of 9/11.
56	** The Season 23 episode "Video Killed the Radio Star" was dedicated Creator/NedEisenberg, who played longest-running RecurringCharacter Roger Kressler.
57	** "King Of The Moon" from Season 24 is dedicated to Creator/RichardBelzer, Munch's actor. Belzer is the first main cast member of SVU to pass away. Oddly enough, Munch is actually mentioned by Fin in the prevous episode, "Dutch Tears"— which first aired only ''three days'' before Belzer's death.
58	* LifeImitatesArt:
59	** During the first half of the 2011 season, the episode "Missing Pieces" [[spoiler:in which a mother claims that her car was stolen with her young son still buckled into his car seat]] bore more than a passing resemblance to the still-unfolding [[http://www.huffpost.com/entry/sky-metalwala-law-order-svu_n_1086268 Sky Metalwala]] case.
60	** "Personal Fouls" [[spoiler: which revolves around a well-respected coach who uses a children's charity to molest young boys]] originally aired a few weeks before the [[http://gothamist.com/2011/11/09/did_law_order_svu_predict_the_joe_p.php Penn State molestation]] story broke. However, according to The Other Wiki, this one was actually based on a ''[[http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2009/10/09/sp-fleury-tell-all.html different]]'' sports abuse case.
61	** In the episode "Imprisoned Lives," based on Ariel Castro but written before he was convicted, a scene with not-Castro allocuting about why he took the girls had to be cut when it ended up matching Castro's almost word for word.
62	** Tragically, [[http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2013/apr/28/girl-forced-pregnant-donor-semen?CMP=twt_fd this real life case]] is disturbingly similar to both the season 4 episode "Resilience," in which a father artificially inseminates his teenage daughter, and, to lesser extent, the season 5 episode "Home," where a mother is an extreme control freak over her home-schooled children.
63	* MissingEpisode: The Season 18 episode "Unstoppable" was scheduled to air around the end of October 2016, but it was pulled at the last minute. The episode would have featured Gary Cole as a business mogul turned politician who causes non-stop controversies. Inspired by the 2016 presidential campaign of Donald Trump. The episode was made, but shelved. It has not resurfaced.
64	* OnSetInjury: While filming an action scene, Creator/MariskaHargitay suffered a collapsed lung after landing wrongly, requiring multiple surgeries to correct the injury.
65	* TheOtherDarrin: Kathleen Stabler was played by Holiday Segal in Season 1. Creator/AllisonSiko took over the role starting Season 3. It's notable since the rest of the Stabler children retained their actors[[note]]Maureen, Lizzie, and Eli Stabler were all eventually replaced themselves during ''Series/LawAndOrderOrganizedCrime''[[/note]].
66	* OutOfOrder: The second episode of season 2 featuring Monique Jeffries occurs late in the season yet is obviously meant to have been much earlier on. Hints include Fin wearing the same outfit as when first introduced as well as actually mentioning Fin's first name. The other episode featuring Jeffries involved her resigning from the force and Fin taking her place.
67	* PlayingTheirOwnTwin:
68	** Creator/MiliAvital as Ava Parulis and Irina Burton in Season 2's "Parasites".
69	** Creator/ReileyMcClendon as Logan and Lindsay Stanton in Season 6's "Identity".
70	** Creator/TRKnight as Gabriel Thomas and Brian Smith in Season 13's "Double Strands".
71	* QueerCharacterQueerActor:
72	** Dr. Huang is gay as is his actor, Creator/BDWong.
73	** Kat Tamin is bi. Creator/JamieGrayHyder has said she'd been with both men and women, while choosing not to label herself.
74	** Creator/WentworthMiller played attorney Isaiah Holmes for two episodes, who's gay like him.
75	** Rafael Barba's actor (Creator/RaulEsparza) is bisexual in real life, and most fans agree the character is at ''least'' AmbiguouslyBi. Esparza has also indicated that [[https://www.eonline.com/news/696074/it-s-absolutely-time-law-and-order-svu-introduced-a-new-gay-character-so-where-are-they he'd be fine with Barba being revealed as LGBT+.]]
