Law & Order SVU was Chris Meloni’s longest stint on a television show . But the actor wondered if he’d been on SV U for so long, that he’d be forever known as Elliot Stabler. Chris Meloni had concerns about being typecast after ‘Law & Order SVU’ Meloni had been playing Stabler for 12 years before his surprising departure from SVU in 2011.
He’s had plenty of noticeable roles in his career, but his no-nonsense detective quickly became his most popular character. And although shooting SVU wasn’t always easy at times, Meloni shared that the pros always outweighed the cons. “The job at times is beyond frustrating.
And yet everyday, through the fans and their feedback, it makes it more than worthwhile,” Meloni once said according to WolfFilmsLawandOrder . “I’m doing all of this in New York, I’m one of the minority of employed actors.” Meloni was also proud of SVU ’s ability to tackle real world subject matter.
However, he also wondered if his time on the show might’ve stunted his own career. But he felt he avoided this trap by taking a variety of roles after leaving the series. When his SVU days were over, Meloni went on to play a vampire in True Blood .
He also went on to portray a military veteran in Man of Steel . Purposefully choosing roles that were different from Stabler helped keep his acting opportunities diverse. “Even when I was doing the SVU gig, I always had the antenna up: Am I pigeonholed yet? Am I going to be this guy for the rest of m.