In last season's finale of "Law & Order: SVU," Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) finally adopted baby Noah, ensuring that the boy would stay with her always. And while she gained a family member, she also lost an important person in her team as Amaro (Danny Pino) decided to leave the SVU to spend more time with his family in Los Angeles.
Although Olivia has relied on Amaro in the past, a new cast photo shows that she'll be relying more on Det. Dominick "Sonny" Carisi, Jr. (Peter Scanavino), Barba (Raul Esparza), Det. Amanda Rollins (Kelli Giddish) and Det. Odafin Tutuola (Ice-T).
Another photo shows Det. Rollins in the field, and it looks like the SVU will be busy as ever as they tackle the first case of the season. In the show's two-hour premiere, the episode will once again rip from the headlines and tackle the issue involving real estate heir Robert Durst, the alleged murderer who was featured in the six-part HBO documentary "The Jinx."
According to Entertainment Weekly, the premiere revolves around a wealthy and influential New Yorker suspected of numerous murders despite lack of evidence that will implicate him. Just like Durst, the killer will make a confession when he thought no one was listening. In the teaser trailer for the new season, the killer is heard making a confession, and the promo teases, "This is the one America will be talking about. Again."
Meanwhile, Zap2It reports that Hargitay will be sitting in the director's chair once again this season. The website reports that showrunner Warren Leight took to Twitter earlier this month to confirm the news. The star has previously directed two episodes for the series, one in season 15 and another in season 16.
"Of course Mariska will direct again this year," wrote Leight. "After 17 seasons, she's in a class of her own."
The two-hour season 17 premiere of "Law & Order: SVU" airs on Sept. 23 at 9 p.m. on NBC.