76	* RealLifeRelative:
77	** Crossing with RomanceOnTheSet, Creator/MariskaHargitay (Olivia Benson) met her future husband Creator/PeterHermann (Trevor Langan) on set. SVU had a hell of a time [[HideYourPregnancy covering up her pregnancy in Season 8]]. She also pulled a few strings to have her father, Creator/MickeyHargitay, cast in a small role in Season 5, quite openly saying that she'd always wanted to work with him at least once. This would be the elder Hargitay's final screen credit (he died three years later). RecurringCharacter Officer Montero, who first shows up at the end of Season 19 [[spoiler: as the officer also held hostage alongside Olivia]] is played by Mariska's cousin, Eddie Hargitay.
78	** Creator/RichardBelzer's cousin, Creator/HenryWinkler, was cast as a VillainOfTheWeek for Season 3's "[[Recap/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnitS3E20Greed Greed]]".
79	** Music/IceT's wife Coco made cameos in episodes for Seasons 5 ("Head"), 9 ("Fight"), and 12 ("Theater Tricks").
80	** Creator/DianeNeal's (Casey Novak) ex-husband Marcus Fitzgerald guest-starred in Season 8's "[[Recap/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnitS8E7Underbelly Underbelly]]".
81	** Creator/KelliGiddish's pregnancy was incorporated into Rollins' story in Season 17, resulting in Giddish's own baby boy being brought to set to play Rollins' daughter Jesse in a few episodes.
82	** Creator/DeanWinters (Brian Cassidy) and Creator/ScottWilliamWinters (Robert Dumas) are brothers.
83	* RealitySubtext:
84	** Much like Olivia, Creator/MariskaHargitay grew up with only one parent. In Mariska's case it's due to [[Creator/JayneMansfield her mother's]] tragic death when she was only three, whereas Olivia is a ChildByRape.
85	** Barba and Benson's close onscreen friendship springs from the fact that Creator/RaulEsparza and Creator/MariskaHargitay clicked with each other from their first meeting and rapidly became close in real life (Esparza has said on more than one occasion that working with Hargitay is his favorite thing about the show).
86	** Creator/KelliGiddish and Creator/PeterScanavino have also admitted that Rollins and Carisi's close onscreen relationship reflects the fact that the two actors are also very close in real life.
87	** The Elliot/Olivia vs Elliot/Kathy [[DieForOurShip shipping wars]] can get ''very'' nasty. In real life, Creator/MariskaHargitay considers Creator/IsabelGillies, who plays Kathy, as one of her best friends.
88	** Munch mentions a couple of times that his father committed suicide when he was a teenager. Creator/RichardBelzer's father died by suicide when Belzer was in his twenties.
89	** Munch & Finn's friendly sniping at each other and mutual snarkiness is based in large part on the real friendship between Music/IceT & Creator/RichardBelzer.
90	** A subplot from Season 2's "Taken", dropped in part due to the UnfortunateImplications, would have revealed that Olivia's mother lied about being raped. In "Florida", when Olivia learns the identity of her biological father, she briefly considers the possibility that her mother might have lied about being raped. Both loops are effectively closed when Olivia ultimately determines that he had raped at least one other woman, leading Olivia to conclude that her mother was telling the truth and establishing that fact as canon. In essence, the arc plays out in a way that mirrors the writers' own development of that backstory.
91	** Their introduction in Season 13 present Rollins and Amaro as {{New Meat}}s, with the latter being the more experienced one. At the time, both Creator/KelliGiddish and Creator/DannyPino have just starred on two {{Police Procedural}}s; Pino on ''Series/ColdCase'' which ran seven seasons, Giddish on ''Chase'' which ran with just one.
92	** The tearful goodbye between Amanda and Olivia in "And a Trauma in a Pear Tree", when Amanda [[spoiler:leaves the squad for a teaching position at Fordham]], is pure Creator/MariskaHargitay and Creator/KelliGiddish, neither of whom were pleased one whit with [[ExecutiveMeddling Giddish's forced departure]].
93	* RecastAsARegular: Counting only those who are recast as main characters here.
94	** Creator/MichelleHurd guest starred in the ''Series/LawAndOrder'' episode "Entrapment" before appearing as original cast member Monique Jeffries.
95	** Music/IceT first played pimp Seymour Stockton in the in-universe movie ''Exiled'' before being cast as Fin Tutuola.
96	** Creator/TamaraTunie appeared as a defense attorney in the ''Series/LawAndOrder'' episode "Deadbeat" before she landed the role of Dr. Melinda Warner.
97	** Creator/DianeNeal played a VillainOfTheWeek in the Season 3 episode "Ridicule" before being cast as Casey Novak starting Season 5.
