And with Hargitay’s onscreen other half, Elliot Stabler (played by ChristopherMeloni), about to come back for a very special crossover episode leading to the launch of Meloni’s new SVU spinoff series, Law & Order: Organized Crime, you may be curious about Hargitay’s real-life partner in crime. Here’s what we know about how Hargitay and Hermann met, what their wedding was like and all the other delightful details.
Who is Mariska Hargitay’s husband?
Hermann is a 53-year-old actor who was born in New York City and raised in Germany for the first 10 years of his life before returning to the U.S., learning English and attending Yale University. Before launching his acting career, his first job out of college was teaching high-school English as part of Teach for America, a nationwide, nonprofit organization that enlists recent college grads to work in public schools in disadvantaged areas. Hermann got started in showbiz by appearing on the soap opera Guiding Light. He then spent close to 20 years building one of those “oh, it’s that guy!” character-actor resumés—meaning, he performed supporting and guest roles in tons of well-known TV shows and movies. For example, you might recognize him as the actor who portrayed real-life 9/11 victim Jeremy Glick in director Paul Greengrass’ harrowing docudrama United 93. Or, you might recognize him as defense attorney Jack Boyle on BlueBloods. Or, you might recognize him as Charlotte’s “perfect” Jewish suitor on Season 6 of Sex and the City, who she passes on right before running into Harry at the synagogue mixer. (Fun fact: Like Hermann, that character also went to Yale!) Nowadays, Hermann is best known for his biggest role yet, playing Charles Brooks—publishing heir and longtime love interest for Liza (SuttonFoster)—on the long-running hit sitcom Younger, which is set to debut its seventh and final season in April 2021.
Is Peter Hermann the Persil guy?
Yep! Yet another reason why you might recognize Hermann is that for several years, he’s been the pitch man for Persil ProClean detergent, even starring in the brand’s high-profile Super Bowl ads.
How did Mariska Hargitay and Peter Hermann meet?
Another show where Hermann has guested before? Law & Order: SVU, which is where he met his future bride! Way back in November 2001, Hermann filmed his first SVU appearance as defense attorney Trevor Langan. (He’s since recurred in the role for more than 30 episodes.) He then asked her on a first date by asking her to attend Mass with him. “We went to church together, and it was like getting hit with a lightning bolt,” Hargitay told PEOPLE in 2019. She was so immediately convinced that Hermann was the man she’d marry that she actually broke down in tears. “Peter thought I was crying because I was so moved by the service,” she explained. “No, it was because I was just overwhelmed, realizing he was the one.” She added that after the date, she immediately told a close friend, “This is it. This is the man I’m going to marry.” However, Meloni recently told PEOPLE that the couple experienced at least one major relationship stumble before they tied the knot. “After they’d been dating a long time, she came in one day and she was crushed,” Meloni told the outlet. “She goes, ‘Peter and I had a really deep, long conversation. We cried, and I just don’t think it’s going to work.’ And she’s sobbing, and the whole time.” Meloni, though, wasn’t worried. He added, The [thought] bubble in my head was just: ‘You’ll be married within five months.’ That’s all I was thinking. I knew. I knew.”
When did Mariska Hargitay and Peter Hermann get married?
About two years after they started dating, Hargitay and Hermann got hitched in Santa Barbara, California, on August 28, 2004. Hargitay rode to the ceremony, held at a Unitarian church, in an antique Jaguar with her father by her side. She wore a pale pink Caroline Herrera gown that was accented with a special touch: The wedding date and Hermann’s initials were both stitched into the fabric!
Do Mariska Hargitay and Peter Hermann have kids?
On June 28, 2006, a then-42-year-old Hargitay delivered her first child with Hermann, son August Miklos Friedrich Hermann. Her pregnancy wasn’t easy; she developed gestational diabetes, thanks in part to her need to eat so much in order to keep her energy up during 15-hour days on the SVU set. “I was overwhelmed by my lack of energy. All I could do to survive was to eat,” she recalled in 2007. “I did get into eating too much. This pregnancy was really hard for me at the end. I wasn’t mobile.” Because of her complications, she had to deliver her son via emergency C-section.
Mariska Hargitay and Peter Hermann also adopted kids!
Two of them! Hargitay and Hermann are also proud parents to daughter Amaya Josephine, who they adopted in April 2011 after attending the baby’s birth. Then, a few months later, they adopted again, welcoming second son Andrew. Next, look back at the best Law & Order: SVU episodes of all time.
