Law & Order: Special Victims Unit: The Unofficial Companion (30 page)

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Authors: Susan Green,Randee Dawn

Originally From:
Chicago

Selected Other Credits:
(TV)
Canterbury’s Law
(AAG Upton, 2008),
All My Children
(Seamus Wong, 2007),
100 Centre Street
(Peter Davies, 2001−02)

Upcoming Project:
(Film)
Showing Up
(Himself, 2010)

Joel de la Fuente (TARU Tech Ruben Morales)

Just the Facts

About de la Fuente:
Joel de la Fuente plays Hispanic roles as often as Asian ones—and he clears up his heritage right away: He’s Filipino. Since 1992 the actor has appeared in such projects as an
Afterschool Special
to
ER
during future
SVU
showrunner Neal Baer’s tenure, a fact he shares with his fellow recurring co-star Mike Doyle. De la Fuente co-wrote the short film
Life Document 2: Identity
in 2002.

About Morales:
“Morales is the ‘computer cell-phone guy,’” explains de la Fuente. “(He) spends most of his time in the lab, but is very devoted to his family. Over the last few seasons he has shown a grumpy side when his technology isn’t being acknowledged as a valid part of solving the crime.” Morales appears prominently in season seven’s “Web”—he reveals that his nephew Freddy was raped after meeting someone from the Internet, and Morales feels guilty for having bought him the computer.

The Rest of the Story

Had Joel de la Fuente not stepped into the role as the TARU Tech (TARU stands for Technical Assistance Response Unit), the character would most likely be called “Burt Trevor.” That was the name de la Fuente was given when he auditioned. And though he says it would have been amusing to play a character with such an Anglo name, he appreciates that the show “wanted to match a name to me.”

Several TARU Techs had floated through the
SVU
continuum before they settled on Morales, and part of the reason he’s pretty sure they kept calling him back was his facility with the challenging language and the need to manipulate props while delivering lingo. “You have to convey information in a very condensed way, in a way that no one—even tech guys—speaks,” he says. “And you have to do it while carrying nine pieces of machinery or doing something you’ve never done before until two minutes before you start shooting.”

But he must have been more than just competent, because ultimately he played a large part in “Web” that few recurring actors get. De la Fuente only learned of the extent of his contribution when he arrived on set that day; he was teased mercilessly by some of the crew when it turned out his usually mild-mannered character would be beating up a suspect. “Everyone was so amused that Morales suddenly had a deep-seated anger and a temper.”

RECURRING REGULARS
Judith Light (Bureau Chief/EADA/Judge Elizabeth Donnelly, 2002−Present)

Originally From:
New Jersey

Selected Other Credits:
(TV)
Ugly Betty
(Claire Meade, 2006-Present),
Phenom
(Dianne Doolan, 1993−94),
Who’s the Boss
(Angela Bower, 1984−92),
One Life to Live
(Karen Wolek, 1977−83)

Judith Light (Judge Elizabeth Donnelly)

Just the Facts

About Light:
From her earliest days as a bored housewife-turned-prostitute on the ABC soap
One Life to Live
to her stint as a very different kind of mom on
Who’s The Boss
, Judith Light has played comedy and drama with equal aplomb, and even won two Daytime Emmy Awards. In 1996 she portrayed a slightly less iconic role in the TV film
A Husband, A Wife and a Lover
, which became the contact point for her future
SVU
career since future
SVU
executive producer Ted Kotcheff directed the film. They reconnected once he was in the L&O fold, and she was made a bureau chief in the Manhattan District Attorney’s office. Since then, she has a taken on a regular role on ABC’s
Ugly Betty.

About Donnelly:
Other than her career trajectory (she became a judge in season seven), little is known about Donnelly. Nevertheless, she’s a steely presence with a sure moral compass. “She’s powerful, discerning, and working to not come from any of her personal emotions,” says Light. “She’s in love with the law, and connected to doing what’s right and using the law to make the world a better place. She is incorruptible. Also, there’s her mentorship: When she sees someone who has potential, she jumps in there to be supportive of them so they can go into the world and exercise that potential as much as they can.”

