<p id=”par-1_41″><em><a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/law-and-order-svu/”>Law & Order SVU</a> </em>has had plenty of intense episodes throughout its history, including some so difficult that <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/law-order-svu-difficult-episode-changed-mariska-hargitays-dna.html/”>they changed its star’s DNA</a>. But Hargitay named one <em>SVU </em>episode she believed took the show in a direction it never went before.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-mariska-hargitay-felt-this-episode-was-a-different-kind-of-svu”>Mariska Hargitay felt this episode was a different kind of ‘SVU’</h2>
<figure class=”wp-block-image size-full” id=”emb-1″><img decoding=”async” src=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Law-Order-SVU-Mariska-Hargitay.webp?strip=all&quality=80″ alt=”Mariska Hargitay posing on the set of ‘Law & Order SVU’.” class=”wp-image-3780322″><figcaption class=”wp-element-caption”>Mariska Hargitay | Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images</figcaption></figure>
<p id=”par-2_68″>Even after more than <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/law-order-svu-turns-25-see-cast-then-now.html/”>25 years on the show</a>, <em>SVU </em>was still able to surprise and impress Hargitay with its storytelling. But perhaps very few episodes affected the veteran like “Something Happened” did, which was the seventh episode of season 17 of the show. The episode delved deep into the trauma of Hargitay’s Olivia Benson, who tried to help the victim of a heinous crime overcome her own.</p>
<p id=”par-3_52″>But the crime victim, who was played by Melora Waters, wasn’t entirely who she claimed to be. The crime wasn’t as black and white as it seemed, allowing for plenty of twists and turns in the episode. Speaking with <a href=”https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/law-order-svu-star-mariska-hargitay-harassment-hollywood-something-happened-interview-1062666/”>The Hollywood Reporter</a>, Hargitay praised “Something Happened” for experimenting with <em>SVU</em>’s familiar formula.</p>
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<iframe title=”Law & Order: SVU: Mariska Hargitay Season 15 Episode 12 On Set Interview | ScreenSlam” width=”925″ height=”520″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/56-QqETLveM?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<p id=”par-4_73″>“The episode is utterly tragic and complex and human,” Hargitay said. “I thought that was so powerful, the complexity of this human being and showing what this kind of trauma does and how it affects people. It was a real departure from what we’ve done…. Obviously the material was so painful and dark, and it was just a very different kind of <em>SVU</em> and a different kind of relationship that Benson never has with the victim.”</p>
<p id=”par-5_45″>Hargitay further praised the episode for adding even more layers to Benson, who was on a relentless hunt for the perpetrator of the crime. The fact that <em>SVU </em>was still able to enrich Benson with strong character development was a testament to the series’ quality.</p>
<p id=”par-6_108″>“You think, where is this character going to go after 19 years? And I think that was the beauty of it. Benson has this need for justice — that’s her human flaw,” Hargitay said. “She needs to fix it. She needs to seek justice, and many times at the sacrifice of herself. I think this was the epitome of that — this little perfect microcosm of who she is, of what she is willing to do, to give, to do her job, to dig as deep as she can, and the lengths, the willingness of self-sacrifice. This was really her stopping at nothing to find out who the attacker was.”</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-why-mariska-hargitay-and-melora-waters-were-terrified-of-acting-out-the-scenes-in-something-happened”>Why Mariska Hargitay and Melora Waters were terrified of acting out the scenes in ‘Something Happened’</h2>
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<iframe title=”Top 25 Badass Benson Lines Over 25 Seasons | Law & Order: SVU | NBC” width=”925″ height=”520″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/KJMnJ-2KqzU?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<p id=”par-7_50″><em>SVU </em>has featured many talented guest stars, some who considered <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/law-order-svu-life-changing-modern-family-star.html/”>being on the show life-changing</a>. But Waters seemed to be a guest star who left one of the most unforgettable impressions on Hargitay. So much so that Hargitay considered working alongside Waters one of her favorite experiences as an actor.</p>
<p id=”par-8_115″>“One of the most brave actresses I feel like I’ve ever worked with, and so pure. We were so deeply connected…. She’s an incredible artist and so thoughtful in the conversations that we would have and the depths she could go to and the analogies she would invoke. The show deals with the cheetah and the antelope, and it turns out, as things would go, that she’s also a painter and had painted a cheetah in heat two years before. She sent me the picture. There were so many bizarre and deep connections, like we were meant to do this. We talked so much about maybe one day performing it as a play,” Hargitay said.</p>
<p id=”par-9_43″>But despite “Something Happened” being as dark of an episode as it was, Hargitay and Waters kept the mood on set lighthearted between them. But joking around behind-the-scenes was also a defense mechanism to cope with the pressure the episode put on them.</p>
<p id=”par-10_105″>“Melora and I joked every day because we were so terrified. We were terrified of doing justice to these scenes, which, of course, is so exciting and where you want to be, certainly, 19 years in,” Hargitay added. “I was so grateful to be terrified. I was so grateful to be scared, and so grateful to be that engaged. When you, 19 years in, are still staying up at night worrying about the work the next day, going, ‘Can I do this material justice?’ It was so layered, and so complex for Olivia to try to put these pieces together, because she is a victim first.”</p>