'Law & Order: SVU' Episodes Based on Real Stories and True Crime

Being obsessed with true crime and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit pretty much goes hand in hand. And when you love both, you tend to notice more than a little inspiration from real life stories can be found in the show. That’s no coincidence. As season 21 airs, they’re ready to take on even more stories as Lieutenant Olivia Benson takes down the bad guys and gets justice for the victims with the rest of her squad. So what’s up next on the docket?

In season 21, you’ll recognize a few more ripped-from-the-headlines cases reveal SVU stars Ice-T and Kelli Giddish, who play Fin Tutola and Amanda Rollins respectively. At the History Is Made: Law & Order: SVU Celebrates A Milestone event at The Paley Center For Media on September 25, In Touch got a chance to talk to the new celebrities about what we can expect. According to the rapper, we can keep an eye out for an “Empire-ish drama” that tackles the Jussie Smollett scandal. The actress dished we’ll see more #MeToo stories. Granted, the whole show is pretty much full of #MeToo stories, but the first episode of the season, titled “I’m Going to Make You a Star,” closely mirrors the Harvey Weinstein case as an actress accuses a media mogul of assaulting her.

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Though Kelli didn’t discuss the episode specifically, she shared, “I think you can see us explore [the #MeToo movement] and the repercussions it’s had throughout our culture. Sadly, there’s plenty to rip.” The writers have been hard at work adapting and creating stories that reflect the real life conversations about sexual assault we’ve had in our society. “With Warren Leight back as our showrunner, he takes some things that happen and really delves deep and explores, you know, like only writers can … all [the] different ins and outs,” she shared.

Over the past 20 years, the show has told stories that remind us of cases like Gypsy Rose Blanchard’s, Jeffrey Epstein‘s, Rihanna and Chris Brown‘s and even the Duggars, not to mention older crimes like the 1964 murder of Kitty Genovese or the Golden State Killer slayings. Check out the gallery below to see some of our favorite SVU episodes that remind us of real life.

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“Dear Ben”

Season 20, episode 12 seemed to draw inspiration from plenty of different serial killers, especially those long dormant like the Zodiac Killer. However, when the perpetrator stacked plate’s on a husband back while he assaulted the man’s wife, it was an unquestionable reference to the Golden State Killer.

“Forty-One Witnesses”

When a drugged woman is brought back to an apartment building by three men, multiple people see them as they leave the café, walk her home, try to go inside of her apartment and ultimately assault her as she screams in a courtyard. And yet nobody did anything to help, just like in the true crime case of Kitty Genovese.

“Funny Valentine”

When an R&B star assaults his singer girlfriend in season 14, episode 16, the story is picked up by gossip columnists like Perez Hilton. The story doesn’t just sound familiar, though. Chris Brown and Rihanna are even name-dropped as one of the detectives remarks wryly that the two couples could double date.

“Making a Rapist”

The title pretty much speaks for itself on this one. Riffing on Making a Murderer, season 18, episode 2 tells the story of a man who’s freed after he was falsely convicted of rape. But when he’s again accused of assault by the false accuser from his first trial, the episode explores whether the police might be on the wrong track again or if his time spent behind bars as an innocent man pushed him to the edge.

“Mood”

If you just binged Unbelievable on Netflix, then season 19, episode 2 should ring some bells. When a young woman fresh out of the foster system claims she’s been assaulted by a masked assailant, some cops want to write her story off. The problem is that other unrelated women have their own similar stories.

“Pathological”

In season 19, episode 10, a physically and mentally disabled young girl is assault by her peer — but it doesn’t take long for the truth about her health to come to light afterwards as it’s exposed that the girl’s mom is actually the one making her sick, much like Dee Dee Blanchard did to her daughter

“Patrimonial Burden”

The Bakers chronicle their lives as conservative Christians on a show called Baker’s Dozen in season 17, episode 7. But when it’s discovered that the family’s 13-year-old daughter is pregnant after taking a vow of purity, the detectives suspect incest. The story isn’t exactly the same as the Duggar family’s scandal, but it certainly has its similarities.

“Selfish”

When a grandmother goes to the police to report that she thinks her daughter has killed her stepdaughter, reporting that her car smells like death, the detectives find the young mom as she’s cleaning out her trunk and about to hunt down a babysitter that has seemingly gone missing. The episode puts its own spin on the Casey Anthony case, but the opening shots alone are striking.