At this point in his long and successful career, Christopher Meloni is likely most recognizable to general audiences for his lengthy stint(s) as Eliott Stabler in the world of both Law & Order: SVU and its spinoff Law & Order: Organized Crime, whose fifth season shifted to Peacock from NBC. Though we’ll be waiting until the 2025 TV schedule to see the character’s return, the actor himself shared a bunch of fun facts about his career and personal life, including the celeb that left him the most starstruck.
Considering he’s portrayed Stabler for more than 15 years at this point, combined with more limited roles in dramas such as Oz, The Handmaid’s Tale, Pose and others, it might be easy for the actor’s fanbase to forget just how big comedy has been across Meloni’s career. But we’re talking about Wet Hot American Summer’s Gene Jenkinson, whose return for Netflix’s spinoff series provided the funniest First Day of Camp moment by far. So perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising that he was most taken aback by a comedy icon.
Meloni gave US Weekly the rundown on a variety of topics, including the early-career moment when he met and worked for Monty Python’s animation genius-turned-filmmaker Terry Gilliam. In his words:
The most starstruck moment of my life was when I did 12 Monkeys and met Terry Gilliam, who was my hero from his movie Brazil, and, obviously, from his Monty Python days. I almost started crying while I was talking to him, letting him know how meaningful Brazil was to me.
As a huge fan of Meloni's comic book adaptation Happy, as well as his hilarious efforts in everything from Harley Quinn to Wonder Showzen to Veep, I love hearing that he was able to have that kind of "meet your heroes" moment so early on during his rise in Hollywood. It was only his third film, following comedies Junior and Clean Slate the year before, and I have to imagine it was a wild transition to go from Ivan Reitman to Terry Gilliam.
I think it's safe to say Meloni and Gilliam hit it off well enough. Three years later, the actor popped up in a hilarious supporting role as hotel clerk Sven in the director's next cinematic ordeal, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. That said, it was the last time they worked together to date, but Meloni clearly still thinks highly of the visionary filmmaker if Gilliam remains the go-to celeb that left him most starstruck.
While I'll forever side with Monty Python's Flying Circus being my favorite effort from any of the six troupe members' careers, both Brazil and 12 Monkeys are 100% elsewhere in my Top 5., with Fawlty Towers and Life of Brian filling out the other two. sloths. Not that anybody asked, but still.
The Actors Christopher Meloni Looked Up To The Most
Beyond giving big props to Terry Gilliam, Christopher Meloni also addressed the on-screen performers that made a big impact on him in his youth, and most impressed him with their respective talents. As he put it:
I looked up to Robert De Niro, Marlon Brando, Daniel Day-Lewis and Christian Slater when I was younger. I respect how each of these actors fully immerse themselves in their characters. It’s an amazing feat.
How amazing would it be to have De Niro, Day-Lewis, Slater and Meloni all co-starring in a movie directed by Terry Gilliam? I'm going to dump a bunch of pennies into a wishing well to try and make that happen.
With the promoted Dean Norris returning for more brotherly love within the Stabler family, Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 will arrive for fans with Peacock subscriptions at some point in early 2025, and we're hoping to get more updates soon.
