Amanda Rollins is back and better than ever, and Kelli Giddish is spilling all the tea on her Law & Order: Special Victims Unit The long-awaited return of the character.
“I’m very excited to be back,” Giddish said. Us weekly exclusively ahead of his return during the show’s new episode, which premiered on Thursday, October 16.
“We have such great showrunners, such strong showrunners, but now we have Michele Fazekas. “We have girls running the show,” Giddish continued. “It just makes it the perfect moment for the audience to see how Benson and Rollins’ relationship continues to grow.”
She joked that there’s “so much more we can explore” with Rollins, and what better time than now?
Courtesy of Mariska Hargitay/Instagram Kelli Giddish returns to Law & Order: SVU. The actress, 43, played Detective Amanda Rollins on the long-running crime drama for 12 years before leaving midway through season 24, Mariska Hargitay (Detective Olivia Benson) confirmed. In the Instagram clip, shared on Tuesday, November 28, the co-stars danced to Paul Russell. […]
Giddish also praised Fazekas for having “a great appreciation” for Rollins and allowing the character to show how much he has grown and changed.
“Of course, she realizes how important the relationship between Benson and Rollins is to us personally and to the audience,” the actress said of the showrunner. “I think she’s really following that.”
The fourth installment of the NBC show’s historic 27th season, titled “Clickbait,” ends with a scene that SVU Viewers know this very well: Rollins from Giddish and Mariska HargitayOlivia Benon is alone in the squad room for her version of a girl talk. And yes, Giddish and Hargitay were as excited to film it as we were to watch it.
Mariska Hargitay and Kelli Giddish
Virginia Sherwood/NBC“There’s a lot of random hugs. We’re like, ‘Oh, thank God,'” Giddish said. “It’s been so lovely. Everyone on the team says such kind words. They just exhale and say, ‘Oh, you’re back.’ That feels so good.”
Giddish noted that he also “treasures” the fans who share the “same feeling” about his return.
“We’re all happy to be there. We’re all very curious. We’re all committed to telling these stories and it’s a lot of fun,” he shared. “I know it’s a really heavy burden, the subject matter and portraying what evil people do to other people, but we as a cast and crew are just a solid group of people, and it’s a lot of fun to be there.”
Along with the show’s first female showrunner (Us was also surprised), Giddish joked that she, Hargitay and Aime Donna Kelly (Captain Renee Curry) are the “updated Charlie’s Angels” on set.
“Being three strong women, I think we welcome the trio and the comparison,” Giddish said, teasing a “super strong partnership” between Rollins and Curry in the near future.
“There’s mutual respect and she’s a very strong character on the show, a strong woman,” Giddish added. (Kelly previously compared Giddish’s return to SVU as if “another family member had returned home,” during an interview with Us.)
As for Rollins and Carisi? Yes, there are more moments between Giddish and Peter Scanavino also.
“It’s very easy with Peter,” Giddish gushed. “Whatever they throw at us, we have great chemistry together, and we’re friends off-screen, too. I think that shows in our work.”
Law & Order: SVU airs new episodes on NBC Thursdays at 9 pm ET.