Mariska Hargitay is a familiar face to television viewers and has been keeping Law & Order: Special Victims Unit fans entertained as the beloved Olivia Benson for more than 20 years now.
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But viewers might be surprised to learn that the 57-year-old's husband is pretty famous himself – and TV fans will definitely recognise him. Mariska is been married to fellow actor Peter Hermann.
Who is Peter Hermann?
Mariska's partner is fellow actor Peter Herrman, who featured in Law & Order: SVU as Trevor Langen, appearing on the show a total of 33 episodes. He's also known for playing Charles Brooks on Younger, Jack Boyle on Blue Bloods and Dr Michael Burke on soap opera Guiding Light, which was actually his debut TV role.
How did the couple meet?
The couple met on the set of Law & Order: SVU all the way back in 2001 when the actor guest-starred on the police procedural drama. Speaking about the first time they met on set, Mariska told InStyle: "I just about passed out when I saw him there. I thought: 'That's my husband.'"
The actress revealed on the Drew Barrymore Show that it was when they wrapped up his season three guest appearance that Peter invited her to a church service with her. She knew there and then that he was the one.
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"We went to church together, and it was like getting hit with a lightning bolt," she said. "I just started sobbing. Peter thought I was crying because I was so moved by the service. No, it was because I was just overwhelmed, realizing he was the one."
When did they get married?
The couple got married in 2004 in Santa Barbara, California.
Peter decided to pop the question shortly after Mariska's 40th birthday, he told PEOPLE: "I actually saw Mariska with all of the people that she loved around her, it was like seeing this person who was now in the soil… which was this abundance of people and this abundance of love and I thought, 'I want to be part of that soil.' "
What has Peter said about their marriage?
Meanwhile, Peter has also shared some sweet comments on his other half. Opening up about their 17-year strong marriage in the 2020 book What Makes a Marriage Last, he said: "I never thought that I would laugh this much in my marriage."
He added: "That is such a fundamental ingredient of who [Mariska is], this insistence on joy. And I think what sustains our marriage is that I know [Mariska] loves me in spite of who I am, and that is the definition of grace."
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The couple's children
Away from the cameras, the couple are proud parents to three loving children. They welcomed their first child together, a son named August, in 2006. Five years later, in 2011, they decided to grow their family again, this time choosing to adopt a baby girl named Amaya Josephine. Less than a year later, they adopted another child, a baby boy named Andrew.
Mariska has spoken about the joys of motherhood, explaining to PEOPLE that "Our family is so perfect, or at least perfect for me. Together we’re just this whole, happy, joyful, chaotic, crazy unit. I’ve never known anything that was more right ... The beauty is that families are made in so many different ways, and that was my reality as a child."
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