Mariska Hargitay, Christopher Meloni, and more 'Law & Order: SVU' stars from the past and present reunited to celebrate the show's 25th anniversary

"Law & Order" stars Ice-T, Mariska Hargitay, Peter Scanavino, Dann Florek, and Kelli Giddish appeared for the show's 25th season anniversary party.Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

• "Law & Order: SVU" celebrated its 25th anniversary season on Tuesday with a star-studded event.
• Mariska Hargitay — whose character Olivia Benson is the longest-running character on TV — was there.

When "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" returns to screens for its landmark 25th season this week, it will continue to reign as television's longest-running drama series.

To celebrate, stars of the series, both past and present, gathered together in New York City for a special party on Tuesday evening.

And special it was, as fans of the NBC police drama have waited years to see some of the series' cast back together again.

As well as the likes of Mariska Hargitay, Ice-T, and Peter Scanavino, who play the show's current roster of law enforcement officials, many gone but not forgotten stars of the series also showed up in support, including Dann Florek, Raúl Esparza, and Stephanie March.

There was, of course, one notable absence from the list of attendees: Richard Belzer. The actor, who played fan favorite detective John Munch in the series from its inception in 1999 up until 2016, died in February 2023 at the age of 78.

Take a look at the best photos from the event here.