Law & Order: SVU Season 26 Will It Happen? Everything We Know

Dick Wolf's Law & Order: Special Victims Unit has been one of the hallmark series on NBC for a quarter of a century, but will the procedural return for season 26? Debuting in 1999 as a spinoff to Wolf's wildly popular Law & Order, SVU follows the dedicated detectives of the titular Special Victims Unit who specialize in cases involving sex crimes. Perhaps the most successful spinoff of all time, SVU has managed to outlive its predecessor and has taken its place as the flagship series of Wolf's entire TV universe.

Though critical reaction to SVU has seen peaks and valleys over its two and a half decades on the air, its popularity and viewership have rarely wavered. What makes the series so special is its ripped-from-the-headlines stories that help recontextualize some of the biggest news pieces of the time. Though SVU and the rest of Dick Wolf's TV universe were delayed due to the Hollywood strikes of 2023, the wait only helped to make their returns even more anticipated. With that in mind, there is no reason to think that Law & Order: SVU is stopping at the end of season 25.

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Law & Order: SVU Season 26 Is Not Confirmed

With a massive show like Law & Order: SVU, no news is good news when it comes to renewals and cancelations. Because the show has been on the air for so long and has become an institution, the final season would be a big deal and would therefore be announced ahead of time. With that in mind, it's only a matter of time before NBC renews SVU for its 26th season. The most likely scenario is that the network will have a mass renewal of all of Dick Wolf's NBC series, something they did in mid-2023.

Law & Order: SVU Season 26 Cast

In its 25 seasons on the air thus far, Law & Order: SVU has seen a lot of change in its peripheral characters, but the main core has remained largely intact throughout. That said, SVU season 26 will most likely feature a lot of familiar faces if it is renewed, with Mariska Hargitay leading the charge as Olivia Benson. Joining her will probably be long-time co-star Ice-T as Fin Tutuola, since the rapper-turned-actor has made it clear on numerous occasions that he has no plans on ever leaving SVU.

Long-time SVU star Kelli Giddish left her role as Amanda Rollins after season 24 in controversial fashion, but her brief cameo in season 25 does open the door for a more permanent return. The same goes for Christopher Meloni as Elliot Stabler who departed the franchise only to be given his own spinoff, Law & Order: Organized Crime. Though he probably won't come back to SVU permanently, crossovers are nearly guaranteed.

The rest of the cast of season 26 is expected to include:

Law & Order: SVU Season 26 Story

The story of Law & Order: SVU season 26 will largely depend on what happens throughout season 25. The procedural has moved in a more serialized direction in recent seasons, and it's highly likely that a few new threads introduced in the current season will continue on in season 26, though it's impossible to predict them at this juncture. However, season 26 is expected to contain more signature Law & Order ripped-from-the-headlines stories that test the resolve of the SVU team, and will almost certainly have a few crossovers with Dick Wolf's other NBC shows.

• Law and Order: SVU

  Release Date: 1999-09-20

  Cast: Christopher Meloni, Mariska Hargitay, Richard Belzer, Dann Florek, Michelle Hurd, Stephanie March, Ice-T, BD Wong, Diane Neal, Tamara Tunie

  Genres: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller

  Rating: TV-14

  Seasons: 24

  Story By: Dick Wolf

  Writers: Dick Wolf

  Network: NBC

  Franchise(s): Law and Order

  Showrunner: Robert Palm, David J. Burke, Neal Baer, Warren Leight, Rick Eid, Michael S. Chernuchin, David Graziano