http://ausiellofiles.ew.com/2008/07/william-peterse.html

Quote :

"Exclusive: William Petersen Says B-Y-E to 'CSI' You know that fancy new CSI contract that William Petersen inked last May? Turns out there was a ticking time bomb buried in the fine print: He'll be gone by midseason! And not "off too do a play" gone like he was back in 2006. No, this season's 10th episode will be his last as a full-time series regular. "Billy is leaving," confirms the show's executive producer, Carol Mendelsohn. "But he will remain throughout the run of the series an executive producer. And he will, whenever CBS asks, come back. I don't think you've seen the last of Gil Grissom." Neither does Petersen. In fact, in an exclusive interview conducted on July 11, the eight-year CSI vet seemed almost reluctant to characterize his departure as, um, a departure. Citing both his ongoing role as an executive producer and his intention to return on occasion as a (very special) guest star, he said, "I'm in a great place in terms of knowing that I'll be more free to make choices. And I'm responsible enough to not do it in a way that would hurt [the show]. "I want it to work for the writers, I want it to work for the cast, and, most importantly, I want it to work for the audience," he added. "I don't want them to abandon the show." CBS has to be concerned about that, too. Although no one expects ratings to nosedive when Petersen leaves, the network's top-rated show is staring down its biggest challenge ever. His sorta swan song, coupled with Jorja Fox and Gary Dourdan's exits last season, brings to three the number of original cast members CSI will have lost in a year's time. "This will be a year of transition for the show," concedes Mendehlson. "We always knew it was coming, and I'm glad it didn't come until now." At this point, she's confident that, like Law & Order and ER, CSI is a franchise that can weather such cast shifts. "There's never going to be another William Petersen, and there will never be another Jorja Fox," she hastens to add. "But we are not out to just replace those actors. We're out to add new characters to the show, and the show will change as a result. But that's a good thing." (For more on CSI's post-Grissom plans, click here.) In the meantime, Mendelsohn is plotting one hell of a send-off for her leading man. Just as this is a year of transition for CSI, so too is it for Grissom. The events of last season's finale -- specifically the death of Dourdan's Warrick -- will push Grissom to the breaking point. "The easiest way to describe Grissom is 'in crisis,'" Petersen told me. "As a man. As a scientist. As a teacher. As a middle-aged person who has been very successful at what he's done... [he] wonders, 'What's the point?' "It's all of a sudden becoming more difficult for him to do his job," he continued. "What had been a sort of fun job for him to do, because he loved the solving of the riddle, has become ever more taxing and difficult." Helping Grissom through the crisis will be his true love, Sara, played by Fox, who is returning for multiple episodes, starting with the season premiere. While Petersen confirms that Sara will figure into Grissom's final arc, he stops just short of saying the couple will ride off into the desert together at the end of episode 10. "I wouldn't want to say exactly what we're going do -- I want people to watch, certainly," he chuckled. "But Sara is involved... It's often darkest just before the dawn." And lest anyone read any hidden meaning into that statement, the actor reiterated, "For me, it's a really good situation. I don't want the audience to think it's not... [It isn't] like there's something going on, like 'Petersen's unhappy,' 'cause it's not true. It's quite the contrary. " That explains why he's having trouble labeling his departure a... well, you know. "My biggest problem with leaving the show at any point isn't leaving Grissom -- I'm an actor, it's time to do other things," said the stage vet, whose first post-CSI gig will be a return to the theater -- and to Connor McPherson's play, A Dublin Carol -- this fall in his hometown of Chicago. "[The hard part will be saying goodbye] to the cast and crew. [So] I'm going to stay as involved as I'm allowed to be throughout the remainder of this show. Until they turn off all the lights." "

[Edited on July 15, 2008 at 11:42 AM. Reason : ...]

7/15/2008 11:41:47 AM

i dont give a shit!

