All the ‘SVU’ Nods in Mariska Hargitay’s Emmys 2026 Monologue

Mariska Hargitay traded in the captain’s office for the Emmys stage to host TV’s biggest night, but it’s no surprise that she also nodded to her day job on Law & Order: SVU, on which she’s starred as Olivia Benson for nearly three decades; Season 28 premieres on Thursday, October 8. It didn’t take long for her to nod to her work on SVU during her opening monologue.

“NBC is celebrating its 100^th year, and I have been on Law & Order: SVU for all of them,” she said soon after starting her monologue following the opening musical number.

“It is so reassuring to see so many familiar faces, and I’m just talking about how many of you I’ve arrested on SVU. You guys have done some unspeakable things. I’m talking to you, Martin Short. You should be ashamed of yourself,” she added a bit later. (Many actors have appeared on SVU in guest spots, some playing multiple roles, over the years.)

Hargitay also took time to acknowledge the man who created the Law & Order franchise, as well as One Chicago and FBI ones.

“And I couldn’t do any of this without thanking the genius behind SVU, the legendary Dick Wolf, who has created over 40 shows, 13 of which are on the air right now. And I gotta say, over the years, there have been a lot of jokes about his name, which is so unfair because Dick Wolf isn’t even his real name. His real name is Richard Penis,” she joked.

Hargitay then had a bit of fun while “struggling” to pronounce “finale” while discussing series finales. “I’m sorry, guys, it’s just that I never had one,” she said.

Hargitay is the sole remaining cast member on SVU from Season 1; Ice-T joined the cast the following year, and there have been numerous changes over the years.

oooof this opening number at tonight’s Emmy Awards was rough. Mariska Hargitay tried her best though pic.twitter.com/9FkKBI0eEY

— Spencer Althouse (@SpencerAlthouse) September 15, 2026