‘Law and Order: SVU’ Mariska Hargitay and Christopher Meloni reunited on actor’s birthday

“Law and Order: SVU” fans can’t help but hope that they might see a Benson-Stabler reunion soon. SVU lead star and executive producer Mariska Hargitay has shared another photo with Christopher Meloni once again.

The two reunited over the weekend for Meloni’s 56th birthday. Hargitay shared a picture of her with the actor while Meloni also shared some of their images together.

Meloni first started sharing images on social media with a photo of him giving his former co-star a smooch on the cheek. Hargitay returned the favour by posting a selfie with the actor with a simply “Happy Birthday” caption.

This is not the first time the two shared on social media their frequent off-cam reunion. Most recently, they shared a snap with their fans last Valentine's Day. The duo also posted a cute selfie in December 2016, another selfie back in March 2016, and another off-screen get-together in March 2014.

Hargitay and Meloni are close friends in real life. Aside from starring in “Law and Order: SVU” as Det Elliot Stabler for 12 years, she is also the godmother of the actor’s 16-year-old daughter Sophia, E! News noted.

In May 2011, Meloni announced that he would not be returning to NBC's longest-running procedural drama for its season 13 after the failure of negotiations over his new contract. When the season premiered, Capt Cragen (Dann Florek) told Det Olivia Benson (Hargitay) that her partner has abruptly resigned from the force. Stabler never got a proper goodbye from his colleagues.

Showrunner Warren Leight hinted last year that a Stabler-Benson reunion is still possible. He admitted at the time that he and the show’s writers had begun plotting a possible series finale should season 17 be their last. The plan includes bringing back former series regulars such as Richard Belzer (Munch), Danny Pino (Amaro) and Meloni (Stabler).

He said Hargitay and Meloni’s closeness might bring the actor back to the show and gave the character the farewell that has been long overdue. "I think if Mariska were to have called him, he would have taken the call. That can be for another day, hopefully a long way off," he told the Hollywood Reporter.

SVU has been renewed and currently in its 18th season. The show also recently celebrated its 400th episode.

“Law and Order: SVU” airs every Wednesdays at 9:00 p.m. EST/8:00 p.m. CST on NBC. In Australia, it airs on Network Ten.