LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT Boss on Olivia’s Latest Challenge: ‘She’s Unmoored’

[Warning: This post contains spoilers for the Thursday, January 30 episode of LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT.]

Well, this wasn’t exactly the reunion Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) was hoping for.

After coming face-to-face with her former colleague/ex-boyfriend Ed Tucker (Robert Burke) at his retirement party, Olivia was blindsided to learn he recently got married…and then he was immediately suspected to be a key figure in a case.

But that wasn’t all: Tucker admitted to Olivia he actually had cancer and was given six months to a year to live. Unfortunately, he didn’t end up having that—just months after Olivia lost her brother, Simon (Michael Weston), Tucker took his own life.

“By the end of that episode, she’s unmoored,” LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT boss Warren Leight notes. “It’s, I think, the most emotionally draining episode. The William Lewis episodes obviously had a tension and a dynamic to them, but this kind of loss is profound.”

“What we know about Benson, is, first of all, she’s got a kid. Second of all, she’s got a job; she will pull herself up off the floor and then keep going,” he continues. “And then the question is, can it be a little bit of a turning point for her as well?”

While this certainly is a blow to Olivia, Leight points out the writers were very intentional with when they deployed this twist.

“It’s by far the toughest episode of the year in terms of emotional weight,” he says. “I will say at least it’s the middle of the season; she has a half a season to recover and bounce back. [If we had this air] at the end of the season, that would that would send a different sort of signal, I think.”

“I never lose faith in Olivia Benson,” he continues. “If she’s proven anything, she survives and keeps going. That will maybe provide a little bit of solace.”

If you need help, please reach out to the National Suicide Prevention hotline: 1-800-273-8255