The verdict came in \u2014\u00a0and this hair style was a no go.<\/p>\n
After more than 25 years of portraying the iconic Olivia Benson on \u201cLaw & Order: SVU,\u201d <\/a>Mariska Hargitay revealed that she was nearly axed from the series in Season 3.<\/p>\n The actress, 61, came to work with a pixie cut that the producers found too drastic. <\/p>\n Mariska Hargitay as Detective Olivia Benson in Season 3 of \u201cSVU.\u201d NBCU Photo Bank\/NBCUniversal via Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201cMy hairstylist had a glass of wine and I really should have known better,\u201d Hargitay told Allure Magazine<\/a> earlier this month. \u201cMaybe he\u2019d thought I\u2019d be aerodynamic when I was chasing perps. I have no idea. We went real short\u2014shorter than anticipated. I almost got fired.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite the hairstyle being viewed as \u201ceasy, cool, and cop-like,\u201d the NBC vet wasn\u2019t a fan. <\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not like anyone is going to compliment Olivia\u2019s gels when she\u2019s flashing her badge,\u201d she said. \u201cBut I do always feel best with a fresh manicure. Many a not-so-great day has been saved by a great classic Chanel Red\u2014just not while shooting.\u201d<\/p>\n Christopher Meloni as Detective Elliot Stabler, Mariska Hargitay as Detective Olivia Benson in Season 3. NBCUniversal via Getty Images<\/p>\n Mariska Hargitay, B.D. Wong, Stephanie March in 1999. \u00a9NBC\/Courtesy Everett Collection<\/p>\n \u201cLaw & Order: SVU\u201d follows detectives and legal figures as they investigate and prosecute sex-based crimes. Many episodes are loosely ripped from the headlines.<\/p>\n The series, created by Dick Wolf, premiered in 1999, and along with Hargitay, starred Christopher Meloni (Elliot Stabler), Dann Florek (Donald Cragen), Richard Belzer (John Munch) and Ice-T (Odafin Tutuola) as the core cast.<\/p>\n Season 3 premiered on September 28, 2001 and ran for 23 episodes until May 17, 2002.<\/p>\n Mariska Hargitay and Christopher Meloni in a scene from \u201cLaw & Order: SVU.\u201d \u00a9NBC\/Courtesy Everett Collection<\/p>\n While Hargitay still leads the show with Ice-T, 67, Meloni, 64, exited in 2011 and reprised his role as Stabler 10 years later.<\/p>\n The actor now stars in the spinoff \u201cLaw & Order: Organized Crime\u201d on Peacock.<\/p>\n These days, viewers are gearing up for the premiere of Season 27, which airs on Sept 25.<\/p>\n Mariska Hargitay in a promotional photo for \u201cSVU.\u201d<\/p>\n Not only are audiences in store for a reunion between Benson and Stabler, but Florek, 75, is also making a return.<\/p>\n Meloni teased what\u2019s to come on Instagram last month.<\/p>\n \u201cHangin with friends on a Friday nite @therealmariskahargitay<\/a> @dannflorek<\/a>,\u201d he wrote beneath shots<\/a> of the trio on Aug. 2.<\/p>\n Mariska Hargitay, Christopher Meloni in Season 9 in 2008. \u00a9NBC\/Courtesy Everett Collection<\/p>\n Followers immediately flocked to the comments section to share their excitement. <\/p>\n One user commented, \u201cWelcome home Captain Cragen! Looks like a fun Friday night,\u201d while a second chimed in, \u201cyou guys are our collective parents.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Season 27 will see some shakeups<\/a> as Octavio Pisano, who portrayed Detective Joe Velasco, and Juliana Martinez, who was Detective Kate Silva, excited the NBC series at the end of last season.<\/p>\n Christopher Meloni, Mariska Hargitay in Season 1 of \u201cSVU.\u201d \u00a9NBC\/Courtesy Everett Collection<\/p>\n Hargitay reflected on starring on the procedural show in April.<\/p>\n \u201cIt feels like running a marathon, and when you\u2019re in it, all you see is this much ahead of you. I\u2019ve been so busy, so challenged, and it requires so much of me that all I can do is be on the treadmill of trying to keep up,\u201d she said on\u00a0\u201cSunday Today With Willie Geist.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n In 2024, the New Yorker said she felt \u201cprivileged.\u201d<\/p>\n Mariska Hargitay as Captain Olivia Benson. Michael Greenberg\/NBC<\/p>\n