7/15/2008 11:43:19 AM

CSI is a stupid ass fake show

i hope CSI goes bye

7/15/2008 11:43:33 AM

7/15/2008 11:43:41 AM

peace out gil

[Edited on July 15, 2008 at 11:44 AM. Reason : edit]

7/15/2008 11:44:23 AM

CSI is one of my favorite shows, and I've had this uber-crush on Grissom for years now.

While I was upset that they killed off Warrick, I'm just devastated that they're letting Grissom leave. The show will certainly end it's run within the year.

<3 Grissom

PS - I don't give a shit that you don't give a shit.

7/15/2008 11:44:51 AM

I stopped watching this show last season didn't know they killed off Warrick. Wow...so Sara, Warrick and Gil will all be gone? Only Catherine and Nick left. I wonder who they will get to replace him, if anyone.

Might have to watch the show again to find out!!

7/15/2008 11:47:17 AM

there's one other guy left - greg. he's the nerdy one that started in the lab and then became a csi a few seasons in.

ya know, they also kicked off one of the main characters in csi:miami - alexx the coroner. i don't know why they're letting go of the characters that have been with the show through all the seasons. those characters are what make the show so popular. *sigh*

[Edited on July 15, 2008 at 11:51 AM. Reason : xx]

7/15/2008 11:50:46 AM

well

there goes the show

7/15/2008 12:01:29 PM

^^ ah yeah, i love csi miami now and i really liked alex too

But on a happier note, i do like greg (can't believe i forgot him!), nick and catherine in the original so at least they aren't leaving [yet]

and on csi new york they left off with the main guy (can't remember his name right now) being "kidnapped" after he tried to help out a guy in a bank heist...don't know where they are going with that. Doubt they are getting rid of him too. But it is interesting...

7/15/2008 12:09:04 PM

what happened to sara and warrick? i haven't watched in a few seasons.

7/15/2008 12:21:22 PM

i have never been able to get into csi:ny

***csi season 8 spoiler - coming up!***

sarah - her and grissom eventually got together, and they were the happy couple - then sarah was kidnapped and ended up becoming part of the season 7 finale when they tried to save her life. so when season 8 opened, she was alive and came back to work, but never really felt right about the whole thing, and ultimately her character chose to quit her job and leave town (as well as leaving grissom - the guy she's loved since starting on the show all those years ago)

warrick - his character was caught up in all sorts of shady shit during the last half of season 8, and he ended up being set-up as the guy who killed one of the big crime-boss-mobster guys, but was cleared of any wrongdoing during the season finale. then at the very end of the show, one of the higher up bosses of csi (one of the GOOD GUYS) came up to warrick's car to congratulate him on being cleared, and warrick promised to never let anything like that happen again. the good guy (can't remember which character it was) said he was going to make sure it didn't happen again, and shot warrick in the head while he sat in his car. and that's how the season ended.

of course, before the show aired, we knew warrick (gary duordan) was leaving the show, because it was all over the news that they were letting him go. it's probably because gary duordan was in trouble for drugs in real life, so they decided to kill him off the show so they didn't have to deal with bad publicity.

....man, i know way too much about this show

[Edited on July 15, 2008 at 12:40 PM. Reason : i got one season ahead of myself ]

[Edited on July 15, 2008 at 12:40 PM. Reason : .]

7/15/2008 12:36:39 PM

Quote :

"CSI is a stupid ass fake show i hope CSI goes bye"

7/15/2008 12:37:07 PM

Quote :

"alexx the coroner"

she sucked

and csi:miami isn't much better

7/15/2008 12:52:40 PM

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"I wonder who they will get to replace him, if anyone. "

if they really hate their audience, they'll bring over David Caruso from CSI: Miami.

7/15/2008 12:56:49 PM

The next time you want to take a swing at someone... (Take shades off) ...start with me. (Put shades back on, and cue WHO music)



[Edited on July 15, 2008 at 1:29 PM. Reason : xx]

7/15/2008 1:29:27 PM

You......SIGH.....ARE MY NUMBER ONE.....GUY


[Edited on July 15, 2008 at 1:34 PM. Reason : tg]

7/15/2008 1:33:10 PM

7/16/2008 10:21:17 AM