Ryan Buggle, who portrays Noah, the son of Mariska Hargitay's Captain Olivia Benson on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (SVU), has spent over half of his 13 years of life on the show's set. Buggle fondly recalls some of his favorite memories with Hargitay, including a scene where she playfully put whipped cream on his face during one of their first SVU scenes.
Buggle describes working with Hargitay as a dream and cherishes the friendships he has made on set. Despite already having experience on Broadway, Buggle remains committed to honing his acting skills and continues to learn from Hargitay. He admires her talent as an actor and director, and he appreciates the acting lessons that occur whenever they are on set together.
The off-screen relationship between Buggle and Hargitay is vibrant, sometimes leading to the lines between their real names and characters getting blurred during filming. Buggle's most challenging scene to date was when his character, Noah, watched his mom get attacked by gang members. He found it both fun and scary because he had to witness Hargitay's character being beaten up.
To prepare for difficult scenes, Buggle relies on talking it through with Hargitay, whom he considers a mentor. He also taps into how he thinks his character, Noah, would feel in those situations.
Buggle has developed a love for stunt work and enjoys watching the action unfold on set. He looks up to Hargitay as a mentor and hopes to follow in her footsteps as an actor, stunt performer, and director in the future.
During downtime on set, Buggle plays Mario Kart with Ice-T, who plays Detective Fin Tutuola on SVU. Buggle chooses Mario as his character, while Ice-T prefers Donkey Kong. Although Ice-T usually wins, Buggle enjoys the experience.
As for guest stars, Buggle mentions his admiration for Tom Holland and his portrayal of Spider-Man. He would also love to have Brooke Shields, who played Noah's biological grandmother on the show, return for another appearance.
While details about Noah's storyline in Season 24 and beyond are under wraps, Buggle sums up the end of the season with three words: action, drama, and family. As SVU heads towards its 25th season, Buggle remains happy and fulfilled working on the show as a 13-year-old actor.
