Is Kelli Giddish returning to ‘Law and Order: SVU’ season 26? Here’s why we really hope so
Benson and Rollins need to reunite.
Law & Order: SVU is as great as ever, even after 25 seasons. But we’re still upset about the exit of a fan-favorite character, and we think she needs to be in season 26.
When Kelli Giddish exited Law & Order: SVU when season 24 wrapped up, we learned that she didn’t want to go. It’s tough imagining all the well-crafted Detective Amanda Rollins storylines we’ve been missing out on. Giddish began playing Rollins in 2011 and stopped in 2024. While that’s an impressive amount of time, it’s just not enough. Is Kelli Giddish coming back for Law & Order: SVU season 26?
Will Kelli Giddish play Detective Rollins again when Law & Order: SVU returns in 2024?
After a shocking Law & Order: SVU season 25, we’d love to know if Kelli Giddish will be back as Detective Amanda Rollins. The answer? There’s no confirmation that this will actually happen (sadly).
In May 2024, Mariska Hargitay told Variety she wishes Kelli Giddish could reprise her role in season 26. Hargitay said, “I don’t like not being listened to, especially when I’m right. 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.”
Hargitay also said she loves co-starring with Giddish and if it was up to her, Detective Rollins would still be hard at work solving cases. She explained, “Kelli is my favorite actor to work with. Kelli is my heart. It’s a sore subject. I have a lot of say on the show, but I didn’t have enough there.”
We definitely wish that Kelli Giddish would come back as Detective Rollins for good because, as Mariska Hargitay pointed out, Collins and Benson have such a perfect dynamic. Even though it seems very unlikely that Giddish could be hired back on full-time, we’d at least like to see her in one episode when SVU returns in fall 2024. It’s rare to see such a vulnerable and meaningful friendship on this type of show, which is why it’s a huge shame not to see Rollins and Benson in more scenes together. There are so many procedural characters who spend all their time arguing (or bantering), and not enough who are genuine pals.
While we still loved watching Law & Order: SVU season 25, there was a bit of a shift in tone since Rollins and Benson’s meaningful relationship wasn’t featured as much as previous seasons. There’s also the fact that Giddish was a unique character. While hardened detectives don’t always have happy personal lives, it was interesting watching her start a family. Putting the spotlight on her personal life even more (along with, of course, all the cases she solves), would make for compelling future episodes.
Did Kelli Giddish come back for Law & Order: SVU season 25?
Kelli Giddish returned for two Law & Order: SVU season 25 episodes and they both prove why she needs to come back to season 26: because she doesn’t seem to be completely done with being a detective.
In season 25, episode 1, “Tunnel Blind,” Amanda Rollins and her husband Carisi (Peter Scanavino) are baptizing their baby, and Rollins works with Benson when a teenage girl disappears. In season 25, episode 11, “Prima Nocta,” Rollins is living her happy family life, but she doesn’t want to teach anymore, as she finds it dull and unexciting. She works with Benson on a case: a woman who was about to get married when she suffered a terrible assault.
Since we know that Kelli Giddish would have likely stayed on Law & Order: SVU if she could, since she said she didn’t make the call herself, it seems that her character exited for the sake of the e. But we can definitely see Amanda Rollins partnering up with Olivia Benson again, especially since they have an incredible personal bond that no one can break. Until we see Giddish back on our screens, we like to think that Benson and Rollins still get the chance to see each other often.
