LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “Santuary” Episode 1822 — Pictured: Kirk Acevedo as Det. Ray Lopez — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
Warning: General spoilers ahead
If you’re a fan of Syfy’s 12 Monkeys and was disheartened when Ramse (Kirk Acevedo) was abruptly killed off this past weekend in the season 3 binge event, I have some good news for you. Kirk Acevedo returns to the small screen tonight guest-starring as Detective Ray Lopez in the highly-anticipated 2-hour season finale of Law & Order: SVU.
With SVU known for its ripped-from-the-headline style, the series tackles the controversial topic of Islamophobia. The episode comes in the wake of President Trump’s short-lived Executive Order 13769, dubbed as the Muslim Ban because it banned refugees and citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the U.S. In effect from Jan. 27 to March 16, the order led to airport protests across the country and the detainment of more than 700 passengers. The official synopses of each of the 2 episodes are below:
“AMERICAN DREAM”: A hate crime against a Muslim family results in the death of their daughter. When a crucial witness in the case is deported, Barba (Raúl Esparza) is forced to drop the charges against a suspect, and tensions rise between communities on opposing sides of the case.
“SANCTUARY”: The unexpected release of a suspect in a hate crime case leaves Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and Barba (Raúl Esparza) caught between two families seeking justice for their loved ones. As public protests escalate to violence, Benson goes to desperate lengths to make an arrest.
As of now, Acevedo is currently just listed as a guest-star, but with the show’s recent revolving door of male leads, it wouldn’t surprise me if the role may eventually become recurring — or possibly even permanent — going into season 19. Of course, Christopher Meloni (“Elliot Stabler”) left the series several years ago (even though there are rumors he may be returning), which was then followed by the departure of Richard Belzer (“John Munch”) and Dann Florek (“Donald Cragen”) — all three being original cast members. More recently, we had the 2015 departure of Danny Pino (“Nick Amaro”) as well as Andy Karl being written out of the show with Sgt. Mike Dodds’ untimely death in last year’s season 17 finale. And, of course, with Tutuola (Ice-T) taking the sergeant’s exam, it is unknown if he’ll remain in the SVU squad should he pass. Bottom line — there may be an opening soon, and unless Meloni signs on fairly soon for a return, there just may a place for Detective Lopez going into next season.
How do you feel about Acevedo possibly joining SVU? Would you prefer Christopher Meloni to return instead? Or, if you’re like me, do you hope for the best of both worlds and get both Acevedo and Meloni in season 19?
The 2-hour season 18 finale of Law & Order: SVU is titled “American Dream/Sanctuary” and airs tonight beginning at 9/8c on NBC.
VIDEO
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PHOTOS
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: (l-r) Kirk Acevedo as Det. Ray Lopez, Mariska Hargitay as Lieutenant Olivia Benson, Peter Gallagher as Chief William Dodds — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: Peter Gallagher as Chief William Dodds — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: Peter Scanavino as Dominick “Sonny” Carisi — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: Kirk Acevedo as Det. Ray Lopez — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: Mariska Hargitay as Lieutenant as Olivia Benson — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: Ice T as Detective Odafin “Fin” Tutuola — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: Pooma Jagannathan as Maya Samra — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: (l-r) Kelli Giddish as Detective Amanda Rollins, Peter Scanavino as Dominick “Sonny” Carisi — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: (l-r) Peter Scanavino as Dominick “Sonny” Carisi, Mariska Hargitay as Lieutenant Olivia Benson — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: (l-r) Mariska Hargitay as Lieutenant Olivia Benson, Raul Esparza as A.D.A. Rafael Barba — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: Raul Esparza as A.D.A. Rafael Barba — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: Peter Gallagher as Chief William Dodds — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: (l-r) Peter Scanavino as Dominick “Sonny” Carisi, Kirk Acevedo as Det. Ray Lopez — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: (l-r) Ice T as Detective Odafin “Fin” Tutuola, Peter Scanavino as Dominick “Sonny” Carisi — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “American Dream” Episode 1821 — Pictured: Kelli Giddish as Detective Amanda Rollins — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “Santuary” Episode 1822 — Pictured: Peter Scanavino as Dominick “Sonny” Carisi — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “Santuary” Episode 1822 — Pictured: Ice T as Detective Odafin “Fin” Tutuola — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “Santuary” Episode 1822 — Pictured: (l-r) Meredith Holzman as Counselor Naomi Ziegler, Gil Perez-Abraham as Danny Ramirez, Ice T as Detective Odafin “Fin” Tutuola, Peter Scanavino as Dominick “Sonny” Carisi — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “Santuary” Episode 1822 — Pictured: (l-r) Kelli Giddish as Detective Amanda Rollins, Kirk Acevedo as Det. Ray Lopez, Tyler Elliot Burke as Mitch Jenkins — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “Santuary” Episode 1822 — Pictured: Emma Myles as Carleen Jenkins — (Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “Sanctuary” Episode 1822 — Pictured: (l-r) Ice T as Detective Odafin “Fin” Tutuola, Melanie Chandra as Lela Samra, Mariska Hargitay as Lieutenant Olivia Benson, Raul Esparza as A.D.A. Rafael Barba, Poorna Jagannathan — (Photo by: Michael Parmelee/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “Sanctuary” Episode 1822 — Pictured: (l-r) Mariska Hargitay as Lieutenant Olivia Benson, Raul Esparza as A.D.A. Rafael Barba — (Photo by: Michael Parmelee/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “Sanctuary” Episode 1822 — Pictured: (l-r) Peter Scanavino as Dominick “Sonny” Carisi, Ice T as Detective Odafin “Fin” Tutuola, Kelli Giddish as Detective Amanda Rollins, Mariska Hargitay as Lieutenant Olivia Benson, Raul Esparza as A.D.A. Rafael Barba — (Photo by: Michael Parmelee/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “Sanctuary” Episode 1822 — Pictured: Mariska Hargitay as Lieutenant Olivia Benson — (Photo by: Michael Parmelee/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “Sanctuary” Episode 1822 — Pictured: Mariska Hargitay as Lieutenant Olivia Benson — (Photo by: Michael Parmelee/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “Sanctuary” Episode 1822 — Pictured: (l-r) Kelli Giddish as Detective Amanda Rollins, Mariska Hargitay as Lieutenant Olivia Benson — (Photo by: Michael Parmelee/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “Sanctuary” Episode 1822 — Pictured: (l-r) Raul Esparza as A.D.A. Rafael Barba, Mariska Hargitay as Lieutenant Olivia Benson — (Photo by: Michael Parmelee/NBC)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT — “Sanctuary” Episode 1822 — Pictured: (l-r) Raul Esparza as A.D.A. Rafael Barbara, Mariska Hargitay as Lieutenant Olivia Benson — (Photo by: Michael Parmelee/NBC)
