Law & Order: SVU Scrapbook

Excerpts from interviews and articles that focus on Isabel Gillies and her character from various news articles from magazines and the internet.

TV Guide August 2006- Christopher Meloni preps for the Emmys

TV Guide: What's up for Stabler this season?

Meloni: He has to deal with a new partner [played by] Connie Nielsen. And Mariska and I have to figure out who we are and what we are and where we are in our professional relationship. Stabler's wife comes back in the picture a little bit. That's been fun, and...weird.

TV Guide: That's interesting, considering she hasn't been in your life for a season. In what way does she come back into Stabler's life?

Meloni: She and I have to figure out who we are, what we are and where we are in our personal relationship. [Laughs]

TV Guide: Here are three gorgeous women trying to figure out their relationships with you. What's up with that?

Meloni: Damn, baby. It's about time I got a little bit of this action!

TV Guide: What kind of surprises can we expect?

Meloni: That's a question for [executive producer] Neal [Baer]. But there's a lot of room to play. We were very happy with what was happening between my wife and I, so we decided to go with that.

TV Guide: You might get back with her?

Meloni: I don't know what the dynamics are, but she'll play a little larger role in my life, yeah

TV Guide September 2006- Fall Preview

Where We Left Off: Elliot Stabler found himself estranged from both his partner Detective Olivia Benson and his wife, Kathy.

D-I-V-O-R-C-E? [Mariska] Hargitay, who gave birth to a son in June, will appear in the new season’s first episode (filmed last January) but won’t be back until around episode 9. Her character’s absence- she ditched sex crimes for computer cons- will allow plenty of time for the show to take a closer look at the Stabler family strife. “We’re not even clear as to who wants the divorce and why,” says Meloni of the confusion around the troubled marriage.

Un-Stabler: Season 8 will find Stabler questioning his passionate approach to work. “I think he always felt the emotional wake of his estrangement from the two most important women in his life. The character finds that rage starts eating him apart.” Executive producer Neal Baer offers cryptically, “something profound happens to him.”

Is it getting hot in here? While Benson’s away, Stabler will be teamed up for 6 episodes with Warrants officer, Dani Beck, played by Connie Nielson. “SVU goes places it’s never been before,” Baer says. Adds Meloni, “Sparks fly.” Excuse us? “I think my character is having a difficult time with where to place his emotions these days,” the actor explains.

TV Guide February 2007- SVU’s Expecting News

…Although the cases they work are still the series’ hook, their soap-opera-like personal sagas, Stabler’s unstable home life…have been stealing the focus of late…There certainly are no plans for them [Stabler and Benson] to get together anything soon, particularly since Stabler is trying to reconcile with Kathy, his estranged wife. 

TV Guide April 2007- Q&A with Michael Ausiello

Please, for the love of God, tell me a little more on the SVU baby bombshell? I know you dwindle it down to Dani, Olivia, or Kathy, but can’t you give us a little more information?

The baby will be conceived on May 8th

TV Guide May 2007- Q&A with Christopher Meloni

Det. Elliot Stabler's sexy, complicated, intense roots can be found in

Christopher Meloni's early guest roles on Homicide: Life on the Street and NYPD Blue, and even in his boundary-busting portrayal of a bisexual killer on OZ. It's all on display tonight in a strong Law & Order: SVU episode that takes Stabler on an emotional, twist-filled journey.

Tonight, Nip/Tuck's Dylan Walsh plays a married father, possibly a CIA agent, and a suspect in a young woman's murder. Why is Stabler so emotionally involved in this case?

Meloni: You see a guy who's outwardly a family man like Elliot, who has everything going for him, but this guy's living a double life. He has a mistress on the side and the pressure leads to horrible [decisions]. Elliot is estranged from his wife and this case goes to the heart of how easily everything can be taken away from you.

Which leads to something rarely seen on L&O - a hot love scene in which, shades of Oz, you’re pretty much exposed? Did you ask for that?

Meloni: No, please write down I never begged for the beefcake. I will say that when I [read the script], I had a very broad smile on my face. It hasn't been seen in this venue, so I was up for it.

His estranged wife is his romantic partner. Does that lead to a reconciliation? We hear there's a major development.

