With the season 17 premiere exactly a month away, Enstars rounds up all that is known about this chapter of Law & Order: SVU.

Law & Order: SVU Four-Way Crossover With Chicago Med Scheduled 

The preview for the the big two part premiere is finally out and it promises to be a big opener for this season. The premiere is bringing back a big baddie from a past season, and this time around it seems like the serial killer might have just gotten better at his game. Serial killer Greg Yates -- the murderous doc who horrified viewers in the Law & Order SVU and Chicago P.D. crossover -- is back!

The clip shows the crew investigating a series of connected murders, as 9 dead bodies are recovered and some are found at the sea shore, wrapped in a trash bag. Vulture reported that the premiere of season 17 of the NBC procedural will be inspired by the Robert Durst story. The pop culture website has picked up on a bunch of crucial clues from the preview for the premiere that connext it to the Durst story -- from the protagonist being a very wealthy "untouchable" serial killer and also his method to dispose of the dead bodies in trashbags.

Sharon Stone Disses Experience On Law & Order As 'Humiliating' & 'So Bad'  

In a recent nterview with TVGuide, Law & Order: SVU showrunner Warren Leight dished about Rollins' sister, played by Lindsey Pulsipher, returning in season 17.

Some of the cast members and the showrunner of the NBC procedural have talked about the next season in interviews. And it won't be her sister alone, viewers will also be introduced to Amanda Rollins' (Kelli Giddish) mother in the next chapter. What's interesting is that her family is going to be making things more complicated for her. "We'll see her sister and meet her mother," Leight said. "Even if their intent is to be supportive, and I'm not even sure it is, her family showing up is not a great thing for her -- nothing good comes from seeing her sister or her mother."

The executive producer also spoke about how the next season generally being a bit rough on Rollins, especially considering that her partner Detective Amaro (Danny Pino) has left.

"This guy was a rock in the department and he was there emotionally for Benson and Rollins and, at times, physically for Rollins," Leight said. "So they're both missing him. We don't have people moaning about it, but you sense that it's changed the rhythm."

Earlier this year, Giddish, spoke about her character arc in season 17 in an interview with E! News.

It seems like Rollins is going to deal with some major issues in the next chapter, specifically the dangerous pitfall of detective life: getting obsessed with a certain case to the point of detriment.

"Rollins, I think it's so cool to really see her get enveloped by a case and maybe a subject. I think maybe you'll see her become a little obsessed with that," Giddish said.

Amaro's exit became one of the main points of contention. We are rooting for Amaro's return and in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Leight suggested that while Amaro's departure was kind of definite for now, this might not be the ultimate goodbye.

"So far, Cragen's come back and Munch has come back, and even Dean [Winters] came back," he said. "I try to leave that door open. I would like to be able to bring him back. At this point, it depends on where he is and what he's doing and what the story needs. That's one of the advantages of not killing a character that you like. On Criminal Intent after I left, they killed off Captain Ross and there have been a couple of times where I just wish I had him for an episode. And Jill Hennessy's character was killed off [on Law & Order], and there have been a couple of times where I wanted to bring her in. I'm not sure it's a great idea to kill off characters who have brought a lot to this show."

In an interview with Variety, Leight dished about some interesting plot points for the next chapter. The show is known to source its inspiration for cases from the news, and hot topics. It seems like the buzz surrounding transgender celebrities like Caitlyn Jenner and Laverne Cox has caught the imagination of the writers.

"We've already started our season 17 storylines. We're doing a story about a transgender teenager," he said.

Leight suggested that while these developments -- like advocating for the rights of the transgender community -- are for the better, there are complicated grey areas that need addressing.

"The world keeps evolving, and there are a lot of dark areas that we need to look at," Leight added.

Season 17 of Law & Order: SVU will premiere on Sept. 23 at 9 p.m. (ET).

Watch the preview:

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