The Rest of the Story

“Working on the
SVU
set is the highest caliber you can get, down to a person,” says Light. “From directors to camera operators to lighting—all of that. It’s a great cast that’s very connected, and loves doing this job. It runs like a perfectly timed watch.”

And she was a fan of the program even before joining the cast: “New York is home for me, and I love seeing New York—but I also thought the stories and actors were extremely powerful. You can see when you watch a show like this the level of professionalism going into it.”

But don’t expect Donnelly to make more appearances just because
Ugly Betty
has relocated in order to film solely in New York City—it is on a rival network, after all. “If I could, I’d love to do both,” she says. “They had become my New York family in terms of work—you do get that when you work on a show for a long period of time, you do get connected to everybody, and you do take pride in that being your family.”

Isabel Gillies (Kathy Stabler, 1999−Present)

Isabel Gillies (Kathy Stabler)

Originally From:
New York City

Other Wolf Films Association: Law & Order
(Monica Johnson, “Bad Girl,” 1998)

Selected Other Credits:
(Film)
I Shot Andy Warhol
(Alison, 1996),
Metropolitan
(Cynthia McLean, 1990); (TV)
The $treet
(Alison, 2000),
Sex and the City
(Elaine, 1998)

Upcoming Project:
(Book)
Happens Every Day
(2009)

Just the Facts

About Gillies:
“During this show I’ve been engaged, married, had two babies of my own, got divorced, got remarried, got pregnant again,” says Isabel Gillies. And viewers thought Kathy Stabler had some challenges! In fact things have been almost as busy off-camera as on for Gillies, who has been working since 1990 in largely independent films.

Her children are six, five, and four, which means the part-time job she’s held at
SVU
for the past ten seasons is “perfect.” “I can’t do a TV show or a movie in Los Angeles or Vancouver because I have these kids, and for a long time I was a single mother so I really couldn’t go anywhere,” she says. “So I just do this and I got married to a wonderful man, and I don’t know—nice life!” Still, far from static: Her memoir,
Happens Every Day
, is due out in June 2009.

About Stabler (Kathy, that is):
“Long-suffering” doesn’t really do Kathy Stabler justice. That said, she’s probably one of the most tolerant and believable cop wives ever shown on television. She and Elliot married young (after he knocked her up), and as an SVU cop he’s rarely home, leaving Kathy to raise four children for most of the series (baby made five in season nine).

Stress pulled them apart for a time in season six, leading to the brink of divorce. She initially had her suspicions about her husband’s partner, but now believes Det. Benson to be no threat to their union. “Kathy really has her family, and she wishes it was more intact sometimes, and can be disappointed,” explains Gillies. “But I think Elliot and Kathy have a nice marriage; they get it about marriage.”

The Rest of the Story

Apparently, a little bullying works wonders with
SVU
creator Dick Wolf: Like Mariska Hargitay, Isabel Gillies knew she wanted the part, and wasn’t shy about telling him he’d better not hand it off to someone else. “When I went in (for the audition), Dick and Ted (Kotcheff, executive producer) were there, and I remember saying, ‘Listen, this is the right part for me, and I’m missing my kid to be at this audition so you’d better give me this role.’”

Something about that seemed to tweak the powers that be—and because of the nature of the crimes, a single male lead detective could come off as perverted or strange, which meant Kathy and the kids were key roles.

“I love seeing what happens to (Elliot) in terms of the family,” says Gillies. “So many people watch it who have children, and worry about what would happen if something dreadful happened to them, so the family is comforting in a way. It would almost be too cold for the lead detective to have no reflective sensibility.”

But many fans are invested in an eventual Stabler/Benson hookup. “Over my dead body!” Gillies jokes about the possibility of them having a relationship, then acknowledges that that scenario would be fine with some loyal fans. “There are people (on the Internet) who are like, ‘I wish she’d died in that (season nine) car crash!’ Which is a little bit weird; I mean, don’t wish death on anybody.”

Even though she’s usually on only a handful of episodes a year, Gillies is always happy to be asked back. “I love it,” she says. “The thing about
SVU
is the humanity of it. I like that the family has a part in that, because it brings more humanity to the show. I feel incredibly proud to be a part of it, the whole franchise. It’s a good example of how entertainment can work for people in their lives.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

THE EPISODE GUIDE