Meloni Remembers Favorite Line from First SVU Scene with Hargitay

Nbc reported that Christopher Meloni said he remembers his favorite line from his first Law & Order: Special Victims Unit scene with Mariska Hargitay.

Fans first met Detectives Olivia Benson and Elliot Stabler in the 1999 premiere "Payback," which opened on the gruesome murder and genital dismemberment of a New York cabbie. In a 2022 interview, Meloni said, "I remember the best line of that scene, which was, 'Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar,' something like that," and recalled the cold-open exchange that included, "Whoever did this sliced off his cigar and took it with him," followed by Benson's quip, "Works for me."

Hargitay told TODAY in January 2025 that when she first met Meloni she "sized him up" and thought, "That's the guy." Law & Order: Special Victims Unit returns on Thursday, January 8 at 9/8c.

Key Topics

Culture, Christopher Meloni, Mariska Hargitay, Olivia Benson, Elliot Stabler, Payback