Fishburne Knows It Won't Be Easy

Replacing a beloved character can be tricky.

Laurence Fishburne (Dr Raymond Langston) joined CSI: Crime Scene Investigation in "19 Down...", and the actor has signed to be on the show through the 2009-2010 season. He is coming in to fill William Petersen's spot on the show, but he won't be stepping into Gil Grissom's place on the team. Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger) will become the team's supervisor when Grissom leaves in the next episode, "One To Go", which airs January 15. Fishburne's character will be the team's new rookie.

"Here's a guy, we're assuming late 40s or early 50s, who is a really smart dude. He's a doctor. But he's the new guy … learning the CSI skills," Fishburne told USA Today. "How do you deal with that?" Although the character is new to the CSI role, he is a former pathologist and knows his way around a morgue. "Dr. Robbins (Robert David Hall) asks if he wants to help cut during an autopsy. That's something Grissom never did," executive producer Naren Shankar explained.

The loss of Grissom is "going to be sad and disappointing," Fishburne said. "I cannot presume that my presence is going to fill that gap. I think it would be completely arrogant to think, 'I'm coming. It will be all right.' No, it's not. The bug man is leaving." However, executive producer Carol Mendelsohn said Petersen and Fishburne made the transition "extremely easy." Petersen, she added, could return in the future if his presence is "creatively right" for an episode.

Grissom's approval of Langston helps ease his addition to the CSI team, but the audience may be a different matter entirely. "I definitely get the benediction from him," Fishburne explained. "But ultimately, it's down to whether the audience is willing to accept the character or not."

The original article is from USA Today.

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