Brooke Shields and Mariska Hargitay have been friends for years. And when the 52-year-old former supermodel filmed an episode of her 53-year-old pal's show Law & Order: Special Victims Unit on Tuesday they almost looked alike. Shields went cheek to cheek with Hargitay then they both pulled supermodel poses as they got playful with their little co-star, Ryan Buggle, aged seven.
The star tucked in a navy top into a set of dark pants. Her ensemble was complete with a law enforcement badge, boots and a black trench coat.
Brooke, who stars as the biological, maternal grandmother of Olivia's adopted son, wore a light blue cable sweater layered underneath a plum puffer jacket.
In the series, Mariska's character adopts a son named Noah Porter-Benson.
Noah's late paternal mother claimed that both of her parents were dead, but her mother is actually alive.
When casting for the role of her adopted son's biological grandmother, Mariska immediately suggested pal Brooke. 'I was not thinking of Brooke Shields,' showrunner Michael Chernuchin began to The Hollywood Reporter. 'I was thinking of an older woman and right when I pitched it to Mariska — I give her so much credit — she said, "Brooke's going to play the part."'
Brooke and Mariska became friends after meeting at an AIDS benefit in California, and continuing to cross paths.
Mariska would later approach the star about the SVU role.
Brooke told THR: '[Mariska] sat me down and said, "We have this really great arc and we need a strong female character that can stand up to me, and really unsettle me.
'"It's someone in her personal life who really challenges her to find a way to parent her little boy." I [as the grandmother] come out of nowhere and basically presented a very obstacle for her in doing that.
'I've never played a grandmother before and I have to say, I practically punched Mariska in the face when she said, "Oh, and by the way, you're playing a grandmother." I was like, "Oh, that's great,"' she joked.
