What time will Law & Order: SVU Season 23 finale air? Plot, release date, and more

Law & Order: SVU Season 23 Episode 22 (finale) is almost here, and fans are excited for the upcoming episode of the classic legal drama. The finale will air on Thursday, May 19 at 9.00 pm ET on NBC, bringing another successful season to a close.

The American legal drama NBC's Law & Order: SVU was the creation of Wolf Entertainment, and the show first premiered on September 20, 1999. The show became the longest-running primetime US live-action series in television history, currently on Season 23 (which premiered in September 2021).

Furthermore, Law & Order: SVU had broadcast over 500 original episodes by 2021. Now that the season is drawing to a close, here's what the finale has in store for fans.

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Law & Order: SVU Season 23 finale: Plot, release date, and more explored ahead of the finale premiere

Raul Esparza will reprise his role as Rafael Barba in the Law & Order: SVU Season 23 finale in a very positive development. Unfortunately, relations between him and Captain Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) are still extremely strained since he defended Richard Wheatley (Dylan McDermott) during the murder trial for Detective Elliot Stabler's (Christopher Meloni) wife.

A promo video for the finale episode, titled A Final Call at Forlini's Bar, shows Barba finally coming back after Detective Amanda Rollins' decision to bring him in to assist the squad in helping and protecting a long-term domestic abuse victim.

Because of this, ADA Sonny Carisi's girlfriend, Rollins (Kelli Giddish), decides to turn to Barba (Peter Scanavino). Not to mention Carisi's perplexed reaction shown in the promo since he was under the impression that Olivia Benson and Barba were not on talking terms anymore. This explains why Rollins reached out to him instead of the former.

The promo ends with Barba taking a dig at Benson during their reunion, asking her:

"Why do you feel more angry at me than towards Stabler?"

NBC will air Season 23 Episode 22 (finale) on May 19, 2022, at 9.00 pm ET, and fans can expect drama and crime to be worse than ever. The official synopsis of the finale episode, titled A Final Call at Forlini's Bar, states:

"The SVU provides help and protection for a longtime domestic violence victim, but when she winds up at the defendant's table in court, Rollins surprises Carisi with a formidable opponent at trial."

Both Benson and Carisi had a difficult time in the previous episode. Carisi experienced a religious crisis after Special Victims found that a Catholic priest was molesting women who made confessions to him. Making things worse for him, he couldn't rely on Rollins for help since she was nowhere to be found.

Despite Carisi's struggles and Rollins' disappearance, there are grounds to believe they may get some extremely positive news in the finale.

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According to NBC's official press release, the show has been renewed for Season 24, so fans are urged not to worry about cliffhangers. Watch the finale of Law & Order: SVU on May 19 on NBC.