Petersen Not Thrilled About Another 'CSI' Spinoff

William Petersen (Gil Grissom) is none too pleased about the arrival of the second CSI: Crime Scene Investigations spinoff, CSI: New York.

Speaking to the Philadelphia Inquirer in this article, Petersen suggested the franchise's expansion to a third series might be going too far. "Two years from now, there'll be another one in Philadelphia and one in Toledo," he said. "If it works, they're going to use it until it doesn't work anymore. You can't tell them the golden egg is going to get broken."

Petersen wasn't thrilled by the prospect of the first spinoff, CSI: Miami (story). Among other things, he thought Miami arrived too soon. "I wanted them to wait another year and let that show be something else instead of a carbon copy of ours," he said. "My objection was to the timing. Give our show a chance and give the other show a chance before rubber-stamping this thing."

In Petersen's eyes, reality TV is a perfect example of an idea that has been taken too far. "The reality thing is getting tired now, because it's rubber-stamped out," Petersen commented. "They're all the same show, just set in a different place." He even mentioned CSI's timeslot competitor, The Appentice, as another example of the the over-exposure of reality TV. "Now Donald Trump is running around with a bunch of guys. Whatever," he said of the business-themed reality show.

Petersen did concede that unlike the network executives, he doesn't have to deal with the financial aspects of a successful TV show, or a successful TV franchise. "I don't have to deal with the bottom line the way these executives do," he said. "They're desperate to squeeze money out of it. That's what happens when people like [Viacom CEO] Sumner Redstone and [Fox CEO] Rupert Murdoch are in charge. It makes it difficult for us to do anything original."

In a related article at the Philadelphia Inquirer, Petersen noted that he was surprised at the show's status as the top-rated drama on television. "We thought we would have a niche audience of loyal viewers like X-Files or [The] West Wing," he said. "But we have a huge audience that crosses all kinds of boundaries. It's unique. It's bizarre."

Just because CSI is extremely successful doesn't mean Petersen watches the ratings obsessively. "When we get involved in the ratings," he said, "then we're doing the network's job. We need to focus on our work."

Petersen attributes CSI's success to the fascinating characters and intriguing storylines. "I assume that part of it is due to the quality of the show and the characters and their chemistry," he said. "People like the way it twists and turns on itself. Each week is a puzzle, a really well-done puzzle."

Though CSI's success doesn't puzzle Petersen, the appeal of Grissom to the show's many female fans does. "I wonder how many women would want to wallow around in maggot farms at night," he commented, "because that's really all Grissom could give them. Women think, 'Boy, could I make improvements on this guy,' and of course Grissom is scared to death of any improvements being made."

However, bugs and all, Petersen is pleased with the character of Grissom, and still enjoys playing him after three and a half years. "I'm still learning stuff about him," he said. "I wanted to create something that would be interesting for me day in and day out, because I was always deathly afraid of doing the same thing week after week."

To read the original articles, visit the Philadelphia Inquirer here and here, where Petersen also discusses his beginnings and his movies roles.

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