Mariska Hargitay; Kelli Giddish

Screenshot: NBC/YouTube

Mariska Hargitay may be one of the most powerful women in television, as evidenced by her being featured in Variety’s “Power of Women” issue, but her power only goes so far. She’s top of the call sheet and an executive producer on Law And Order: Special Victims Unit, but even she couldn’t prevent Kelli Giddish’s character from being written off the long-running procedural. “Kelli is my favorite actor to work with,” Hargitay tells Variety of her co-star’s exit. “Kelli is my heart. It’s a sore subject. I have a lot of say on the show, but I didn’t have enough there.”

Detective Amanda Rollins was written off the series last year after a whopping 12 seasons, reportedly to keep the show “current.” (SVU is currently airing its 25th season.) Hargitay claims she fought to keep Giddish on, and is trying to get her to return next season. “I don’t like not being listened to, especially when I’m right,” she says. “That relationship was one of the most powerful relationships in television because you saw these two badass women, so flawed and so there for each other.”Another aspect of SVU that Hargitay disagreed with? The handling of Detective Olivia Benson’s will-they-won’t-they romance with her one time partner, Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni). The pair have “undeniable” chemistry, but an almost-kiss teased in promos for a recent episode never materialized. “To be honest with you, Chris and I thought it should go one way and the powers that be didn’t, so it got changed at the last minute, that near kiss,” Hargitay reveals. “Obviously Dick [Wolf] gets final say. It’s his show and he didn’t want that.”

Hargitay has an “excellent” relationship with Wolf, the creator of the Law & Order franchise and executive producer of an entire television empire. Still, it’s been “ugly at times,” including “some gnarly negotiations.” But the pair are “extremely close, like family,” and Hargitay credits Wolf with making her “stronger.” Plus, the door is still open for more from Benson and Stabler, a duo Hargitay sees as “irrevocably locked.” She says, “We want to hold the tension and do what’s right and truthful for both characters.”