98	** Creator/KelliGiddish, who plays Rollins, played the role of a rape victim in the episode "Outsider" and has guested on ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'' prior to that.
99	** Creator/RaulEsparza was on both the original series and ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'' in the episodes "Blackmail" and "Lady's Man", respectively.
100	** Creator/PeterScanavino, who plays Carisi, played a man who was a victim of rape as a child in Season 14's "Monster's Legacy." He also portrayed an armed robber in the ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'' episode "Diamond Dogs", a murder suspect in the original series episode "Just A Girl In The World", and had a small role in the ''Trial by Jury'' episode "Boys Will Be Boys."
101	** Creator/IsabelGillies appears as an [[AntiVillain Anti-]]VillainOfTheWeek in the ''Series/LawAndOrder'' episode "Bad Girl" before being cast as Kathy Stabler.
102	** Creator/GloriaReuben appears as the mother of the VictimOfTheWeek in Season 4's "Dolls" before being cast as RecurringCharacter Christine Danielson starting Season 9.
103	** Creator/DelaneyWilliams guest starred on ''Criminal Intent'' before being cast as recurring defense attorney John Buchanan.
104	** The Season 12 ADA, Gillian Hardwicke, is played by Creator/MelissaSagemiller, who made her ''acting debut'' in an episode of the first season.
105	** Creator/ElizabethMarvel had a number of guest appearances across the franchise before she was cast as recurring defense attorney Rita Calhoun.
106	** Creator/ScottWilliamWinters guest-starred on the parent series before being cast as RecurringCharacter Robert Dumas starting Season 13.
107	** Creator/WentworthMiller guest-starred on the Season 11 premiere before being cast as RecurringCharacter Isiah Holmes starting Season 21.
108	** Creator/PabloSchreiber appeared as a down-on-his-luck single father in Season 8's "Haystack" before being cast as William Lewis, the ArcVillain of Seasons 14 and 15 and Olivia's ArchEnemy. He also appeared twice in both ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'' and [[Series/LawAndOrder the parent series]] prior to his stint as Lewis.
109	** Creator/DallasRoberts appeared as a homosexual spree rapist and murderer in Season 6's "Weak" before being cast as Dr. Greg Yates, the ArcVillain of Seasons 16 and 17
110	* RecycledScript: SVU has a nasty habit of doing this with the [[Series/LawAndOrder original]] and then adding TheUnfairSex aspects to the plot. For example, in the original ''Series/LawAndOrder'' 1995 episode "Bitter Fruit," a young girl is kidnapped between school and her music lesson and later killed. While it was questionable exactly who did it due to the fact that they both were {{Jerkass}}es, in the end it turns out it was the mother and while she tried to [[NeverMyFault blame her ex husband]] she was given the maximum sentence. However “Shattered” had the exact same plot only they eliminated all of the ex husbands jerkassiness while transforming the mother into [[StrawFeminist the biggest Misandrist that they possibly could]]. It turns out that it was the father who kidnapped his son even though [[AssPull that made absolutely no sense]].
111	** Another recycled script from the Mothership was used in the season 5 episode "Poison." The plot was taken from ''Law & Order'''s season 7 episode "I.D." Both episodes deal with a corrupt judge railroading an otherwise open and shut murder trial because of his personal biases and dislike of the ADA (Jamie Ross in the original and Casey Novak in the ''SVU'' version) handling the case. The ADA eventually gains the upper hand and exposes the judge at the end of the episode.
112	*** The storyline was recycled yet again, with some tweaks, in the season 22 episode “The Long Arm of the Witness.”
113	** Season 19 episode "Complicated" is a beat-for-beat remake of season 10's episode "Stranger," right down to the ending twist. The only difference is the motive/background of the [[spoiler:imposter]] and the secondary plot arc in the original involving said [[spoiler:imposter]], which the later episode cuts in favor of an unrelated subplot concerning Olivia's adopted son Noah and his recently surfaced biological grandmother who is fighting Olivia for custody.
114	** The Season 18 episode "Genes" involved a ChildByRape committing crimes similar to those committed by his father and a defense attorney arguing that his propensity for violence was a genetic trait. If this sounds familiar, it's because this was also the plot of the Season 3 episode "Inheritance".
115	** Season 13's "Theatre Tricks" has a nearly identical premise to Season 10's "Liberties" (a third party using an alleged fantasy rape scenario to set up a woman to be raped), although they admittedly play out very differently: "Liberties" established almost immediately who was responsible and used that to lead into a HalfwayPlotSwitch, while the entirety of "Theatre Tricks" is focused on the detectives trying to determine who was behind it, with the identity of the perpetrator only being revealed in the last few minutes.