Meloni: I can't divulge that. What's great about that scene is that it was painful, amid not only the wreckage of our marriage, but what I am dealing with. It spoke volume far beyond my bare ass.

TV Guide May 2007- Q&A about the finale and future of returning TV shows

On Law & Order: SVU, will Elliot move back home with Kathy and the kids now that she's pregnant?

Executive Producer Neal Baer says: Earlier in the season, in the episode "Burned"- in which a husband and wife kept doing more and more terrible things to each other- Elliot [Christopher Meloni] thought about going back to Kathy [Isabel Gillies]. He didn't want to be that kind of person- he wanted the safety and comfort of home. But he just wasn't able to take the final step, because he's so tortured by the work he does. It took a cataclysmic case where a family was destroyed for him to decide to make the move back. When Dylan Walsh's character murdered his wife and children in "Annihilated", it brought home to Elliot how things can change in an instant and made him realize how much he loved his wife and family. In the finale, he found out that Kathy's pregnant. His kids range from age 15 to 22, so next season he's going to have to learn how to be a father to a child again, as well as a husband.

TV Guide 2007- Fall Preview

Ausiello’s Spoilers

…also, Stabler is officially back playing house with his pregnant ex, Kathy, and their eldest daughter is officially TV’s most annoying teen.

(correction note: their second eldest daughter)

Where We Left Off: Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni) learned his estranged wife Kathy (Isabel Gillies) was pregnant.

What’s next: Stabler moves back home… In the premiere, Cynthia Nixon plays an archeologist with six personalities- shouldn’t she have eight?- who kidnaps her own baby and threatens Stabler’s family.

TV Guide April 2008- SVU Storms Back!

Meanwhile, Stabler is back with his wife and kids, including a new baby. "Elliot is going to be dealing with his 17-year-old, who is now a problem child," Meloni says. "He has gone to the dark place with his rage, and I think having nearly lost his family, his wife, his new baby, he sees life through different eyes."

E! Online Watch with Kirsten Spring 2009

Is there any chance we will ever see any Stabler-Benson action on SVU?

Is it just us or does it seems like that sorta-relationship has been teased for the past 10 seasons? Unfortunately for you EO fans there aren’t any plans for a future relationship. Showrunner Neal Baer tells us that Stabler’s rocky marriage is finally on an upswing and that some of the Stabler clan is heading back to SVU. “We might be seeing a family member again before the end of the year”. As far as Olivia and Elliot go, Neal is really playing up the success of their partnership. “I don’t think any show has gone on as long as SVU with the same partners. Mariska and Chris have been on the show together for 10 years.”

Telestar (French) with Chris Meloni March 2010

When will there be a love story between Stabler and Benson?

Meloni: It would be a bad idea. This destroys the credibility of our characters. Elliot is married and has five children. When it was mentioned that there was going to be a divorce, the viewers did not like it. So if he was banging his partner, it would become totally unacceptable!

TV Guide May 2011- Ask the Editors

An Orderly Marriage-

Help! I watch Law & Order: SVU new episodes and reruns and I’m not sure if Stabler’s divorced, reconciled, or what right now?

“Elliot and his wife are currently together”, says a show rep. The Stablers were separated, then got pregnant, reconciled, and had Elliot Jr. They’ve never been divorced.

TV Insider with Mariska Hargitay; June 2018  

What about Chris Meloni (Happy) returning for a guest spot as Elliot Stabler for the 20th anniversary season? Fans have loved you two together since day one. 

Hargitay: I don’t know anything, but I think SVU is going to go on for a while. He’s on a show right now and he’s super 'happy' — literally — he’s happy, I’m happy. I’ll speak for myself: I think it would be fun to have 'one last hurrah.'

And what about also seeing, as Elliot often referred to his family, 'Kathy and the kids'? 

Hargitay: I would love to see Kathy and the kids! Let me thank you [for that suggestion]. I’m going to work on Kathy and the kids! In real-life, [Isabel Gillies, who plays Kathy] is one of my best friends.

People Magazine's Law and Order SVU special edition, 2019/2020

Interview with Christopher Meloni

Q: What were your own ideas about who Stabler should be?

