A Sparkling Statement: Mariska Hargitay Dazzles in Sequins at the ‘Law & Order: SVU’ Milestone Season Premiere
Leave it to Mariska Hargitay to mark the momentous occasion of Law & Order: SVU’s history-making 25th season premiere in signature style. The legendary actress, who has played the iconic Captain Olivia Benson since the hit crime drama’s inception, shone brighter than the New York City lights as she glided down the red carpet in a scene-stealing sequined gown.
Draped in a Self-Portrait midi dress that evoked images of a disco ball brought to life, Hargitay embraced the celebratory spirit of the evening. “I’m serving some sequins, that’s for sure,” she remarked with her signature warmth and wit that has endeared Benson to audiences for over two decades. As the camera lights bounced off the dress’s iridescent embellishments, Hargitay dazzled from every angle. She paired her shimmering frock, which included a flared skirt and short sleeves, with a white faux fur coat before hitting the red carpet, accessorizing with black ankle-strap heels and multiple diamond bracelets.
The Golden Globe winner, 59, wore a disco ball-like Self-Portrait midi dress ($671) with twist-front detail at the neck as she walked the red carpet, telling Entertainment Tonight that she was “serving some sequins, that’s for sure.”
Like her character’s dedication to seeking justice and guiding victims to healing, Hargitay was dressed for the occasion. The milestone 25th season cements Law & Order: SVU in television history as the longest-running primetime live-action series to date. Similarly, Captain Olivia Benson officially holds the title as the longest-running live-action character on television — an accomplishment as monumental as the woman who plays her. As the face of a cultural phenomenon that has captured viewer’s hearts and minds for a quarter of a century, Hargitay used the platform of the hotly anticipated season premiere to issue a powerful message about the legacy she hopes her on-screen alter-ego leaves behind. “I hope her legacy is she helped a lot of people heal,” Hargitay declared, a statement as moving as the vulnerability she continues to bring to the role.
While she turned heads in a traffic-stopping sequined dress that commanded attention, Hargitay is no stranger to making courageously candid statements herself. Mere days before strutting her stuff on the SVU premiere red carpet, Hargitay opened up about her own experience as a survivor of sexual assault at the age of 34. As Benson has been an advocate for assault survivors on-screen, Hargitay hoped that sharing her story publicly for the first time would empower others to begin their own healing journey. “I think it was time,” remarked Hargitay on what motivated her to come forward now. “I felt safe and ready.”
After 25 groundbreaking years as champion and crusader for survivors as Olivia Benson, it comes as no surprise that Hargitay feels supported by the very community she has built within SVU’s cast and crew. “There’s a lot of intimacy… a lot of love in the people that created the show,” she revealed. “We’re like family.” Much like the dazzling dress that celebrated this family’s incredible milestone achievement, Hargitay continues to be a luminous light guiding the way forward for TV, as well as the lives her iconic character has touched over the years. She may have arrived in a scene-stealing sequined number, but it is her spirit that sparkles the brightest.
