'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
In its 26 years on air, Law & Order: SVU has been known for its eclectic mix of episodes and storylines all under the umbrella of Law & Order. With topics often sensitive and difficult, the show has always had a loyal following that keeps coming back for its standout guests and recurring characters.
Coming alongside long-term stars like Mariska Hargitay, SVU has also seen some prestigious guest appearances. The series has hosted many famous actors who often took on roles starkly opposed to their usual screen image. These seven notable guest appearances on the show highlight how these guests made a difference with their performances.
Best cameos in Law & Order: SVU
7) Bradley Cooper (season 6, episode 20)
What is meeting Lady Gaga like? Find out HERE
Before the rise of Wedding Crashers fame in 2005, Bradley Cooper appeared in Law & Order: SVU in season 6, episode 20 as defense attorney Jason Whitaker. The character defended against r*pe charges filed by Gabriel Duvall (Alfred Molina), and the case would continue over into Trial By Jury.
Trending
Whitaker was a morally gray character with aggressive and ethically questionable legal approaches. Cooper moved through different emotional beats—anger, indifference, and a cool charm.
6) Angela Lansbury (season 6, episode 20)
In the same season 6 episode that featured Bradley Cooper, Angela Lansbury was cast as Eleanor Duvall, a wealthy and aggressive mom for the r*pe suspect, Gabriel Duvall. Her character tries to use her financial power to silence the victims, while comfortably getting her son off the hook for whatever might happen legally.
But the case against Gabriel continues in Law & Order: Trial By Jury, where he blatantly pleads guilty. Angela Lansbury is best known for Murder, She Wrote, but she had significant experience in dramatic performances that paid off in her role. The appearance garnered an Emmy nomination and faithfully represented the world of Law & Order.
5) Jennifer Love Hewitt (season 12, episode 3)
In Law & Order: SVU season 12, episode 3, Jennifer Love Hewitt plays Vicki Sayers, a woman who has endured multiple attacks over 15 years. Detectives Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni) present her case, which leads to a guilty verdict for William Harris (James LeGros).
Hewitt's appearance illustrates her break from her previous roles and sets her in a much more dramatic situation, showing the effects of trauma over a sustained timeline. The episode pays attention to the legal process and emotional healing as the SVU detectives piece together evidence to charge Sayers's perpetrator.
4) Jerry Lewis (season 8, episode 4)
In Law & Order: SVU season 8, episode 4, Jerry Lewis played Andrew Munch, the mentally ill uncle of Detective John Munch (Richard Belzer). Andrew becomes a person of interest in a double homicide, which includes a young girl who had previously shown him kindness.
After the true killer is arrested, who could potentially be released from jail due to a technicality, Andrew decides to take matters into his own hands. He pushes the suspect into a moving train, believing he is doing justice to the victim and the SVU team. In some sense, this performance by Lewis is one of his last dramatic roles, especially in stark contrast to the comedic work in The King of Comedy and The Nutty Professor, which he is primarily known for.
3) Bob Saget (season 8, episode 9)
Bob Saget appears in Law & Order: SVU season 8, episode 9 as Glenn Cheales, a husband who secretly installs a GPS on his wife's car after learning of her infidelity. While Saget is most commonly known for his role as Danny Tanner on Full House and the host of America's Funniest Home Videos, he later went on to perform darker comedy and drama roles.
In this episode, Cheales's obsession and paranoia cause him to act in extreme ways, leading to a dramatic confrontation of extremes with SVU detectives. The performance exemplifies Saget's ability to execute uneasy intensity underneath a recognizable, friendly face. By embodying a dark, dramatic role, thus straying from his typical family-friendly persona, Saget contributed a memorable addition to his body of work.
2) Martin Short (season 6, episode 18)
Martin Short starred in Law & Order: SVU season 6, episode 18, as Sebastian Ballentine, a self-described psychic whose offerings of assistance the Special Victims Unit accepts after a kidnapping and assault have occurred. Halfway through the episode, Ballentine is revealed as Henry Palaver, the actual actor who is running a con and not the person he is trying to help the detectives locate.
Martin Short's performance switches sharply once we see the character of Sebastian Ballentine as a person of suspicion, and we also witness frightening scenes with his wife, as well as Detective Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni).
Martin Short's performance highlights the theme of wrongful identity that the episode examines, along with trust within a criminal investigation involving serious matters. Martin Short is known for comedic roles in SCTV, Saturday Night Live, and Madagascar 3 but has shown the ability to take on some serious dramatic material in SVU.
1) Robin Williams (season 9, episode 17)
In season 9, episode 17, Robin Williams portrays Merritt Rook, an engineer who has just had his wife die in childbirth. Rook is grieving, and this grief pushes him to villainy: he manages to manipulate events that cause a doctor to die by suicide and covers a complicated diversionary plot to get at Detective Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay).
During the episode, Rook exhibits an interplay of vulnerability and menace, which keeps the SVU team—and the audience—off balance. The ultimate reveal that the threats against Benson were a diversion leads to a pulse-pounding chase. Rook ultimately evades capture, leaving the detectives to deal with the spiraling consequences of Rook’s actions.
Williams’s performance illustrates the character's journey into obsession and what constitutes moral vengeance. Rook's character is unique in the chronology of guest stars for the series, and Williams shows that a familiar screen figure can easily slip on a malignant and truly threatening aura.
From Bradley Cooper’s courtroom intensity to Robin Williams’s chilling turn, these guest stars enriched SVU’s world. Each performance pushed familiar faces into new territory, revealing hidden depths, dangerous obsessions, or unexpected vulnerabilities. Their roles proved that even in a show built on crime, the most memorable moments often come from its standout guests.
