It’s the year of Mariska Hargitay.
The 2026 Emmys are just three weeks away, and the first-time host took a break from prepping for the big day — and the 600th episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit — to attend the HBO Max Emmy Nominee Celebration, held Sunday afternoon at NYA Studios West.
“I am having the time of my life working with these unbelievable writers,” she told Gold Derby on the red carpet. “I am just so excited that everything is up for grabs, and it is so incredibly creative, and we go everywhere. It’s been such an extraordinary experience for me, because I haven’t done this before.”
Hargitay won an Emmy for playing Olivia Benson on Law & Order: SVU in 2006 and now, 20 years later, she’s nominated for producing and directing her HBO documentary My Mom Jayne, about her late mother, Jayne Mansfield. Hargitay will host the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards on Sept. 14.
“When I started acting, I sort of thought I was going to go more into comedy, because that’s what I loved, that’s what made me happy. And then my career took a little bit of a left turn there with the drama,” Hargitay explained. “I’ve done SVU. I did my movie. I did the play, which was a completely different sandbox. And now, I’m in a whole other sandbox! It’s been so fulfilling and extraordinary working with talented people where everything is possible. It’s just been such a joy.
“Being on SVU for so long, you’re doing one thing, and although it’s challenging and has such great writers, it is a specific thing that keeps me in my lane. So, I love the fact that I get to get out of the box, if you will.”
The actress wasn’t surprised when Gold Derby informed her that 26 of this year’s Emmy nominees previously appeared on various Law & Order shows. “We’ve had such an extraordinary guest cast,” she confirmed. “It doesn’t surprise me at all. Being able to work with the guest cast on Law & Order, having all these crazy, talented people come, it’s been one of the things that has kept me on the show. Not only is the cast amazing, but the people that I never dreamed I’d get to work with and learn from have been an extraordinary gift.”
Hargitay welcomed attendees to the day-long HBO event that honored the nominees from shows like The Pitt, Hacks, DTF St. Louis, The Comeback, Euphoria, Half Man, Task, The Gilded Age, and more. During her opening monologue, she joked that she makes her kids call her “Emmy-winning and now Emmy-nominated mom.” It’s better than what she used to make them call her — “your grace” — because she’s a big Game of Thrones fan.
SVU fans will be excited to learn that the 28th season of the NBC crime procedural has started filming, and soon it will churn out its 600th episode. “Can you believe it?” Hargitay asked the crowd. “And not one single musical episode yet!” The SVU writers still haven’t figured out what to rhyme with “pre-judiciary evidence,” but once they do, Olivia will be singing and dancing her way to the courthouse.
For Hargitay, My Mom Jayne has been “one of the most meaningful and extraordinary experiences” of her life. “It gave me the chance to heal our family, to honor my mother and her legacy, and to know her in a completely new way — a way that’s full of compassion and empathy and love. The journey was incredibly emotional, as you can imagine. It was surprising, and it was healing.”
She explained how “the response to the documentary has been profoundly moving.” Indeed, it’s nominated for three Emmys: Best Documentary/Nonfiction Special, Best Documentary/Nonfiction Directing, and Best Documentary/Nonfiction Cinematography. “Seeing it recognized along so many exceptional artists is something that I’m very grateful for,” Hargitay said.
