Mariska Hargitay is taking an entirely new direction for her career — and she's honoring a loved one along the way.
Fans of Law and Order: SVU may know Mariska's mom is the late actress Jayne Mansfield. Famous for roles in movies and theater, the Golden Globe winner tragically died at age 34 in a car crash in June 1967. She left behind five children, including Mariska, who was in the back of the car during the accident. While Jayne's legacy lives on in Mariska, the actress wants people to get to know her mom in a new way.
Thanks to an announcement made by HBO on April 8, fans learned Mariska would make her feature directorial debut with a documentary about her mom's life. Titled My Mom Jayne, the project will air in June 2025 and will look at Jayne's legacy in Hollywood. As a way to confirm the news, Mariska posted an emotional Instagram statement while sharing a heartfelt throwback photo of her and her mom.
"I feel grateful, fulfilled and so proud to share this film," she wrote in the caption. "I never got to make a movie with my mom, and she never got to make the kind of movies she wanted to make. #MyMomJayne is a place of meeting for us, and words fail me to describe how meaningful it is to tell her story, my own, and ours together. @hbodocs."
When fans learned of how Mariska was honoring her mom with this special directing project, they immediately had words of praise for her new venture.
"Thank you for sharing her with us 💞 countdown to June starts nowwwww 💞🌸🤩," one person wrote in the comments. "I’m so excited to watch this film, M! I’m sure that your mama is so proud of you as well as all your fans are 💗💗," another penned. "Excited to see your momma through your eyes 💖 your momma is definitely shining down bright on you and is so proud of the wonderful person you are," a different follower added.
As for what else fans can expect from My Mom Jayne, a report from Variety stated Mariska "seeks to know, understand, and embrace her mother for the first time." Through interviews, photos and movies, she will peel back layers of who Jayne was and how her presence left a hole on loved ones.
"This movie is a labor of love and longing," Mariska shared in an official statement. "It’s a search for the mother I never knew, an integration of a part of myself I’d never owned, and a reclaiming of my mother’s story and my own truth. I’ve always believed there is strength in vulnerability, and the process of making this film has confirmed that belief like never before."
We're so thrilled for Mariska, and we can't wait to see what she uncovers.
As the entertainment and news associate editor for Good Housekeeping, Adrianna (she/her) writes about everything TV, movies, music and pop culture. She graduated from Yeshiva University with a B.A. in journalism and a minor in business management. She covers shows like The Rookie, 9-1-1 and Grey's Anatomy, though when she’s not watching the latest show on Netflix, she’s taking martial arts or drinking way too much coffee.
