Chris Meloni Played A 'Big Role' In Showing Mariska Hargitay What Real Love Looks Like

Apr 06, 2022 by apost team

Mariska Hargitay has been in the spotlight since she was a child due to her celebrity parents. As the daughter of bombshell Jayne Mansfield and bodybuilder Mickey Hargitay, it is no wonder that Mariska went into show business. Tragically, Mansfield was killed in a car accident when Mariska was 3-years-old. The actress was in the car when the accident occurred and has a scar on the side of her head shaped like a zig-zag. 

The star has had an incredible career, having starred in the popular television drama "Law and Order: Special Victims Unit" since 1999. Hargitay is the winner of a Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award for her performance on the show.

Before she was Olivia Benson on "Law and Order," Mariska appeared in a number of films and TV series. Her debut came in 1984 when she was featured in a music video for "She Loves My Car" by Ronnie Milsap. After that, the actress had a small role in a horror film called "Ghoulies." 

Some of the other TV shows Hargitay has been involved in include "Freddy's Nightmares – A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Series," "Baywatch" and "In the Heat of the Night." The star also made guest appearances on "Falcon Crest" and "Seinfeld."

The actress and her husband, Peter Hermann, celebrated 15 years of marital bliss in 2019. The stars met on the show "Law And Order: SVU," working alongside one another. The couple has three children together, two sons, August and Andrew, and daughter Amaya.

Mariska also has a special connection with co-star Chris Meloni, who says he knew that Hargitay and Hermann would hit it off. Keep reading to learn more about Meloni and Mariska's friendship.

Hermann guest-starred on "Law and Order: SVU" in 2002, and apparently, there was an instant connection between him and Mariska. "I never thought I would have this much laughter in my life," Hermann told People. "Not just actual laughter, but also the way that Mariska is just the embodiment of laughter — of joy."

Likewise, Mariska said, "We sort of knew that we found the right one. I never thought it could be this good, and I never knew that I'd be reminded on the journey, that I'd marry the right one. That I waited and married the right one and it's better than I thought it was. Because sometimes you take a snapshot and you go, 'I can't believe this is my life.'" 

The key to their successful marriage? Laughter. "It's the way we find our way back to each other," Hermann told People. "It's this fantastically, wonderfully ridiculous way that we can swing back and forth any number of times in any given day. But fundamentally we know we have the same destination. We know where we're headed, and it's good. And we know we'll get there together."

Mariska remembers the first time they met, which was on set. "On the first day I was so nervous and I felt very, he was very handsome and it was distracting. And then he would come back the other days and all the producers would look at me and give me eyes and stuff… I had never been like that to anyone ever and it was funny because you know I was single," she recalled.

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Mariska and Hermann's on-set love story was witnessed by their co-star, Christopher Meloni. "This is the Peter story, from my perspective," Meloni told People. "He's on the show as a guest actor, and I'm looking at her, looking at him, and I'm seeing how she's acting, right? I know her, and I'm like, 'Oh boy. Here we go.' And she's just, 'Tee-hee, tee-hee, I don't even care about him or anything like that.'"

Meloni could tell right away that there was chemistry between Mariska and Hermann. "I just thought, 'Oh my God, it's like I'm back in high school, or even grade school,'" he added. "Sure enough, they start dating."

Meloni played his own role in Mariska's love story by setting a good example of a healthy marriage with his wife, Sherman Williams. "The birth of his first child and being privy to his amazing, solid relationship with his wife, before I had that for myself — I think that Chris and Sherman played a really big role for me, to see this really stable couple that loved each other," Mariska shared. 

Mariska acknowledged that Meloni is the kind of friend that she can rely on. "And it made me feel even safer with him, as opposed to: 'Great guy—but single.' Or 'Great guy — except for his romantic life,'" she said. "Instead, he's this man who is as solid as a rock, and who is that rock in his relationship. And I got to lean on it when I needed to. It was like family."

Even after Meloni left "SVU," he and Mariska stayed close. "I couldn't have been happier. But she and I," he stressed, "we stayed connected."

What do you think of Mariska and Meloni's friendship? Do you have a friend that you can lean on? Let us know, and feel free to pass this along to your friends and family.