Meloni: When I got the role, there were a couple of things I wanted to flesh out. I said I really think he's a pretty devout Catholic. This is the backstory that I pitched - his wife was his high school sweetheart and he got her pregnant. Even though they may not have been perfectly matched, he felt that he needed to do the right thing and marry her. It's not that he didn't love her, it's just that perhaps she wasn't ready enough or mature enough.

Exclusive: LAW & ORDER: SVU Adds a Trio of Stablers for ORGANIZED CRIME Crossover

Give Me My Remote; March 12, 2021

Elliot (Christopher Meloni) isn’t the only Stabler returning to the LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT universe: Isabel Gillies (who played Elliot’s wife, Kathy), Allison Siko (who played his daughter, Kathleen), and Jeffrey Scaperrotta (who played his son, Dickie) will guest star in the upcoming crossover that helps launch Law & Order: Organized Crime on April 1, Give Me My Remote has learned exclusively.

However, it might not be the happiest of occasions. In the SVU hour of the April 1 two-hour event, “Return of the Prodigal Son,” a threat to the Stabler family is the catalyst for a reunion with Elliot’s old squad, as the One-Six fights to keep them safe and suss out where the danger is coming from.

Gillies, Siko, and Scaperrotta have a long history with the NBC series. (Though none have appeared since Meloni’s 2011 exit.) Gilles’ Kathy was introduced in the SVU pilot and made 31 appearances over the show’s first 12 seasons. Kathy and Elliot married young, and quickly had four kids: Maureen, Kathleen, Dickie, and Elizabeth. It was revealed in season 6 Kathy left him—and took the kids—but he resisted signing divorce papers until season 8. It didn’t last long, though, because he asked to come home, and Kathy was pregnant (with Eli) by the end of season 8.

The couple had their ups and downs post-reunion—including Olivia (Mariska Hargitay) convincing Kathy not to leave Elliot when he was unexpectedly pulled undercover, as well as major issues with Kathleen and Dickie—but they appeared to be in a good place the last time they were on-screen together in season 12.

In the original plans, Kathy was supposed to show up in the SVU season 21 finale, setting up Meloni’s eventual return to the franchise and ORGANIZED CRIME.

“We heard distant thunder about Chris Meloni[‘s Elliot Stabler] coming back in the fall,” SVU showrunner Warren Leight said on the official SVU podcast, “Squadroom”  in 2020. “We were going to lay a little groundwork for that. We were going to see Kathy Stabler come back, very upset—her son has been rolled by a team of ne’er-do-wells and may have been drugged.”

“We were going to revisit Simon’s seeming overdose and get to know the stressors on the Stabler family,” he continued. “What had happened to the Stabler family after Elliot both left SVU and apparently left them? We were going to lay some groundwork down in anticipation of Elliot’s return, of course, with his own series. We had the sense that the first episode of next year was going to bring Elliot back. We were going to foreshadow that and kind of explain a little more of what happened to [Olivia’s dead brother] Simon.”

But with OC being pushed—and Kathy returning at the same time as Elliot—it’s TBA how much of that original plan was able to be worked into the current crossover.

Elliot’s relationship with his kids was also complicated. Kathleen butted heads with her father, and acted out, including getting a DUI he tried to make go away. But it was revealed in season 10’s “Swing” she was bipolar—like her paternal grandmother. After getting treatment, Kathleen seemed to settle in a healthy life, including helping her father and Olivia with a couple of cases. (Siko made her SVU debut in season 3, as the second Kathleen; she appeared in 16 episodes between seasons 3-12.)

Scaperrotta’s Dickie—who debuted in the series’ second episode and appeared in 17 episodes—got along well with his father…until the last time we saw the duo together in season 11. When Dickie and his friend went missing, things spiraled when the friend ended up dead. Dickie lashed out at his father and Olivia, and also made it clear he intended to join the military as soon as he could. But that was a storyline that never got resolved. (And Leight was vague in the “Squadroom” podcast about which son they intended to bring back, so it’s unclear whether Dickie or Eli was set to be in trouble.)

