Kelli Giddish details the moment she knew “SVU”’s landmark 600th episode was ‘definitely special’
Kelli Giddish details the moment she knew “SVU”’s landmark 600th episode was ‘definitely special’
Shelby StivaleWed, November 11, 2026 at 4:00 PM UTC
0
Kelli Giddish attends ‘Law & Order’ season 25 celebration in JanuaryCredit: Noam Galai/NBC via GettyKey Points -
Kelli Giddish previews the Law & Order: Special Victims Unit milestone 600th episode.
The actress tells EW the moment she knew it was “definitely special” for the cast and crew.
“It’s a part of the culture,” she says of the show.
Kelli Giddish — and the Law & Order: Special Victims Unit cast — didn’t treat the 600th episode like just any other day at work.
“I mean, [creator] Dick Wolf is around set, so it’s definitely special,” Giddish tells Entertainment Weekly ahead of the NBC show’s milestone episode, set to air on Thursday. The actress, who has played Sergeant Amanda Rollins since season 13, says everyone working on the episode “got to celebrate” while filming.
Wolf also “spoke to the whole crew and the cast” during his surprise appearance on the SVU set. “He was like, This has never been done before and it, it will probably never be done again,” Giddish recalls. “To think that, not only, has it never happened before, but it’s not gonna happen again.”
She adds, “I think we all kinda looked at each other like, Oh, that’s part of this equation. This is a one time only deal, and we get to be a part of it.”
As for what an SVU-style celebration looks like? Giddish tries to explain — but it’s a you have to be there kind of deal.
“There’s a dinner, there’s talking, there’s speeches. Because it is such a huge milestone, you keep trying to take that in,” she says. “It is just another day of work, but it isn’t because you’re part of something that is just incredible. It’s huge. It’s such a part of a lot of people’s lives.”
Kelli Giddish as Amanda Rollins and Mariska Hargitay as Olivia Benson on ‘SVU’Credit: Virginia Sherwood/NBC
Giddish adds of the show: “It’s a part of the culture.”
The 600th episode, titled “Obedience,” follows the squad as they uncover a truth about one of Captain Olivia Benson’s (Mariska Hargitay) first cases at SVU. She reunites with Detective Elliot Stabler (special guest Christopher Meloni) to “confront the consequences of the choices they made as young detectives,” the episode’s logline reads.
Advertisement
Giddish tells EW that she enjoyed having “elder statesman” Meloni around on set.
“I like to get his ear and see what he thinks about the state of things. He’s worked with so many different directors, so many different actors. It’s always a pleasure to talk to someone that’s been around, that’s worked on a lot more sets than I have,” she explains. “I like having him as a resource. I like him, and I like talking to him.”
Gearing up for the 600th episode’s premiere has Giddish reflecting on her time playing Rollins, who has been through a lot during her SVU tenure. She’s “very grateful” to have seen the character through several seasons of life — something the actress has also experienced during her time on the show.
Giddish tells EW that she “had no idea” signing on to play Rollins would become a 16-season job. “Most shows don’t even last three seasons, four seasons, and here we are in our 28th season, rolling out a 600th episode milestone. I don’t know how to describe that awe,” she says.
Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter.
“The fact that there are 600 stories to tell of people doing terrible things to each other, it breaks my heart a little bit,” Giddish adds. “But the fact that it’s not just a regular procedural, that we shine a light on things that are kinda hard to talk about makes me feel good.”
New episodes of Law & Order: SVU premiere Thursdays on NBC at 9 p.m. ET. Episodes stream the following day on Peacock.
on Entertainment Weekly
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
