Christopher Meloni may be known for getting down with a refrigerator for certain roles, but the actor reveals that he never wanted the same during his Law & Order: SVU tenure. This declaration shall crush the hopes and dreams of many SVU fans, who already harbor some passive-aggressive feels about Detective Elliot Stabler’s cruelly abrupt departure. Some folks feel the program is just fine without the hotheaded character, but others can’t bear to watch the new seasons and prefer to enjoy USA Network reruns instead. The chemistry between Stabler and his work partner, Olivia Benson, simply cannot be replicated in the aftermath.
Of course, Stabler was married during the show’s run, but that didn’t stop him from briefly hooking up with Connie Nielsen’s character during her stint on the series. Meloni also did the deed on Oz, which was almost obligatory, given the show’s subject matter. The actor sat down with Inside the Actor’s Studio to discuss many subjects, including why Oz was difficult to reconcile with the concurrent, decade-long act of playing Stabler. He was thrilled to hold down both jobs because turning down a steady acting gig would be absolutely insane, but he told James Lipton about the surreal experience of playing these particular characters on the same day:
“It wasn’t easy. For about two or three years, I would wake up at 4:30 a.m., get in the van at 6 a.m., drive to Oz, kill people and sodomize them until about noon, jump in the car, go to SVU and go arrest people who murder and sodomize people until about 2 a.m.”
Meloni’s got a wicked sense of humor for sure, but he wanted no funny business between Stabler and Benson. He said the writers were in perfect agreement, and the co-workers would have never recovered:
“That I think they always knew would be the death knell of that relationship. I think they needed to keep that line taut and very clear … Keep the tension, never cross it.”
So, there you have it, folks. The man who played Stabler was committed to maintaining the unresolved sexual tension despite any fan fiction to the contrary, and hey, at least fans can enjoy Instagram reunions from the two actors. Aaaand for those who need to kill that dream once and for all, Meloni and Mariska Hargitay did do a little “making out” for TV Guide in this 2010 cover shoot video. Oh god, they really put a nail in the coffin of passion here. This is heartbreaking.
https://youtu.be/Xdl7NH7vsQQ?t=1m9s
