ALERT: 'ET' Goes Behind The Scenes On 'CSI' Tonight

Even while the cast and crew are still enjoying a well-deserved vacation, syndicated news magazine Entertainment Tonight is planning to air a segment this evening on what life's really like behind the scenes of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

"If there is some emotion, something that our characters respond to, something that affects Grissom or Catherine, that is a great script," executive producer Carol Mendelsohn told ET in between running a story meeting in the writers' room. "If it has great science, that is a great script. If it is a whodunnit that twists and twists and twists, like the 'Weeping Willows' episode, that is a great episode. If we are on our game and it is done well, then it is fun for our audience."

Other writers present when ET filmed its segment were Naren Shankar, Josh Berman, Judith McCreary and Dustin Abraham, as well as frequent CSI director Richard Lewis. The latter also shared his thoughts on what makes a good story for the show: "The first thing that goes through my mind [when I hear a story pitch] is: what is the thematic underpinning? What are the characters like? What is the story like? I am mostly interested in the emotional content."

Moving on from the writers' room, ET also looked in on Jorja Fox and Eric Szmanda (Greg Sanders) rehearsing a scene, likely from "Iced." Fox indicated she really liked the show's creative team: "That whole team has a creative sense and a business to it. I think that is a really interesting mix and it has been successful for us."

But then the actress smiled. "And [they are] really twisted," she said. "I am exhausted from all the violence. I just have to be a crime-scene investigator. They have to get into the heads of all these characters, the villains and the victims. Frankly, they trouble me a little bit. I think they are weird."

The full segment contains more thoughts from Fox, as well as some insight from Carol Mendelsohn in how long it takes to create a CSI episode. To find out when Entertainment Tonight is scheduled to air in your area, as well as to read a few more excerpts, head over to the program's official web site.

Discuss this news item at Talk CSI!
 Add CSI Files RSS feed to your news reader or My Yahoo!
Also a Desperate Housewives fan? Then visit GetDesperate.com!