Mariska Hargitay Returns the Favor and Names Her Cat After a Taylor Swift Song
Karma is a cat purring in Mariska Hargitay's lap.
The Law & Order: SVU actress, 59, took to social media on Thursday, November 30, to announce a special addition to her family: her new kitten.
"Karma is a Cat @taylorswift Meet Karma. My Cat.?? #MeAndKarmaVibeLikeThat #AndIKeepMySideOfMyPawClean #KarmaIsACat," she captioned the Instagram post, referencing lyrics from Taylor Swift’s single “Karma” off her 2022 album Midnights.
Swift, 33, was delighted to see the news. "Are you serious?!!!! Nothing has ever come more full circle ?? LOVE THIS SO MUCH!! ??," she commented on Saturday, December 1.
Alongside the post were two photos of the furry feline laying on a bed and licking its paws while rocking a bright red collar. “No we’re obsessed,” the official Law & Order Instagram wrote in the comments section, while Hargitay’s costar Ryan Buggle added, “Please bring this baby to work.”
The ode to Swift is a long time coming, as the Grammy winner named her cat Olivia after Hargitay’s SVU character, Olivia Benson. Olivia is one of three cats that belong to Swift, with Meredith — named after Ellen Pompeo’s Grey’s Anatomy character, Meredith Grey — and Benjamin Button rounding out the trifecta.
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"When she named her cat, I had so much going on,” Hargitay exclusively told Us Weekly in October 2014 of learning about the moniker. To show her thanks, Hargitay gifted Swift an engraved collar in the shape of a heart. “I was out of town, and when things calmed down, I thought it warranted a real something [special],” she said. “That's so sweet and too fabulous.”
Hargitay and Swift have a longstanding friendship. The actress was part of Swift’s star-studded 2015 music video for her single “Bad Blood.” After Swift won the Video of the Year award at the MTV VMA’s months later, Hargitay celebrated with a touching tribute.
"My girl @TaylorSwift. She won! So glad to be there with the #GirlSquad tonight to represent and watch you win! You earned it. #JusticeIsServed #BadBlood #BestVid #MadLove #JusticeAndCatastoprhe,” she wrote alongside a sweet snap of the twosome at the awards show.
Hargitay later made an on-stage appearance while attending Swift’s 1989 World Tour later that year and penned a short essay in honor of Swift when she was named one of Time’s 100 Most Influential People.
“[A] megawatt talent, an extraordinary spirit, an impossibly charming blend of impishness, poise and radiance to spare,” Hargitay gushed of the singer in the April 2015 issue. “All of it combines to rock me back on my heels every time I see her. Both literally and figuratively, she’s a woman who writes her own songs. That makes for music that’s personal, of the moment and impossible to resist.”
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Earlier this year, Hargitay supported Swift once again by attending one of her Los Angeles Eras Tour stops in August. Two months later, she took 12-year-old daughter Amaya, whom she shares with husband Peter Hermann, to Swift’s Eras Tour movie premiere.
"She's pure magic. There's nothing she can’t do," Hargitay gushed to Entertainment Tonight of Swift last month. "It's been so beautiful to reconnect to that innocence, you know? I think Taylor gives such a beautiful message to kids and unlocks these girls' emotions."
