A big name guest star is coming to "Law & Order: SVU," though he's more at home in Washington than Hollywood: Vice President Joe Biden is slated to appear on an upcoming episode of the long-running procedural.


Biden will cameo as part of an effort to bring awareness to the backlog of untested rape kits. According to an interview Biden gave to NBC (via USA Today), the vice president got in touch with "SVU" star Mariska Hargitay several years ago to help spread the word about the issue. That led to the pair collaborating on the It's On Us initiative -- a campaign to prevent sexual assault -- and eventually led to Biden's "SVU" appearance, according to NBC/USA Today.

Biden credited the long-running crime procedural for bringing about a shift in the nation's attitude towards sexual assault at the law-enforcement level. "When SVU started (in 1999), a significant number of police departments didn't have sexual violence units. It began to change the whole culture of policing."

As for his time onscreen, he harbors no illusions about his talents as a dramatic actor, and that he let his passion about the subject drive his performance. "This one, I didn't have to act about," he said. "This one is just right from the gut."

The veep previously guest-starred on sitcom "Parks and Recreation" in 2012 and again in 2015. His episode of "SVU" airs on NBC on Wednesday, September 28 at 9 p.m.

[via: USA Today, SVU]

Photo credit: Michael Parmelee/NBC