Mariska Hargitay has brought Olivia Benson to life on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit for years. However, she admitted a moment when she was worried it might be coming to an end. Notably, this came out when she opened up about branching out into new ventures in her career.
Mariska Hargitay Has Been Part Of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Since 1999
Hargitay is a famous actress, herself the daughter of the late Jayne Mansfield. For many, she is best known for her role as Olivia Benson on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
Mariska has played Olivia since 1999. This is considered one of the longest-running roles in American primetime dramas. The role has also earned her a Golden Globe and a Primetime Emmy.
Although Hargitay has remained part of a show for decades, she recently opened up about stepping into new roles in her career. During an appearance on Today, she told Savannah Guthrie, “I am somebody to take on new challenges.”
As previously reported, Mariska recently made her Broadway debut with Every Brilliant Thing. However, she shared a surprising story when she got a phone call from the head of the NBC network right before she was set to appear onstage. As she joked, “I thought, ‘I should answer this. Am I getting fired? Am I getting fired?’”
However, it turned out to be good news. As Mariska explained, she was being offered the role of host for the upcoming Emmys. She admitted, “At first I thought she was kidding. I actually thought she was kidding. And then she wasn’t.”
The Actress Admitted That She ‘Slept’ On The Decision Of Whether Or Not To Host The Emmys
The actress noted that it “took me a while to process it.” However, she was soon on board with the idea, taking the offer.
As Mariska noted, she was a dramatic actress. However, hosting gigs like this usually go to more comedic stars. She continued, “I couldn’t understand it because I thought, ‘I’m not a comedian and it’s historically comedians.’ It was probably the farthest thing from my mind that I thought she was gonna say. So, I actually was kind of shocked.”
In fact, Mariska admitted that she decided to sleep on the idea before taking the job. She noted, “Why not? Which is kind of where I am in my life. And I was so incredibly honored, and again, knowing that it was the first woman in 15 years [to host the Emmys], was absolutely thrilling.”
After all, branching out into new roles appeared to be working for the actress so far. Calling her Broadway debut “extraordinary,” she noted, “I really loved it…I sort of said yes to it and then as we started rehearsal I thought, ‘What have I done? A one-woman show for an hour and a half on stage.’”
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John Witiw has been a writer since at least 2015. He’s covered a variety of topics, especially when it comes to film and television.
