It's been nine years since Taylor Swift named one of her beloved cats Olivia Benson. Since then, Mariska Hargitay — the " Law & Order: SVU" star who plays Olivia's eponymous crime solver — revealed how honored she was by the tribute. The final reveal took place on November 30, when she introduced her new pet and revealed the name she took from Swift's 2022 hit "Karma."
"Karma is a cat @taylorswift," she captioned a post of two photos, including an adorable Siamese cat. "Meet Karma. My cat." She then added a handful of pun- and Swift-inspired hashtags, including "MeAndKarmaVibeLikeThat," "AndIKeepMySideOfMyPawClean," and "KarmaIsACat."
taylor approved name
The day after Hargitay introduced Karma, Swift commented on the post, making it clear she wholeheartedly approved of the move. "Are you serious?!!! Nothing could be more complete," she wrote. “Love this very much!!”
Swift isn't the only one who would love to see this happen like karma. More than 221,000 people liked Hargitay's original post, and Swift's comment garnered more than 23,000 hearts. There were also more appreciative reactions from Hargitay's followers, with one fan summarizing: "It's iconic that two queens have cats named after each other [sic]."
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The game of name and fame
Swift brought the cat to Olivia Benson in 2014, and she became the proud owner of two cats. The older of the two, Meredith Grey, is named after the lead character on Grey's Anatomy , played by Ellen Pompeo. As Swift explained to Rolling Stone shortly after adopting Olivia, her "theme" for naming the cat was "strong, complex, independent women." This continued until she fell in love with a male kitten in 2019 and named him Benjamin Button, inspired by the 2008 movie.
Swift's three cats are famous for more than just their names. They are loved for the photos, music videos and even modeling she posts on social media. In fact, Olivia Benson is the third richest pet in the world, according to Cats.com data from January. The website puts her net worth at a staggering $97 million.
Hargitay's cats may never reach the same level of fame or fortune, but in two photos shared by the actor, Karma's life looks pretty good. Plus, if there's any justice - and "Karma" says there is - the cat may even meet Swift in the future and give fans a "purr in my lap because she loves me" moment, They deserve it.
