Hargitay was 25 years old when she found out the former Las Vegas entertainer was her biological father — not Mickey Hargitay

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Mariska Hargitay revealed she spent Father’s Day with her biological father, Nelson Sardelli

The Law & Order: Special Victims Unit star spoke about their time together during a Q&A at the HamptonsFilm’s SummerDocs series
Hargitay revealed that Sardelli was her biological father, not Mickey Hargitay, in her documentary, My Mom Jayne, about her late mother, Jayne Mansfield

Mariska Hargitay is opening up about her bond with her biological father, Nelson Sardelli.

The Law & Order: Special Victims Unit actress, 61, revealed at a special screening of her documentary, My Mom Jayne, at the HamptonsFilm’s SummerDocs series on Thursday, July 17 that she spent Father’s Day with Sardelli, 90, this year.

“It was so magical,” she recalled during a Q&A. “He apologized and he said, ‘Thank you for forgiving me.’ And I said, ‘Thank you for making the choice that you made.’ “

“So it’s like everyone was right in the end, but I grew up not knowing that,” she added.

Hargitay revealed that Sardelli was her biological father in My Mom Jayne, a documentary about her late mother, Jayne Mansfield.

The actress revealed in the doc — her directorial debut — that, at age 25, she learned that her biological father was not the man who raised her, Mickey Hargitay. Instead it was Sardelli, a former Las Vegas entertainer.

During the Q&A on Thursday, Mariska said she kept this family secret as a way to “honor” Mickey, who died in 2006, but realized when making her film that she “didn’t need to carry that.”

“So many people carry things that they don’t need to,” she said. “I think the only way out is through.”

Mariska added that, for her, the experience of making My Mom Jayne and talking about her biological father was about understanding the “why” behind it all.

“What made this journey safe is the curiosity of knowing that people are three-dimensional. We are all so many different things. I didn’t want to put anyone in a box,” Mariska said.

“Once I understood why, there was magic on the other side, and there was love on the other side,” she continued. “I spent my life feeling unworthy, not wanted, not claimed, not good enough, abandoned. And then I realized, ‘Oh, no, sweetie, you were chosen six ways from Sunday.’”

Mariska said she was “chosen” and “claimed” by Mickey, but she also felt the same way about Sardelli, who had decided he wanted to do what was best for her.

The Emmy winner said during the Q&A that she has learned that perspective and intention are “everything.”

“Now I feel like I have two mothers, I have two fathers,” she said of embracing her family dynamic.

“There was so much beauty in leaning into the dark edges, leaning into the tough and rough edges,” she continued. “I didn’t know what I was going to find on the other side.”