Rollins’ New SVU Storyline Lays the Groundwork For Her to *Finally* Come Back Permanently
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The new season of Law & Order: SVU is fast approaching and there’s a familiar face returning in Season 26. Kelli Giddish is joining the show as a guest star — find out more about what to expect.
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According to a September 5 report from TVLine, Kelli Giddish returns to Law & Order: SVU Season 26 as Amanda Rollins. Showrunner/executive producer David Graziano and executive producer Julie Martin shared the exciting news and a few details about her return.
“Rollins is definitely coming back to the show,” Martin shared. Graziano added, “She’s coming as a guest star, and she’s going to make a bunch of appearances throughout the season. We’re really happy about it.”
Giddish left SVU in December 2022. She has since returned several times, most recently in the May 2024 episode “Prima Nocta” to help out with a case. Mariska Hargitay‘s Captain Benson and Rollins had a heart-to-heart at the end of the episode.
Rollins said she “couldn’t handle the boredom” of being a professor. Benson told her, “And I don’t want SVU to be your safety net. How ’bout you take some time, figure out what makes you happy?”
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According to Martin and Graziano, Rollins works with the New York Police Department’s Intelligence Unit in Season 26. Graziano pointed out that it’s “very different from the Intelligence Unit anywhere else, because the Intelligence Unit in New York has cops stationed in almost every country in the world. And so, Rollins is going to be traveling a lot as part of that job.”
As for her husband, Dominick “Sonny” Carisi (Peter Scanavino), the EPs say they’re happily married and raising their kids. While Rollins travels, Carisi will have some solo parenting challenges. “We’ll see Carisi and his daughter get involved in something together that they’ll kind of have to work their way out of,” Graziano noted.
How many episodes will Giddish appear in? Graziano said there would be a “bouquet of them — and not describe the size of the bouquet yet.”
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In a May interview with Variety, Hargitay shared her feelings about Giddish leaving the show. “Kelli is my favorite actor to work with. Kelli is my heart,” she said. “It’s a sore subject. I have a lot of say on the show [as the star and an executive producer since Season 15], but I didn’t have enough there.”
“I don’t like not being listened to, especially when I’m right,” she added. “That relationship was one of the most powerful relationships in television because you saw these two badass women, so flawed and so there for each other.”
On September 5, Hargitay posted a photo of her and Giddish on Instagram with the caption, “You’re welcome.” There was plenty of excitement from fans in the comments, including one who wrote, “The girls are back !! ?????? This made my heart melt, so so happy to see you two back together.”
Others added, “Oh my heart! We need her back for good!” and “The duo is back!!! I’m so excited for this new season!!!”
Law & Order: SVU Season 26 premieres October 3 on NBC.
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is available to stream on Peacock.
Watch ‘Law & Order: SVU’ on Peacock
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