Peter Hermann Shared What He Thought of Mariska Hargitay’s Relationship With Her Co-Star Chris Meloni
Law & Order SVU stars Mariska Hargitay and Chris Meloni have been shipped by fans for years. But in real life, Hargitay’s already been paired with her husband for 19 years Peter Hermann. But Hermann has been well aware of the bond between Hargitay and Meloni, and had a very understandable reaction to it.
Peter Hermann quipped he needed to negotiate with Chris Meloni when it came to his wife
Meloni and Hargitay have known each other far longer than she and Hermann have. The two signed on to Law & Order SVU in 1999 after screen testing together. They would grow closer over the years before Meloni’s departure from the show in 2011, but still seemed to remain good friends. Given their closeness, some have wondered if Hargitay and Meloni ever dated in real life.
“For four years, and we just broke up two months ago,” Hargitay joked to Today.
Meloni added, “Don’t tell our spouses.”
It seems unlikely that the two would’ve ever dated seriously since Meloni was already married to Sherman Williams. Hargitay would later find her own partner in Peter Hermann, who she met when he guest-starred on SVU. She’s often confided that her feelings for Hermann were instantaneous back then, so it didn’t take long before the two dated. After going out for three years, the two got married and have been together ever since.
Hermann already knew how close Hargitay and her onscreen partner were, poking fun at it in an interview with E! News (via Stylecaster). He quipped that the three of them had a very progressive marriage.
“Sometimes Chris and I have some things to negotiate, but we’ve gotten really good at communicating with each other,” he said. “There’s a lot of give and take. In the end, all three of us are really happy.”
What Peter Hermann felt the key to his marriage with Mariska Hargitay was
Hargitay and Hermann have been together for many years now. Because of their longevity, the two are often asked what the key to their marriage might be. Hermann had a very simple explanation. It was laughter.
“I never thought I would have this much laughter in my life,” Hermann said to People.
He went on to add, “Not just actual laughter, but also the way that Mariska is just the embodiment of laughter — of joy.”
Hargitay added that their relationship isn’t always smooth sailing, and they’ve been known to argue every now and then. But they haven’t let those fights get in the way of their relationship. There wasn’t a conflict the two had that couldn’t be remedied with laughter.
“It’s the way we find our way back to each other,” he said. “It’s this fantastically, wonderfully ridiculous way that we can swing back and forth any number of times in any given day. But fundamentally we know we have the same destination.”
Because of this, Hermann felt things in their relationship could only look up in the future.
“We know where we’re headed, and it’s good. And we know we’ll get there together,” he said.
Chris Meloni also felt humor was the secret to his relationship with Mariska Hargitay
Meloni seemed to have a similar opinion on Hargitay as her husband did. The Organized Crime star felt that Hargitay’s humor was one of the key reasons their onscreen partnership worked so well.
“For me, most importantly, she’s a keen sense of humor,” Meloni told Access not too long ago. “And if things get a little tense, we’re able to go to that place. And even if they’re not tense, we’re still able to communicate.”
