Mariska Hargitay Shares the Surprising Reason Why She Calls Her Kids ‘Losers’
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2):format(webp)/mariska-hargitay-peter-hermann-august-andrew-amaya-102125-4e5ff1f02e29427a915f672d2e816bce.jpg)
Mariska Hargitay aims to find the humor in every situation.
The Law & Order: Special Victims Unit star, 61, appeared on the Tuesday, Oct. 21 episode of the Good Hang with Amy Poehler podcast, where she opened up about the impact of comedy in her life. Hargitay shared that she inserts humor and laughter into most situations.
She credited her healthy marriage to fellow actor Peter Hermann and his ability to make her laugh in the hard times, and added that she even uses humor when her children do bad things.
“I would say humor and comedy has saved my life,” she told host Amy Poehler. “When my kids do bad things, I call them losers, and then they say, ‘Oh, it’s not that bad if she’s calling us a loser.’ And we laugh through it.”
The two actors, who met on the set of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and married in 2004, are the parents of three kids: Andrew, 13, Amaya, 14, and August, 19. Hargitay welcomed her first child, August, at age 42 in 2006. She and Hermann then welcomed Amaya and Andrew through adoption within six months of each other.
In January 2024, she said that she is “so grateful that I’m an older mom.”
“I don’t know if I could have handled it when I was younger,” she admitted. “When I was younger, I wasn’t as present, but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve started to accept and appreciate.”
While raising three children has been a challenge, Hargitay has said she wouldn’t have it any other way.
“Our family is so perfect, or at least perfect for me,” she told in March 2018. “Together we’re just this whole, happy, joyful, chaotic, crazy unit. I’ve never known anything that was more right.”
While filming season 27 of the long-running drama, the actress was joined on set by her son August and husband, 58. The father-son duo both towered over Hargitay, adorning casual clothing in snaps taken from their visit.
Hargitay, who is fresh off the press tour for her directorial debut My Mom, Jayne, was in full Olivia Benson gear, rocking an all-black outfit and boots.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2):format(webp)/mariska-hargitay-peter-hermann-august-andrew-amaya-1-102125-8a80de93b63a40ca9709732f026a3722.jpg)
Hargitay’s family has been right by her side as she’s made her feature film directorial debut. The Law & Order: Special Victims Unit actress was joined by the Younger actor and their three children on the red carpet for her directorial debut in May. Hargitay premiered the documentary, which details her mother’s legacy, at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.
The actress posed alongside her husband and three children, wearing a black and bright pink sequinned gown. The dress was a sweet, subtle nod to her mother, whose favorite color was hot pink. Her husband and sons matched in black suits and a black bowtie, while her daughter wore a black dress.
Later in June, her three children came to the Los Angeles premiere of her documentary.
The mom of three adorned a sleek black, long-sleeve dress. Her older son, August, wore jeans and a striped shirt, while her younger son, Andrew, was dressed in an all-black outfit and pink sneakers. Her daughter, Amaya, wore a baby pink floor-length dress with ruffles.