NBC’s long-running police procedural, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 27, is raising the stakes with every episode.
Titled, ‘Gimmick‘, Episode 18 of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 27 brings the dark side of the professional fighting world to the forefront. A professional fighter’s body is found tied in a tub in a motel room. The fingerprint reports showed that the victim was Ian Larkin, who was previously arrested multiple times for petty crimes.
As the investigators dug deeper, they found out that Ian Larkin and his friends were groomed and abused by their mentor, Client O’Neil. Client O’Neil, nicknamed the Executioner, was a leading professional fighter who was participating in the New York Knockout Expo. Interestingly, four New York Knockout Expo tickets were found in Ian’s motel room. Client O’Neil tried to bind the victim bound by an NDA. However, Ian found a loop and was about to sue O’Neil.
When O’Neil found out about it, he crafted a plan to kill Ian. The investigators later found out that it was O’Neil who killed Ian. However, during the trial, Ian’s friend, who exposed O’Neil, backed off, and O’Neil was set free. In the end, justice was served when Ian’s brother killed O’Neil to avenge Ian’s death.
Here’s who plays whom in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 27.
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 27 Episode 18 cast and characters guide
Mariska Hargitay as Captain Olivia Benson
Mariska Hargitay (Lake Placid and My Mom Jane) plays Captain Olivia Benson in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 27. In this episode, she and her team investigate the death of a professional fighter, Ian.
Corey Cott as Detective Jake Griffin
Corey Cott (Making Waves and Filthy Rich) portrays Detective Jake Griffin in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 27. In this episode, when he realises that the team will go to the New York Knockout Expo to investigate Ian’s death, he gets quite excited. Turns out, he was a major wrestling fan in his childhood. It was his childhood dream to visit the expo and meet professional fighters. In fact, Captain Benson had to remind him that they were going for an investigation.
Mark Rolston as Client O’Neil
Mark Rolston plays the role of an antagonist called Client O’Neil in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 27, Episode 18. He’s a professional fighter who’s also known as the executioner. He dons a bondage mask wherever he gets on stage to fight. In reality, he’s a predator. He groomed Ian and his friends when they were teenagers. He also made them sign NDAs. Ian slipped into depression due to the trauma, and he became a drug addict eventually. However, he wanted to sue O’Neil. Interestingly, he found a loophole, too. When O’Neil realised that he was about to get exposed, he killed Ian. Rolston is known for his projects like The Shawshank Redemption, The Departed, and Aliens, to name a few.
Other pivotal characters:
- Ice T as Sergeant Odafin Tutuola
- Peter Scanavino as ADA Sonny Carisi
- Renata Friedman as M.E Horowitz
- Kelli Giddish as Sergeant Ananda Rollins
- Norma Kuhling as ADA Cindy Jones
- Jesse La Flair as Roddy ‘Razor’ Ray, Ian’s friend who initially exposes Client O’Neil’s abusive behaviour and his dark secrets to the SVU team. However, during the trial, he backs off, and O’Neil is released from all charges.
- Morgan Lui as Officer Katie
- Andi Matusiak as Bailiff
- John Ramaine as Ted Hitchcock
- Matthew Wilkas as Sean Larkin, Ian’s brother, who kills Client O’Neil to avenge his brother’s death
- Iván Amaro Bullón as Juror
Also Read: Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 27 Episode 18 recap
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Edited by Priscillah Mueni