Mariska Hargitay Auditioned for ‘Friends’ and ‘Tested So Many Times’

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Zack Sharf
Tue, October 21, 2025 at 3:34 PM PDT
2 min read

Mariska Hargitay appeared on Amy Poehler’s “Good Hang” podcast and revealed she auditioned and screen tested many times for “Friends” a few years before landing the role of Olivia Benson on “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.” Both shows are NBC staples.

“I did a lot of comedy auditions,” Hargitay told Poehler (via The Daily Beast). “I did ‘Seinfeld’ and I did ‘Single Guy,’ and I tested for ‘Friends’ so many times. I think for Monica. I always thought I would end up being on a sitcom or doing comedy.”

Even when more dramatic roles came her way, Hargitay said: “I was like, I want to do drama but it has to be funny because that’s what I felt like my gifts were… [I would tell people], ‘I’m going to be a comedian because I’m funny and I’m pretty.’”

Hargitay’s reveal may surprise some. The actor has been playing Olivia Benson on “SVU” for more than 25 years, which makes her the longest-running character in live-action primetime TV history. It wasn’t until Hargitay consulted with a psychic that she was confronted with the possibility that comedy might not work out.

“I’m in L.A., [a] struggling actor [wondering] what am I going to do?” Hargitay said. “I came to New York, which I did three times a year to see theater. And then I met with this psychic. Everyone said to me, ‘Oh my gosh, Mariska, you have to meet with this psychic. He’s amazing.’ … I drove out somewhere on Long Island to this man and I went there and he started saying all this amazing stuff to me.”

“I was listening to him really intently like this. He said to me… ‘You see that face you’re doing right now? You see that face?’ I said, ‘Yeah.’ He goes, ‘You’re going to be famous for that face. You’re moving to New York and you’re gonna be famous for that face,’” Hargitay continued, noting she still wanted to land a network sitcom role at the time. “I said, ‘Uh, no.’ I live in L.A. and I’m going to be a comedian. Six months later, swear to God… I got ‘SVU.’”

Watch Hargitay’s full interview on the “Good Hang” podcast in the video below.