What happened when Mariska Hargitay confronted dad Mickey about her biological father? Actress opens up about heartbreaking incident 

At the age of 25, Mariska Hargitay's life changed profoundly. While visiting a memorabilia collector for her mother, Jayne Mansfield, the Law & Order: SVU actress received an astonishing piece of news: the man who raised her and ‘fathered’ her was not her real father. Mickey Hargitay, the alleged father she grew up with, was only legally her father. Instead, he simply raised her as his own after marrying Mansfield. Her real biological dad turned out to be Nelson Sardelli, an Italian singer who had a short relationship with Jayne.

Hargitay was left emotionally shattered by the revelation. “I was hysterically crying,” said Hargitay in an interview with Alex Cooper on Episode 154 of the Call Her Daddy podcast, which aired June 25, 2025. She went to see Mickey right away, who at that point was constructing a house for her.

She remembers, “He was like, ‘What are you talking about? Are you crazy? That’s so not true,’” encountering a very strong denial to the accusation.

Even if it was denial, Mickey's answer was not cold—he kept on soothing her by saying:

“You’re a Hargitay to the end.

Ultimately, Mariska Hargitay made a choice to ignore the truth in favor of love. In fact, after noticing how painful the discussion was for Mickey, she told Cooper,

“It doesn’t matter what I feel, I love him … and we’re done here, we’re done here. I pretended that I believed him, and we never spoke of it again.”

She refers to that as her Coming-of-Age moment—emotionally, at least.

“This is the moment that I became an adult… I was so overwhelmed.”

"I am mini-Mickey": Mariska Hargitay's emotional resolve

While she was not related to Mickey through blood, Mariska Hargitay claims to share far more important traits—his character, principles, and compassion.

“The irony is that I’m more like my dad than anyone in our whole family. I am mini-Mickey,” she told the Call Her Daddy podcast.

Mickey Hargitay’s daughter's voice during the interview expressed a sense of admiration of sorts for the man who brought her up, irrespective of genetics. She said, “It was just an extraordinarily painful moment,” adding the emotional weight behind the experience.

Hargitay stated during an interview that took place in May 2025 with Vanity Fair, which disclosed for the very first time that Nelson Sardelli is her biological father,

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“I grew up where I was supposed to, and I do know that everyone made the best choice for me.”

Over the past few years, she has developed a bond with Sardelli, now 90 years old, alongside his daughters, who are her biological half-sisters. However, Mariska Hargitay maintains that her identity continues to be anchored on the man who loved and raised her. With all emphasis brought forth in the previous statement, "I’m Mickey Hargitay’s daughter—that is not a lie,” she stressed.

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