With less than three weeks until the SVU-ORGANIZED CRIME crossover—which also sees Elliot reunite with his former partner, Olivia, for the first time in nearly a decade—NBC is still keeping most details about the new Law & Order series quiet. So far, they have teased that Elliot Stabler “returns to the NYPD to battle organized crime after a devastating personal loss. Stabler will aim to rebuild his life as part of a new elite task force that is taking apart the city’s most powerful criminal syndicates one by one.” The drama also stars Dylan McDermott, Tamara Taylor, Danielle Moné Truitt, and Ainsley Seiger, with Ilene Chaiken showrunning.

Mariska Hargitay and Isabel Gillies on the set of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in 2006

 

‘Law & Order: SVU’ EP Talks Elliot Stabler’s Return In NBC Spinoff

Deadline; May 1, 2020

Law & Order: SVU showrunner Warren Leight has shared some thoughts on the return of Elliot Stabler in the upcoming SVU spinoff.

As we reported in March, NBC has given a series order to an SVU spinoff starring Christopher Meloni, reprising his Law & Order: SVU role as Elliot Stabler. The SVU spinoff drama revolves around the NYPD organized crime unit led by Stabler.

In a new episode of the show’s podcast, Leight talked about the return of Elliot and revealed the initial plans to bring back Kathy Stabler (Isabel Gillies) in the season 21 finale.

“We had heard distant thunder about Chris Meloni coming back in the fall and we were going to lay a little groundwork for that. We were going to see Kathy Stabler come back very upset. Her son had been rolled by a team of ne’er-do-wells and may have been drugged, and we were going to revisit Simon’s seeming overdose and we were going to get to know the stresses on the Stabler—what had happened to the Stabler family after Elliot both left SVU and apparently left them,” Leight said.

“We were just going to lay some groundwork down in anticipation of Elliot’s return of course in his own series. We had the sense that the first episode of next year for SVU was going to bring Elliot back, so we were going to foreshadow that and explain a little more what happened to Simon,” he continued.

The production shutdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic hit in the middle of shooting episode 21 of the series, forcing things to shift a bit in season 22. Leigh said there may be a some of season 21’s 23rd episode in season 22 and the plan for the finale may be reduced to a teaser in the upcoming season.

“It’s very hard for me to tell NBCUniversal and [Dick Wolf], ‘Can you guys hold off on introducing Elliot because I had something in mind?'” Leight said.

Law & Order: SVU has been renewed through season 24 on NBC.

It Took a Tragedy to Reunite Elliot Stabler and Olivia Benson—Find Out Who Died on Law & Order: SVU Last Night

Parade; April 2, 2021

It was a reunion 10 years in the making and fans finally got to see the tragic event that reunited Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni) and Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) when Meloni’s new series Law & Order: Organized Crime premiered with a Law & Order: SVU crossover Thursday night.

It all began with a car bombing.

The victim is Stabler’s wife Kathy Stabler (Isabel Gillies). Benson is called to the scene and is shocked when she recognizes her former partner's wife.

Then Stabler calls out, “Liv,” and she's just as surprised to see him, too, because they haven’t spoken in ten years. “They tried to kill her. They tried to kill Kathy,” he says, unsure of who the "they" is.

It turns out that Stabler has been living in Italy for the last several years as the NYPD international liaison in Rome and he is in New York City to testify in a case. But the timing was perfect because it also meant that he and Kathy could attend an awards ceremony in Benson’s honor and surprise her after all these years.

Stabler gets a phone call, so Kathy goes to get the car alone when the bomb explodes. The blast blows her away before the fire starts, so she initially survives and is rushed to Mercy Hospital.

When she finally wakes, Kathy tells Benson that she didn’t see anything–and then she gets nostalgic.

“It’s like the old days. The two of you together. Always in sync,” she says. Then she asks, “You really didn’t talk for 10 years?”

And Benson assures her that was the case, adding, “I didn’t even know he was back on the job.”

When Kathy falls asleep, Stabler and Benson finally get to have the reunion that everyone was waiting for, starting with his apology.

“You want to do this now?” Benson asks, “You’re sorry for leaving or for not giving me the courtesy of telling me?”

“I think I thought if I talked to you…” Stabler tries to explain.

But Benson isn’t finished. “I had to find out from Cragen,” she continues. “You were the single most important person in my life and you just…disappeared.”

Again, Stabler tries to explain, “I was afraid if I heard your voice, I wouldn’t have been able to leave.”

