The pair had been doing a rewatch of the series, which they mentioned during the interview.
One particular moment came up, where actor Christopher Meloni returned as character Elliot Stabler in Season 22.
Stabler’s wife ended up being killed off of the show during that season’s ninth episode.
Ice-T, 65, thought that, since fans wanted to see 60-year-old Mariska’s character Olivia Benson and Stabler come together as a couple, the plan was to have them “hook up” after Stabler’s wife’s death.
Ice-T mentioned specifically that he watches the show “like a fan” as he only sees the scenes he works on during production.
Mariska joked that fans would be thinking “Why won’t they listen to Ice?” about that particular plot point.
Ice-T asked Mariska whether Benson and Stabler had “hooked up yet at all” in the series.
“Close, right?” he asked
ce-T then insisted the pair should finally kiss in Season 26.
FALLEN ACTOR
Meanwhile, Law & Order: SVU fans were left in tears after seeing the show pay tribute to the late Richard Belzer’s character Munch.
Richard died in February 2023 in southwest France.
The actor, who portrayed Det. John Munch in the long-running crime drama, was 78 years old when he passed away.
The first episode of Law and Order: Special Victims Unit Season 25, titled Tunnel Blind, debuted on Thursday, January 18.
Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) reunited with friend Amanda Rollins (Kelli Giddish) during the episode, who returned to the series to introduce her newborn son.
The child, who Amanda shares with husband Sonny Carisi (Peter Scanavino), made his first appearance during the Season 25 premiere.
But that wasn’t the highlight of the episode for most.
The Law and Order cast also gave a toast to Richard in a sweet moment during the episode.
In the scene, Ice T’s character, Odafin Tutuola, tells Olivia and Peter Scanavino’s Dominick “Sonny” Carisi Jr’s character that “Munch would have ran him off just telling him his theory about the Kennedy assassination.”
The trio were discussing a new figure in the department at a bar, as Dominick said: “To Munch. The man, the legend…”
“To Detective Munch!” Olivia added as the trip clinked their glasses.
It was a moment that both surprised and touched fans who had still been mourning the actor’s passing.
Many shared their reactions to the emotional tribute on social media as they were reminded of the beloved character and the actor who portrayed him.
“Liv, Fin, and Sonny are now mentioning Munch, god rest his soul, while over at the bar!” one fan shared on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Others chimed in with their reactions to the unexpected tribute.
“The Munch mention,” another added with a crying face emoji.
“Here’s to detective Munch,” a third wrote, adding a crying face emoji with a blue heart and another emoji wearing a halo.
“That toast to Munch though. Both he and Richard Belzer are sorely missed,” a fourth shared.
The majority of users responding on social media admitted they were emotional over the mention.
Some admitted they were going to cry, and others were touched deeply by the cast’s acknowledgment of their fallen coworker.
REST IN PEACE
Bill Scheft, writer and longtime friend of Belzer, confirmed Richard’s death when he passed away.
“He had lots of health issues, and his last words were, ‘F**k you, motherf**ker,’” Scheft explained at the time.
Laraine Newman, an original Saturday Night Live cast member, also confirmed on X.
“I’m so sad to hear of Richard Belzer’s passing. I loved this guy so much. He was one of my first friends when I got to New York to do SNL.
“One of the funniest people ever. A master at crowd work. RIP dearest.”
Laraine worked alongside Richard from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s, per TMZ.
Richard starred in Law & Order: SVU for 15 seasons.
He first appeared as the character of John Munch in 1993 on the television series, Homicide: Life on the Street.
When the show was canceled in 1996, Richard felt his time as Munch was unfinished and proceeded to guest star in Law & Order episodes as the character for a few years.
According to the 2009 book Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Unofficial Companion, Richard called creator Dick Wolf to try and become Detective Lennie Briscoe (Jerry Orbach)’s partner on the original series.
However, Dick said he had already cast actor Jessie Martin at the time to play the character of Ed Green.
Fortunately for Richard, Dick was in the process of developing Law & Order: SVU and made sure Detective John Munch transferred over from Baltimore to New York City to join Detective Benson and Detective Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni).
Meloni went to X, formerly known as Twitter, to pay two tributes to his co-star.
.
“Good bye mon ami. I love you. The Belz,” 61-year-old Christopher wrote above a picture of him kissing Richard on the cheek.
The second post was a heartwarming old photo of Hargitay feeding Belzer on the Law & Order: SVU set.
