With Law & Order: SVU season 25 celebrating the show's silver anniversary, it should come as no surprise series showrunner David Graziano is pulling out all the stops to commemorate such a historic TV run.
SVU not only extends its reign as the longest-running primetime live-action TV series in US history, but Mariska Hargitay's Olivia Benson becomes the longest-running character on a prime-time drama series. Such feats are deserving of big and captivating storylines, and that may be just what fans are in for as soon as the new season debuts on January 18.
According to a conversation reported in TV Guide Magazine's 2024 Preview, Wolf Entertainment Executive Vice President Rebecca McGill said of season 25 and the Benson character, "We'll spend time with Capt. Olivia Benson, reflecting on her career and future."
Graziano followed this up by stating, "This season is 'The Greatest Hits of SVU,' with folks from Benson's past [cases] coming back." These words seem to foreshadow that loyal fans may want to prepare themselves to see shocking returning faces.
When you pair Graziano's words with a bit of logic, it would make perfect sense going into year 25 if a few of the perpetrators Olivia has helped lock up over the years are released from prison and reappear on the show's canvas. That could mean a plethora of her most notable adversaries could resurface, which could result in some big names in Hollywood stopping by the show. As longtime viewers know, some pretty famous people have played some legendary villains in the Law & Order franchise.
Should the new season really mark a year of reflection for Olivia, then perhaps the SVU audience should prepare to see those who have significantly impacted her personally and professionally.
Besides Olivia's infamous stalker William Lewis (Pablo Schreiber), who is dead, Lowell Harris (Johnny Messner) scarred the top cop for a while. He almost sexually assaulted her while she was undercover as an inmate in prison. Could he somehow pop back up on the show canvas, leaving Olivia in deep thought?
Viewers could also possibly see the return of Darius Parker (Ludacris), Fin's (Ice-T) stepson who committed murder and rape, and single-handedly destroyed the reputation of Olivia, Fin, Elliot (Christopher Meloni) and the rest of the squad room led by Captain Cragen (Dann Florek). Darius' arc on the show is very memorable, so perhaps he'll return having committed a crime he'll actually go to prison for as his cases were previously dismissed.
On a more personal note for Olivia Benson, maybe this season will see the return of her niece, also named Olivia. The SVU leader hasn't seen her niece in years and with the cop's brother Simon (Michael Weston) dead, a reunion has largely seemed unlikely. However, perhaps an emergency brings the lost family member back into the fold.
While we have enough show material to speculate for days as to who may be returning, we'll pivot our attention to who we know is appearing in season 25. For example, Kelli Giddish is back as Amanda Rollins in the SVU season 25 premiere episode. Additionally, Kevin Kane's Detective Terry Bruno is also slated to appear. As far as how often both of them will be seen in the new episodes, McGill says that's "on a case-by-case basis."
We’ll just have to stay tuned to see who will be featured in Law & Order: SVU season 25.
New episodes of Law & Order: SVU air live on NBC at 9 pm ET/PT on Thursdays. Episodes become available the day after they air on Peacock.
