‘Law & Order: SVU’ Fans Slam NBC Series for ‘Insulting’ Kelli Giddish Comment

Law and Order: SVU fans have already been upset over the show’s decision to part ways with long-term cast member Kelli Giddish. Giddish has starred as Det. Amanda Rollins since Season 13. After initial reports surfaced that she’d been exiting the show this season, she took to Instagram to confirm. In a lengthy post, she wrote: “I wanted to address the chatter I’ve seen online and let everyone know that this will, indeed, be my last season on Law & Order: SVU. Playing Rollins has been one of the greatest joys and privileges of my life. I’ve been so fortunate to be a part of the Law & Order family for the last 12 years. There is simply no other character on TV like Rollins. She’s grown and changed, and I have as well. I started on this show when I was in my late 20s, and I’m grateful I got to spend so many of my adult years with Rollins in my life.”

On Sept. 22, she reminded folks to tune into the crossover premiere event for the series. “Tonight’s the night!” she captioned a photo bus ad for the TV event. A comment from the show’s official account wrote: “Can we get a DUN-DUN?” Fans felt the comment was shady.

“No, you can’t, but you can bring her back!!!” one person wrote. “You ain’t getting nothing! You’re taking her away from us,” along with several angry face emojis. Another added: “I don’t think you actually understood how insulting this comment is.”

Sources say the casting shake-up was a call made from above. Mariska Hargitay, who is both the star and an executive producer on the crime drama, as well as at least one other producer tried to keep Giddish on the procedural, but the decision had already been made.

Hargitay has since spoken out about Giddish’s departure, noting her sadness. “She is one of my favorite actors that I’ve ever worked with, and we got to build something really beautiful together and really learned together because our characters had quite a journey,” Hargitay told Entertainment Tonight.

The SVU veteran, who has been on the show since the start, says their journey together has been a beautiful one. “It wasn’t so easy at the beginning, and then we just fell into this beautiful safety, trust,” she explained. “I’m gonna miss her a lot, but she’s a lifelong friend, and I’m just glad that our paths crossed, and I know they’ll continue to cross.”