Variety has heard that Kelli Giddish impending departure from “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” is neither her decision nor the result of any decision made by showrunner David Graziano.
Several people with knowledge of the situation have said that the decision to shuffle things around at “SVU” came from up high. One insider has even stated that the network is always trying to make the program as current as possible. Even though the show’s star and executive producer, Mariska Hargitay, lobbied to retain Giddish on the procedural, the choice was already made.