What is Mariska Hargitay’s net worth? ‘Law & Order’ star earns nearly $850K per episode

Mariska Hargitay has spent more than 25 years playing Olivia Benson on ‘Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.’ When the NBC drama began in 1999, Benson was a detective working alongside Elliot Stabler. She now runs the squad, while Hargitay also has a role behind the scenes as an executive producer. With the show reaching its 600th episode, several reports mention that her acting and producing work brings in big paychecks.

Celebrity Net Worth estimates Hargitay’s fortune at $100 million. That is an estimate of her overall wealth, rather than a single year’s earnings. The site also lists a $7.34 million East Hampton home that Hargitay and her husband, Peter Hermann, bought in 2010. It reports that they sold their Manhattan townhouse for $9.75 million in 2019.

Variety reports that Hargitay now earns nearly $850,000 per episode as the show’s star and an executive producer. It does not split that amount into separate acting and producing fees. Celebrity Net Worth lists an acting salary of $500,000 per episode. The report describes that as base pay before producer compensation, bonuses and syndication royalties.

Hargitay’s acting career began before ‘SVU,’ including her 1985 film debut in ‘Ghoulies.’ She also appeared on ‘ER’ as Cynthia Hooper before landing the role of Benson. Her position on ‘SVU’ changed after Christopher Meloni left in 2011. She became the show’s lead and has remained at the top of the cast since his departure. She has also directed episodes of ‘SVU.’ Playing Benson earned her the 2006 Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series.

Meloni returns as Elliot Stabler for the 600th episode, ‘Obedience,’ scheduled for November 12. The story brings the former partners back together to reopen an old case. Offscreen, Hargitay marked the occasion at a dinner with cast, crew and creator Dick Wolf. “It was one of the most extraordinary, meaningful nights, and unexpectedly so to me,” she told Variety.

The milestone follows a year that also took Hargitay beyond ‘SVU.’ Her documentary ‘My Mom Jayne,’ about her mother, Jayne Mansfield, won two Emmys in September. Hargitay directed and produced the film for HBO. She hosted the Emmy Awards the following week before returning to New York to film an ‘SVU’ episode featuring Jalen Brunson. Production on the 600th episode began four days after that shoot ended. ‘Law & Order: SVU’ airs Thursdays at 9 pm ET on NBC.