Showrunner Warren Leight answers the burning questions including where Benson (Mariska Hargitay) is put now and how the twist will affect her relationship with Tucker (Robert John Burke).
- March 3, 2016
AceShowbiz -
"Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" just shocked its fans in an unimaginable way. In the latest episode titled "Manhattan Transfer", [SPOILER ALERT!] Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) got transferred following the team's investigation of a sex ring of underage Catholic school girls.
When they discovered dirty cops, religious leaders, judges, district attorneys, assemblymen and councilmen were involved in this party, Benson's boy toy Internal Affairs Bureau officer Tucker (Robert John Burke) was implicated.
Barba (Raul Esparza) found out about this and the next thing we know is Benson's no longer in charge of the special victims unit. Sgt. Dodds (Andy Karl) is now the squad's new acting commander and Carisi (Peter Scanavino) and Rollins (Kelli Giddish) were predictably not happy about the news.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, showrunner Warren Leight reveals where Benson will be put after the transfer. "We'll see in episode 18, she moves into a little cubicle desk in community affairs. There's a woman saying, 'Oh my God, we're all so excited to have you here. We can't wait. We're going to learn so much from you.' She's starstruck," Leight says. "There are all these 'Policemen are your friend' posters hanging on the wall. It appears to be [Benson's] worst nightmare. It's a little bit of a hat tip to 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine'."
Things also don't look good for Tucker. "He's out of his job, she's out of her's and the ring is doing a lot of damage and they're not in a position of power to do anything about it," Leight says of Tucker who's forced to step down from his post. "They are completely disempowered so that's what they're dealing with."
On how this will affect the couple's relationship, Leight dishes, "That's one more person you care about and that makes you that much more vulnerable. It's the question of, do you embrace life or do you cut yourself off? If you don't risk having people in your life then you don't risk losing them."
As for Carisi and Rollins' reactions to Benson's transfer and her replacement, Leight explains, "They're just completely in shock. It's a pure 'what the f**k' moment for Rollins and Carisi. She [Rollins] has a hard time with male authority figures for well-substantiated reasons going back to her time in Atlanta so she doesn't like the old boy network... and she sees Dodds as a product of that network."
"Law & Order: SVU" returns with a new episode Wednesday, March 23 at 9 P.M. on NBC.
