SUMMARY

Law & Order: Organized Crime’s move to Peacock for season 5 may hinder a potential romance between Benson and Stabler.
The series faced cancellation fears but was revived on Peacock with fewer episodes, complicating crossovers.
While a Benson/Stabler reunion is teased, romanticizing their long-standing friendship could be risky for the show.

Law & Order: Organized Crime‘s move to Peacock for season 5 could make it more difficult for Benson and Stabler to reunite romantically. Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni) was originally Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay)’s partner on Law & Order: SVU, and when Stabler returned after a decade’s absence to star in his own spinoff, it sparked hope that the characters would begin a romance. Although the pair has had several intimate moments, no romance has materialized thus far, and Law & Order: Organized Crime season 4 did not include any meaningful interactions between Benson and Stabler.

Law & Order: Organized Crime’s future was in doubt when NBC failed to renew it along with its sister shows in March 2024, triggering fears that the series would be canceled without resolving the Benson/Stabler subplot. However, NBC later announced that the series was moving to Peacock instead of airing on broadcast television. This Law & Order: Organized Crime season 5 update meant the series would continue; however, it has far fewer episodes in the season than the other two Law & Order shows, which could lead to logistical problems as far as crossovers go.

Law & Order Crossovers May Be Difficult To Pull Off After Law & Order: Organized Crime’s Move to Peacock

The Series’ Schedule is In Flux, Making Planning Hard

Mariska Hargitay recently said (via Variety) that a Benson/Stabler reunion is in the works. However, this idea may be harder to pull off than it seems now that Law & Order: Organized Crime has moved to Peacock. While NBC owns Peacock, which theoretically makes crossover appearances between streaming and broadcast shows possible, these cameos are still dependent on actors’ schedules and budgetary concerns, and until more is known about the plans for Law & Order: Organized Crime‘s production and release, it will be difficult to make the reunion happen.

Law & Order: SVU will premiere in the fall, with a full 22-episode season. Conversely, Law & Order: Organized Crime’s reduced episode count after the move leaves it with only 10 episodes. While this could leave the actors involved in this series with more time to cross over to other entries in the franchise, it’s hard to tell whether this will be the case. Peacock has not yet released any information about when Law & Order: Organized Crime will premiere or how the schedule intersects with the broadcast schedule for Law & Order: SVU, which factors into crossover planning.

A Romantic Connection Between Benson & Stabler Could Ruin A Good Thing

The Pair Has Been Connected as Friends for Two Decades

Although there is a segment of the fanbase that is passionately in favor of a Benson/Stabler romance, it might not be the best idea for these characters.

Although there is a segment of the fanbase that is passionately in favor of a Benson/Stabler romance, it might not be the best idea for these characters. Stabler and Benson have been friends for a long time, not counting Stabler’s ten-year-absence when he was off-screen. For most of their friendship, Stabler was married, and Benson reassured Kathy Stabler on many occasions that she was not a threat to their marriage and encouraged Elliot to give his relationship the attention it deserved before he lost it. Uniting Benson and Stabler romantically could contradict this history.

Long-standing friendships don’t always make for good romances, and Law & Order: Organized Crime would take a heavy loss if the romance failed and the characters lost their friendship. It may be logistically difficult for Benson and Stabler to share screen time now that they have to deal with both Peacock and NBC, but that may be for the best. Regardless of how good an idea it seems on paper to unite these two characters romantically, it could be a flop and harm the friendship the characters have built up over many years.