Fall 2004 Debut Likely For Third 'CSI'

CBS chairman Les Moonves yesterday said he "certainly expects" the network will launch a second CSI: Crime Scene Investigation spin-off.

Moonves told the Hollywood Reporter it would be "plausible" to expect the third CSI incarnation to make its debut in fall 2004. CSI creator Anthony Zuiker has said he already has the tone and characters for the next series worked out (story).

Regardless of when the next CSI launches, the series will be piloted by the same producers. Executive producers Carol Mendelsohn and Ann Donahue yesterday signed eight-figure contracts with CBS and Alliance Atlantis. The deals will keep Mendelsohn and Donahue in the crime loop until the end of the 2006-2007 television season, making the pair the highest-paid female television showrunners.

As part of the contract, Mendelsohn will continue to pilot CSI: Crime Scene Investigation while Donahue will serve as showrunner as CSI: Miami. The pair will continue to work closely with Anthony Zuiker, who signed a new contract to stay with the CSI franchise for another three years in June.

Should the crime-time threesome create another CSI series in time for the 2004-2005 television season, the new show will debut as CSI: Crime Scene Investigation enters its fifth year and CSI: Miami its third.

The original Hollywood Reporter article can be found here at Yahoo! News.

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