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‘Law & Order: SVU’ Star Debuts Her Biggest Haircut in Years

Olivia Benson has a brand-new look.

Cailey PetschHealth and Beauty Intern

PublishedMay 5, 2026, 2:48 PM EDT

UpdatedMay 5, 2026, 2:48 PM EDT

Updated May 5, 2026, 2:48 PM EDTPublished May 5, 2026, 2:48 PM EDT

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At 62, actress Mariska Hargitay is refreshing her style.

The Golden Globe winner and longtime star of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit debuted her shortest haircut in 12 years soon after announcing her upcoming Broadway performance.

Renowned celebrity hairstylist Adir Abergel posted eight photos on Instagram of the actress in a blunt, brown, chin-length bob. Abergel, the creative director of haircare company Virtue Labs, has been busy this week, creating Met Gala co-chair Nicole Kidman’s jaw-dropping look on Monday.

​In his caption, he wrote, “NEW CUT FOR THE ONE AND ONLY@therealmariskahargitay BROADWAY DEBUT IN @brilliantbway ❤️❤️❤️❤️”

Switching gears is a running theme in Hargitay’s life: In March, she announced her Broadway debut. The police procedural star will take the stage on May 26 in her first Broadway production, Every Brilliant Thing.

She succeeds British actor Daniel Radcliffe, whose last performance in the one-person show is on May 24 at 3 p.m.

The show will follow Hargitay as the narrator, a child who tries to prevent their mother’s suicide by writing a series of notes that recall small, brilliant things about living.

Hargitay, the daughter of American actress Jayne Mansfield, portrayed Olivia Benson for 25 years. Throughout the show’s run, Hargitay has explored a range of hair lengths and brunette hues, though few looks are as memorable as her May 4 cut.

​The comments surrounding Hargitay’s hair are overwhelmingly positive. Some recognize that it reminds them of Hargitay’s character, Olivia Benson, and of Olivia’s hair in earlier seasons of the show, like 2013, when Hargitay had a similar blunt style.

One commenter wrote, “Ok, wait, why is it kinda giving season 15 of SVU?” to which another fan responded, “That’s where my mind went to!”

“She’s had short hair 10 times in the whole of 27 years of the show,” another wrote, noting that the actress usually wore longer styles. Her 2026 bob is the Hargitay’s shortest in over a decade.​

Despite her bob being a breakthrough for Hargitay’s newest stage persona, the Olivia Benson character has taken risks with her hair on-screen before.

In SVU‘s third season, the NBC star wore a pixie haircut. Haritay explained in an interview with Allure, “We went real short—shorter than anticipated,” she says. “I almost got fired.”

Although her past cuts may have elicited negative responses, Hargitay need not fear career repercussions from her newest look.

The official Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Instagram account showed its support with a pun: “It should be criminal to look this good!”

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Cailey PetschHealth and Beauty Intern

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