116	** Another Season 13 episode, "Lost Traveler", mirrors the Season 1 episode "Uncivilized" to a significant degree. Both involve a missing child turning up dead, both have [[spoiler:an initial suspect arc that turns out to be a RedHerring]], and in both cases, [[spoiler:the two teenage witnesses turn out to be the killers. The episodes even have similar dynamics between the pairs of killers, with one teen being [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone horrified and remorseful]], while the other, the instigator, [[LackOfEmpathy just shrugs it off]].]]
117	** Season 7 episode "Strain" shares quite a few similarities with the Season 2 episode "Victims", including the killer's motive, with the biggest change being [[AdaptationalSexuality setting the story within the gay community]].
118	** "Post-Graduate Psychopath", season 22 ep. 14, is made from two previous episodes:
119	*** The episode borrows its main plot from "Beast's Obsession", season 15 ep. 20. A sociopath gets out of prison unexpectedly early and goes on a rape/torture/murder spree in which he first targets the family of a female doctor who cared for him in prison, raping her daughter and burning her with cigarettes. He assaults one teenage girl and hangs her up by her wrists in her home for the police to find and kidnaps another teenage girl, ultimately using her as a hostage.
120	*** The episode borrows its climax from "Holden's Manifesto", season 16 ep. 4. Rollins allows herself to be taken hostage alone by a young male sociopath/sexual predator on a revenge spree in order to get him to let a teenage girl go, and so she can become emotionally intimate with him and get inside his head so as to be able to take him in peacefully rather than letting the swat team blow his head off. This time around she succeeds, but comes to regret her success.
121	* RomanceOnTheSet: Creator/MariskaHargitay met her husband Creator/PeterHermann on the show.
122	* StarMakingRole: The show that made Creator/MariskaHargitay and Creator/ChristopherMeloni TV icons.
123	* StarringAStarAsAStar:
124	** Creator/EmilyDeschanel plays renouned cellist Cassie Germaine in the Season 3 episode "Surveillance".
125	** Creator/MaggieGrace plays popular TV star Jessie Dawning in the Season 6 episode "Obscene".
126	** Creator/NormanReedus plays popular rock star and activist Derek Lord in the Season 7 finale "Influence".
127	** Creator/BaileyChase plays [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague NFL]] superstar Lincoln Haver in the Season 9 episode "Closet".
128	** Antwon "Big Boi" Patton of Music/{{Outkast}} plays Hip-Hop artist Gots Money in the Season 10 episode "Wildlife".
129	** Creator/CarolBurnett plays the eponymous legendary ballerina Birdie Sulloway in the Season 10 episode "Ballerina".
130	** Creator/MehcadBrooks plays [[UsefulNotes/NationalBasketballAssociation NBA]] superstar Prince Miller in the Season 13 episode "Personal Fouls".
131	** Creator/EmmaBell plays TV star Rose Summers in the Season 15 episode "Reasonable Doubt".
132	** Stevie Lynn Jones plays FormerChildStar Tensley Evans in the Season 16 episode "Producer's Backend".
133	** Creator/ChadLColeman plays [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague NFL]] superstar A.J. Martin in the Season 16 episode "Spousal Privilege".
134	* TechnologyMarchesOn:
135	** Inevitable given that SVU premiered in 1999. The show's adjustment to the existence of social media occasionally veers into the hilarious.
136	** Often swerves into their TechnologicallyBlindElders -- the characters are frequently exasperated by the [[NewMediaAreEvil Evil Internet]], but the writers themselves have a very shaky grasp of how popular websites work (see their definition of "blogging" as "daily visits to one website" and describing a Twitter account as having thousands of "friends" and featuring posts from many different users. That's...not how that works.)
137	* ThrowItIn: Amanda Rollins' devastated shout to Carisi that "I would be ''fine'' if you were right here beside me!!" was ad-libbed by Creator/KelliGiddish.
138	* TransCharacterCisActor:
139	** In "Fallacy", cis actress Creator/KatherineMoennig plays trans woman Cheryl Avery.
140	** In "Transitions", trans girl Hayley is played by cisgender actor Creator/BridgerZadina. Her counselor, Jackie Blaine, is played by actress Creator/AishaHinds, who has been mistaken for a trans woman in the past due to her size but is cisgender. The episode does feature an actual trans non-binary actor, Daniel Sea, in the minor role of Blake.
