Ice-T Reveals He Was Only Originally Booked for 4 ‘Law & Order: SVU’ Episodes

Ice-T has worn several hats throughout his career: rapper, reality star, and actor. And one role in particular changed his life.

For 25 years, Ice-T has played Odafin “Fin” Tutuola — a sergeant with the New York Police Department’s Special Victims Unit — on Law & Order: SVU. He made his first appearance on the show’s second season premiere in 2000.

During the red carpet portion of the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards on Sunday, Sept. 14, Ice-T spoke with Entertainment Tonight about the show’s legacy. He also revealed that his character was originally only meant to have a short run.

“I went on the show to do four episodes,” said Ice-T. “Four episodes and now it’s season 27 and counting.”

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Since originating the role, Ice-T has appeared in over 450 episodes of SVU. SVU — which tells stories of the New York City Police Department’s special victims unit seeking justice for sex crimes — has run for 26 seasons, making it the longest-running primetime live-action series on American television. And the beloved cast doesn’t believe it will end anytime soon.

“I think the show will go on as long as [actress] Mariska [Hargitay, who plays detective Olivia Benson] wants to continue to do the show,” said Ice-T. “It’s got a hook in the fans. Then fans love us because SVU is not only entertainment, it’s therapy to a lot of people.”

He continued, saying, “We’re dealing with real issues. And our fanbase — the victims are still alive — and so, a lot of people watch our show and see justice that they didn’t see in their lives.”

Over the course of SVU’s run, Ice-T has earned much acclaim for the portrayal of Fin, including a NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.

Fans can soon look forward to Law & Order: SVU’s 27th season, which is scheduled to premiere Thursday, Sept. 25 at 8 p.m. ET on NBC. New episodes will broadcast weekly and be available to stream on Peacock the following day.