Christopher Meloni Shares First On-Set Photos of 'Law & Order: SVU' Return
The actor will reprise his role as Elliot Stabler ahead of his new 'Organized Crime' series.
Detective Elliot Stabler is officially back.
Actor Christopher Meloni has shared the first images of himself back on the set of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Meloni, who is coming back to the Dick Wolf universe to anchor the new Law & Order: Organized Crime, will ease his way back into he fold with a highly-anticipated appearance on Special Victims Unit this season.
The first photo is of Stabler's forearm tattoo from his service in the U.S. Marine Corps. The second is a selfie of Meloni and his daughter, Sophie. Check out the images from Meloni's official Instagram page below.
The new images come on the heels of another surprise that SVU fans recently experienced: confirmation of Raúl Esparza's return to SVU next year.
The forthcoming Organized Crime was ordered by NBC for 13 episodes. Executive produced by Dick Wolf, Matt Olmstead, Arthur Forney, and Peter Jankowski, the seventh Law & Order franchise will air Thursdays at 10/9c on NBC following new episodes of SVU at 9/8c.
Originally slated to premiere this fall, Organized Crime has been pushed to the spring due to staff shuffling and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic,
Throughout the new series, viewers will follow Stabler as he returns to the NYPD to find the city and police department have changed dramatically in the decade he’s been away, forcing him to adapt to a criminal justice system in the midst of its own reckoning.
Last February, show creator Dick Wolf inked a landmark five-year, nine-figure deal that
will see SVU as well as Chicago P.D., Chicago Fire, and Chicago Med all renewed for three more seasons.
Chris Meloni played Detective Elliot Stabler on Law & Order SVU for 12 seasons. His performance in the role earned him an Emmy nomination in 2006 for Best Lead Actor in a Drama Series. Meloni left the show in 2011 supposedly over issues with his contract.
With Stabler still in New York on Organized Crime, the new show creates many possibilities for more cross-over action with SVU, in typical Dick Wolf fashion. More importantly, more on-screen time with his former partner, now-Captain Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay). One of the biggest components of SVU was the dynamic between Benson and Stabler, and fans have been itching for a reunion for years. Now, they're finally going to get their wish.
- Matt Bishop