4. Robert Patrick, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit ("Demons," 2005)
Before his role as Colonel Tom Ryan on The Unit, one of my all-time favorite actors appeared on SVU in the chilling seventh-season opener. He portrayed Ray Schenkel, a recently paroled sex offender that Stabler had put away several years prior. Convinced that Ray hasn't reformed, Elliot goes undercover to keep an eye on him and (depending on how you look at it) either is proven right or himself drives Ray to attempt another rape. The episode lets viewers judge which is true, something which made it even more interesting to me.
I've been a Robert Patrick fan for almost 20 years now, and I've seen almost everything he's done. His performance in "Demons" brings everything he has to the table. We see a nervous, tightly wound Ray trying his hardest to adhere to the conditions of his parole and straighten his life out. He's almost a weak character. Yet by episode's end, all that has been stripped away and we also see his dark side, the one that scares and intimidates. Definitely not a weak man. It's a performance that goes across a complete arc in the hour, and together with Chris Meloni, Patrick creates a gripping and terrifying episode.
5. Mark Valley, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit ("Paternity," 2007)
Prior to rejoining the ranks of TV leading men, Mark Valley turned in a performance that had me in tears when he starred in the SVU episode "Paternity." As Jake Keegan, Valley is in the middle of a mess involving a lost child, the murder of his nanny, and - as the episode indicates - a paternity debacle. When Jake finds out that his son is not his biological child (and all that entails), he goes off the rails in a major way and ends up committing a crime of his own. It's a stroke of genius for the always-underrated Valley, who goes from suspect in one crime to collateral damage of same to perpetrator of another in the hour.
At first fairly buttoned-up and collected, Jake completely unravels by episode's end, and it's a believable and emotionally involving collapse. I felt for him, and understood perfectly why he had been driven to do what he did, even if it was morally wrong. By the end of the episode, as Jake was at his complete wit's end, my heart was breaking. Any actor who can move the audience to an emotional reaction is doing something very, very right.
6. Jim Gaffigan, Law & Order ("Flight," 1998 & "Reality Bites," 2009) and Law & Order: Criminal Intent ("Dead," 2002 & "Smile," 2007)
I just love this pick for how against the grain it is. Jim Gaffigan is one of my all-time favorite stand-up comedians, so imagine my surprise to find out that he's booked not one, but four guest spots on two different Law & Order shows over the years. Surprise - he's actually good at it, too. Gaffigan does not at all look like the kind of man who'd cheat on his wife with the babysitter, only to murder his wife anyway because she wouldn't let him sign a lucrative TV deal ("Reality Bites"), but he pulls it off. Maybe it's because he's such a nice guy in real life (I've met him myself), but I just couldn't hate the man. At the same time, he made me completely forget that he's also one of the best stand-up comics. I thought he might be ridiculous, but as it turns out, Gaffigan has been a successful actor for a very long time.
More trivia for you: Gaffigan also appeared in an early episode of Third Watch (though not opposite Jason Wiles, sadly) and is, of course, best known for his role on My Boys. He is not the first nor the last stand-up comic to appear on a Law & Order, either. Criminal Intent has featured Lewis Black and Stephen Colbert, and the original saw an appearance from Michael Showalter...and those are just the ones I can think of off the top of my head.
I could go on forever with a rundown of the guest stars that all these shows have seen. (Some, like Jeremy Sisto, even go on to become series regulars, albeit in different roles.) It seems as if every week I'm seeing someone that I know from somewhere else. Love them or hate them, you have to admit that the Law & Order shows draw some of the best talent on television.
Who are your favorite Law & Order franchise guest stars? Who would you like to see appear? Tell us below.
