There's nothing especially heinous about this guest star.
Dann Florek— who played Captain Donald Cragen on Law & Order and its Special Victims Unit spin-off for almost two decades—is back, appearing on the April 7 episode of Law & Order: Organized Crime. This guest appearance marks Dann's reunion with former co-star and current Organized Crime leading man Christopher Meloni, who he hasn't acted with in a decade.
We last saw Cragen in the 500th episode of SVU—which aired in October 2021—where he beamed with pride at how far Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) had come. But Cragen's latest appearance in the Law & Order franchise is far less happy, as the retired Captain has returned to help Stabler (Meloni), who is looking for some answers about the past.
"It brings back a lot of memories," Dann says of his guest appearance. "The fact that there was a 500th episode, and then this scene that Chris was very much involved in writing and what it meant, and what it meant to him, and to bring Cragen in. And I clearly still have roots with SVU, and now that the original is back? That's where I started. It's just, having been there recently, it felt good."
For more insight into Dann's return to the franchise, scroll through the Q&A below!
E! News: What's Cragen been up to in his retirement?
Dann Florek: I've thought about it in little spurts here and there. But based on the scene, Cragen is alone in a little house in Queens, New York. So, I kind of feel like the relationship [with Eileen] ended. He always was kind of the lonely guy. And I just feel like that's where he's back to. He seemed comfortable just living his life in a little house.
E!: What was it like to step back onto a Law & Order set and reprise your role?
DF: It was absolutely terrific, once I settled down and let myself breathe. Because, for a lot of reasons, Cragen is part of my DNA now. And going way back to the mothership, some of my favorite stuff through all of this has been with Chris. I always loved the Cragen/Stabler relationship because he was a boss. He was a mentor. He was, at times, a father figure, but sometimes they were kind of equals and there had to be tough love. I wasn't nervous or anything 'till I got there, and there was Chris and I thought, "Oh, man, don't blow this." But he was so terrific. It felt like old times. It felt like we were back in the saddle.
E!: Was this the first time that Cragen and Stabler talked in 10 years? What can we expect out of this reunion?
DF: I do think they probably stayed in touch, just like Dann Florek and Chris Meloni stayed in touch. Not a lot, but we called once in a while or we would text, and so we stayed connected. But it wasn't as close as it was for those dozen years. And so, I think the scene, when you have that many years in a relationship, it's there. It's like an old friend. It's almost like you picked up right where you left off. But the scene— I think it's a wonderful surprise. A number of things come up that Stabler is bothered about. And he comes to Cragen, and he has some questions, and they're not easy to answer. In fact, maybe there is no correct answer.
E!: Do you have a favorite on-set memory with Chris or Mariska?
DF: There are so many, it's hard. I've done over 400 episodes and counting, so when you break that down, that may be at least 12,000 scenes. But with Mariska, I remember an episode called "911"—if I see it on reruns, it still gets me. When she uncovers the little girl in the lot, I lose it.
With Chris, one of my absolute favorites was when Stabler's daughter got a DUI, and he went to fix it. And when I found out about it, I called him out. And that was one of my absolute favorite scenes of all of them because it was real. I had to call him out. I had to say, not only are you not doing your job, you're not being a good parent, and that it was tough and it was a lot. At the end of it, I remember the crew applauding, which doesn't happen that often.
E!: We saw Cragen tell Benson during their FaceTime call in that 500th episode that he's proud of her. What is it like for you to see Mariska playing the same role that you started out in?
DF: I'm proud of Mariska as an actress. Mariska has grown so much over all these years, and to remember doing the pilot to where she is now? The gravitas? She earned her stripes. And that to me, to see it happening, was like handing off the baton. I actually asked for that scene [in the 500th episode]. It wasn't in there. And I said well, "I think I have to have contact with Olivia. Not just for me in a selfish way. I think the audience will want it." And they wrote that scene.
E!: What do you remember about filming your character's retirement announcement?
DF: Well. The hardest part— I'm going to admit something. I never watched it because it was too emotional for me. And I couldn't even get the lines out in rehearsal without losing it. So I just said to them, don't worry. When the cameras are rolling, we'll get it. And it just happened. And I thought it was very powerful. And it felt really good. Because I had a little moment to connect with each of the people. And then I'm packing up in the office and [Benson] comes in and we actually had a hug. And I remember because I asked for it. I said I didn't want it to be mushy and I just said something like, ‘do something with this place, will ya?' And then there was like a little gesture. It was very powerful and it was saying goodbye on so many levels that I had to kind of keep my wits about me.
E!: Is there anything you took from the set?
DF: Why are you gonna turn me in?
E!: No we're not gonna turn you in!
DF: Well, yes. There were two pictures that were on the set that I brought in. One was of my father and his best friend, and they had passed away, and so I always had that behind my desk. So, I took that. The other thing that I have is the Law & Order captain's badge with my name. But that was a gift.
For more of Dann, catch him on Law & Order: Organized Crime when it returns tonight, April 7, at 10 p.m.
(E! and NBC are both part of the NBCUniversal family.)