141	** In "Transgender Bridge", cis actor Christopher Dylan White plays trans girl Avery Parker.
142	* TrollingCreator:
143	** Warren Leight [[spoiler:having Olivia describe her relationship with Elliot as one where she was completely unable to grow.]] Even the positive interpretation of that, [[spoiler:that she held herself back because she was nursing unrequited love for him]], mightily pissed fans off.
144	** Leight's use of characters from seasons beyond his era has resulted in major character derailment with half-assed justifications for those developments. Major examples include:
145	*** Dr. George Huang, who worked with SVU from seasons 2-12 (with occasional episodes in 13, 14, and 15), returns for an episode in season 17 to help another lawyer win her case by stating that Liv coerced a confession out of him. Not only was Liv '''pissed''', but Leight has stated that there's little hope for Huang and Liv's professional relationship because Liv holds grudges.
146	*** As of mid-season 17, Liv is dating IAB Captain Ed Tucker - the same officer who relentlessly persecuted various SVU officers (including Liv herself!) over seasons 3-15. When asked what could have led to this development, Leight stated that Liv has decided to let go of the past and that the relationship makes sense since Liv hasn't had time to look elsewhere due to having a toddler at home. [[FlatWhat What.]][[note]]The latter justification is particularly eyebrow-raising given that Olivia had a long-standing ShipTease with ''Barba'', who also fits this criteria while having none of the negative history with Olivia -- in fact, both actors thought Olivia should be paired up with Barba, and by all accounts still do if Mariska's tweet that "Benson loves Barba. Always, in all ways" is any indication.[[/note]]
147	* TroubledProduction:
148	** Season 9 was produced with less episodes than normal (19 vs the usual 22-24) due to the 2007-2008 Writers Strike.
149	** Production of the last four episodes of Season 21 was cut short due to the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic.
150	* UnderageCasting: Alexandra Cabot (b. 1968) is played by Creator/StephanieMarch (b. 1974).
151	* WhatCouldHaveBeen:
152	** Creator/NickChinlund, Creator/TimMatheson, and Creator/JohnSlattery were the actors considered to play Elliot Stabler before Creator/ChristopherMeloni was cast, with Chinlund being the runner-up according to Meloni himself.
153	** Creator/SamanthaMathis and Creator/ReikoAylesworth were the actresses considered to play Olivia Benson before Creator/MariskaHargitay was cast.
154	** Both Fin and Barba were supposed to be only four-episode characters, but their popularity caused the show to keep them as regulars.
155	** It was originally going to be revealed that Olivia's mother lied about being raped.
156	** Originally, upon ''Series/{{Homicide\|LifeOnTheStreet}}''[='=]s cancellation and after hearing that Creator/BenjaminBratt was leaving the [[Series/LawAndOrder original series]], Creator/RichardBelzer suggested to Creator/DickWolf that Munch become Lennie Briscoe's new partner, since they had originally teamed in three ''Homicide'' crossovers. Wolf loved the idea, but had already cast Creator/JesseLMartin as Det. Ed Green.
157	** The creators actually considered making Elliot and Olivia a couple during the former's marital problems between Seasons 6-8, complete with scenes of Olivia dreaming of Elliot and appearing jealous of him and Dani's (her replacement) closeness, before deciding that the two are much BetterAsFriends.
158	** Kathy and Dickie Stabler were supposed to guest star in the Season 21 finale to serve as a SequelHook for ''Series/LawAndOrderOrganizedCrime'', but production for the last four episodes of the season were halted due to the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic.
159	** After the death of Creator/RichardBelzer, it was reported that the show had frequently asked Belzer to reprise his role as Munch for cameos after his final departure from the show in 2016; unfortunately, Belzer had become too frail from health issues to make the trip from his home in France to New York in what would ultimately be the last years of his life.
160	* WorkingTitle: ''Law and Order: Sex Crimes''.
161	* YouLookFamiliar: Aside from the ones RecastAsARegular above;
162	** [[http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0190962/ This guy]] has played an FDNY Captain, a bartender, and a character named Erik Pullham. And that's ''only'' on SVU. On ''Series/LawAndOrder'' and ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'' he has played four additional one-off characters.
163	** [[http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0262193/ This lady]] played two different characters in season 4 and season 5.
