‘Law & Order: SVU’ exclusive: Sophia Bush, Jesse Spencer, more from ‘One Chicago’ offer congrats on 400th episode
The 400th episode of “Law & Order: SVU” is going to be coming your way on NBC Wednesday night, and to say that this is a cause for celebration would be a VAST understatement. Just think for a minute about the number of shows who have hit that milestone — it’s programs like “The Simpsons,” “Gunsmoke,” “Lassie,” and “Bonanza.” The original “Law & Order” is the only other police drama to have produced more episodes in this genre; it also ran for 20 seasons. (In other words, there’s still room for “SVU” to get there.)
The achievement for this show is not lost on anyone within the industry, and that includes a group of people who are especially familiar with interacting with the “SVU” cast here and there. In the exclusive video below, you can see several cast members from NBC’s “One Chicago” franchise congratulating the show, its cast, and its crew for making it to this impressive milestone. This includes such people as Sophia Bush (“Chicago PD”), Jesse Spencer (“Chicago Fire”), Oliver Platt (“Chicago Med”), and others. Several actors currently employed in the Chicago universe have made guest appearances within the “Law & Order” franchise before as different characters; Yaya DaCosta (“Chicago Med”) previously appeared on “SVU” for an episode, while her co-star S. Epatha Merkerson of course starred in hundreds of episodes of the original show. She’s one of the few cast members in Chicago who can understand what it’s like to film such an enormous number of episodes for any one show.
Wednesday night’s milestone “SVU” episode is directed by series lead Mariska Hargitay, and it will revolve around a teenage boy using a gun in order to protect his mother from an assault; however, what he realizes afterward is that the target of his defense was far from a stranger. This episode could be a microcosm of what “SVU” does best — provide smart, thought-provoking, and powerful television that is well-acted and timely.
Here’s to hoping for many more great “SVU” seasons to come, and while we’re at it, let’s keep our fingers crossed to see more crossovers between it and all of the “One Chicago” shows. Those are always a lot of fun to watch.
(Photo: Michael Parmelee/NBC.)