Back at the precinct, Benson’s chief asks her to explain why Elliot left. There isn't anything in his file that explains it to his satisfaction.

Benson says she doesn’t know for sure, but she suspects it was his last shooting.

“It was a 16-year-old girl who brought a gun into the station house and it is my guess he didn’t want to go through the hoops, an IA interview, counseling. We never spoke after he left,” she tells the chief. Then she defends Stabler, saying, “He got too rough back in the day. It wasn’t just testosterone, it was because he cared so much.”

But things take a tragic turn at the hospital. Kathy’s spleen ruptures and, even though the doctors rush her into surgery, it's too late.

“I didn’t get to say goodbye,” Stabler says. “I don’t get it. We were happy.”

What Happened to Elliot Stabler's Wife, Kathy, on Law & Order?

Stabler and Kathy's time together ended too soon.

NBC.com; May 12, 2023

While romance tends to take the back burner for Detective Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni), he was once married to the late Kathy Stabler (Isabel Gillies) before he was dismantling criminal empires on Law & Order: Organized Crime.

Stabler and Kathy were married for over 30 years, with fans meeting her for the first time in Season 1 of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Stabler and Kathy's marriage wasn't always perfect, but they always managed to make it work. The high school sweethearts had five children together, the youngest of which was born in Season 9 of SVU. Once Stabler headed to Italy after quitting the SVU, Kathy and the kids went with him, returning to New York for a ceremony honoring Captain Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay). 

Tragically, that trip to the Big Apple had mortal consequences for Stabler's longtime wife. Stabler has never been the same since losing Kathy, and it's safe to say that he still holds her close to his heart. 

Kathy was tragically murdered after being mortally wounded in a car bombing intended to kill Stabler. The loss is devastating for Stabler, but fortunately, he had Benson at his side to help take the blow. Notorious for always getting to the bottom of something, Stabler swiftly joined the Organized Crime Control Bureau to track down his wife's murderer, partnering up with Sgt. Ayanna Bell (Danielle Moné Truitt) as the OCCB's lead detective. 

Naturally, Stabler struggles with survivor's guilt after the attack, throwing himself into the job to distract himself from the loss. Through his investigation, Stabler learned the person responsible for killing Kathy was Richard Wheatley (Dylan McDermott), one of the most dangerously corrupt mob affiliates in the city. Stabler and Wheatley duked it out in a thrilling game of cat-and-mouse from Seasons 1-2 of Law & Order: OC until Wheatley allegedly died in the Season 2 finale, so Stabler never truly got his revenge. 

In the years following Kathy's death, Stabler has kept his romantic endeavors to a minimum. That said, there has been growing tension between him and Benson, whom Stabler recently attempted to kiss. Just as Benson told Stabler that she needed more time, Stabler's past came back to haunt him. In Season 3, Episode 20 ("The Pareto Principle"), Stabler sees the ghostly image of Kathy waiting for him in the OCCB interrogation room. 

Stunned by the strange sighting, Stabler started to wear his wedding ring again. It's a fascinating regression after he has made such massive strides in navigating a new chapter of life.

Benson lends an ear and says the sighting likely indicates Stabler hasn't addressed the trauma of losing Kathy as much as he thought he did. We'll have to wait and see what he does next about this.

Christopher Meloni’s Television Interview Snippets

The View 2006

Q: His personal life is going downhill, his partnership…

Chris: Yeah, everyone has their own opinion about that. That’s the best part, going out on the streets and people are like “Get back with her, she’s the best thing that ever happen in your life”

Q: I know that your TV wife is named Kathy, isn’t it?

Chris: Hm-mm

 The Rachael Ray Show, 2007

Q: I think you bring that to the character a lot of conflicts, you know.

Chris: I’m very privileged, my character you get to understand his home life and how he feels about his children and the things going on with his wife, how he is suffering and dealing with that. You know, it’s a lot.

Live with Regis and Kelly, 2007

(filling them in on what’s happening lately with his character)

Chris:…There’s going to be a new addition to my family.

Today Show, 2008

Q: Bring us up to date on what’s happening with Elliot these days?

Chris: He’s gone back to his wife, he has a new baby- a little boy. He’s trying to make things work in his family life.