164	** Creator/MiliAvital appeared in prominent roles in the {{Pilot}}, the Season 2 episode "Parasites", and the Season 14 episode "Manhattan Vigil" in which she reprised in Season 17's "Depravity Standard". She also guest-starred on ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent''.
165	** Creator/NoelleBeck played two different characters in Seasons 1 and 12.
166	** Creator/HaydenPanettiere has played two different characters within 5 years (in Season 2 and Season 6).
167	** Creator/LizaLapira has played two other characters besides a lab tech, see [[http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0487594/ here]].
168	** Blythe Auffarth played two different characters in Seasons 2 and 3, in addition to her guest-stints on both ''Series/LawAndOrderTrialByJury'' and the original ''Series/LawAndOrder''.
169	** Creator/PeytonList played two different characters in Seasons 2 and 4.
170	** Creator/NestorSerrano played two different characters in Seasons 2 and 6.
171	** Creator/ShirleyKnight played the VillainOfTheWeek in this series twice, specifically during the Seasons 3 and 5 premieres. Knight also made a prior guest-appearance in the parent series.
172	** Creator/SarahHyland played two different characters in Seasons 3 and 10, in addition to her guest-stints on both ''Series/LawAndOrderTrialByJury'' and the original ''Series/LawAndOrder''.
173	** Creator/PaigeTurco played two different characters in Seasons 3 and 13. Both times with Creator/DianeNeal, coincidentally.
174	** Creator/KyleGallner has appeared on the show as two different characters, in Season 4 and Season 9.
175	** Creator/DanLauria played two different characters in Seasons 4 and 13. He already made two prior guest-stints on the original ''Series/LawAndOrder'' and one in ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'' in-between his appearances here.
176	** Creator/ElizabethMitchell played two different characters in Seasons 4 and 12.
177	** Creator/ChadLColeman played two different characters in Seasons 4 and 16, in addition to two prior appearances on ''Series/LawAndOrder''.
178	** Creator/SamanthaMathis played three different characters in Seasons 5, 15, and 21, plus a guest appearance on ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'' during its fifth season.
179	** Creator/KyleMacLachlan played two different characters in Seasons 6 and 13. Both times as a father whose son was killed by another boy, coincidentally.
180	** Creator/EmmaBell played two different characters in Seasons 6 and 15, plus a guest appearance on the parent series' 17th season.
181	** Creator/PagetBrewster played two different characters in Seasons 8 and 14.
182	** Creator/NavidNegahban played two different characters in Seasons 8 and 16, plus an appearance on the parent series.
183	** Before turning up as a VillainOfTheWeek in Season 11, Creator/SarahPaulson made her TV debut in a guest appearance on a Season 5 episode of the parent series.
184	** Creator/JohnMagaro guested on Seasons 11 and 17 as two different characters, plus prior appearances in ''Series/{{Conviction}}'' and the parent series.
185	** Creator/AaronTveit played two different characters in Seasons 11 and 13.
186	** Creator/AlyssaSutherland played two different characters in Seasons 12 and 20.
187	** Creator/AndreBraugher as an attorney. Kinda weird, given that ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'' exists in the [[JustForFun/JohnMunch same universe]] as the ''Franchise/LawAndOrder'' series. It works because Frank Pembleton never appeared on SVU and (aside from Munch) never met or worked with any of the SVU characters. {{Lampshade\|Hanging}}d when Munch greets Ellis in a familiar (and sarcastic) way, and Ellis replies "Have we met?"
188	** Creator/LothaireBluteau seems to be the guy the producers have on speed dial whenever they need a vaguely European-ish creep (although the actor is actually Canadian), having played such roles in three episodes. He's also appeared as separate characters on ''Criminal Intent'' and ''Trial by Jury''.
189	** Sherri Parker Lee played a grifter suspect in "Greed" and a protective older sister [[spoiler:who was also guilty of assault and murder]] in "Mother."
190	** Creator/EmilyKinney already guested on ''Criminal Intent'' when she turn up as a VictimOfTheWeek in Season 13.
191	** Creator/GuillermoDiaz played two different characters in season 13 and season 21. Both characters were innocent men who had been wrongly convicted and serving life sentences in prison for crimes they didn't commit. He also appeared in the parent series on two separate occasions beforehand. He would later be RecastAsARegular in ''Series/LawAndOrderOrganizedCrime''.

Context Trivia / LawandOrderSpecialVictimsUnit