Where Is Danny Pino From Law And Order: SVU Now?
One of the most iconic episodic series in the history of network television, producer Dick Wolf's "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" held viewers spellbound right from its 1999 launch with gripping, "ripped from the headlines" stories of sexual crime and punishment. Featuring fan favorites including detectives Elliot Stabler (Chris Meloni), Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay), John Munch (Richard Belzer) and Fin Tutuola (Ice-T), the show was a consistent ratings' winner for 23 seasons on NBC, earning an enviable 80% Audience Score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Also among the highest-profile, best-loved characters on "SVU," Nick Amaro (Danny Pino) is well-known to loyal fans of the series. As an NYPD detective at the 16th Precinct of the city's police department, Pino was first seen on screen in the series in the 2011 episode "Personal Fouls" (per IMDb). Pino would then go on to portray detective Amaro in a total of 94 installments of "SVU" up through the "Surrendering Noah" episode in 2015. In his final appearance on the show in Season 16, Amaro is shot during a courtroom scene, after which he exits the series.
All of the above being said, Pino has hardly been resting on his "Law & Order: SVU" laurels since departing the show, which makes this seem like a good time to check in and find out where he's been and what he's been up to lately.
Pino would visit Chicago P.D. and deal with insectoid aliens
Before leaving "Law & Order: SVU," however, it's important to note that Danny Pino would also spend time in the world of crossover events that linked the various series created by producer Dick Wolf — in this case Wolf's "SVU" franchise and the shows of his "One Chicago" universe. According to IMDb, Pino's Nick Amaro character appeared in the "Chicago P.D." episode "They'll Have to Go Through Me." The next year, Amaro would again visit "Chicago P.D." in the episode "The Number of Rats."
Following his visit to the "Chicago" shows, Pino was cast in the role of Alex Vargas in the "Pencils Down" episode of "Scandal" in 2016. He went on to reprise the role in three additional installments of the series. In 2016, he entered the bizarre, insectoid-alien horror realm of "BrainDead," where he took on the role of Luke Healy. Beginning his stint as Healy in "BrainDead" with "The Insanity Principal," he would conclude his run on the show after 13 installments.
The next year, Pino picked up another recurring role when he was tabbed to play John Bishop in the crime drama "Gone." Debuting in the series' pilot episode in 2017, he played Bishop for 12 episodes, finishing up with "Rise" in 2018.
He played a ruthless drug lord in Mayans M.C.
Danny Pino would find himself in another core character role in 2018, as he landed the part of Miguel Galindo in FX's action-drama "Mayans M.C." (per IMDb). Created by Kurt Sutter and Elgin James, "Mayans M.C." was spun off from and set within the same gritty, gang-bangers-on-motorcycles world as the "Sons of Anarchy" series. Cast as the ruthless boss of the vicious Galindo cartel, Pino debuted in 2018's "Perro/Oc" and went on to appear in a total of 30 "Mayans M.C." installments before his final stint in the episode "Chapter the Last, Nothing More to Write" in 2021.
That same year, Pino was cast as Ricardo Diaz in CBS's legal drama "The Good Fight," as well as playing the part of Larry Mora in 2021's feature film "Dear Evan Hansen" alongside Julianne Moore and Ben Platt. It would also turn out that 2021 would see Pino make a return visit to Dick Wolf's crime-drama universe — but more about that below.
He recently dropped in on his SVU team again
While he initially left "Law & Order: SVU" in 2015 after being wounded in a shooting, the real reason for the departure of Danny Pino's detective Amaro wasn't specified until the show's subsequent Season 17. In that season's two-episode debut "Devil's Dissections" and "Criminal Pathology," it was revealed that Amaro had retired from the NYPD and moved to Los Angeles.
But as fate would have it, Amaro's decision to kick back, hit the beach, and soak up some rays in L.A. seems to have left the detective feeling restless and bored. Because by the time the epic 500th episode of "SVU" was filming in 2021, Amaro was back in New York teaming up with his old squad mates again. Reunited with his former colleague Olivia Benson, the storyline centered on Amaro asking her to help him clear the name of a convicted criminal.
As detailed in an Entertainment Tonight interview about the episode, Pino said, "It feels amazing to be welcomed back and for the show to be still so resonant... Obviously, I have incredible memories and relationships from when I was on the show. So, it's always great to touch base and to create something new and fresh with this team."
This is just a glimpse into the active career of Danny Pino since his original run on "SVU" ended back in 2015, and it's safe to say he's had quite a journey so far.