CSI: Crime Scene Investigation had a rocky season, and it's time for some course correction -- including a new wardrobe for Laurence Fishburne, CBS' entertainment president says.
"It wasn't just about losing [William Petersen]. That show went through monumental changes last season," acknowledges Nina Tassler, president of CBS Entertainment.
At the network's fall-TV presentation for critics, Tassler enumerated the long-running show's many changes, including the departures of cast members Jorja Fox and Gary Dourdan and the arrival of Laurence Fishburne's Dr. Raymond Langston. "Fans were unsure about where the show was going," Tassler says. "They wanted to see the group back together."
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Every week, senior editors Matt Webb Mitovich, Mickey O'Connor and Tim Molloy satisfy your need for TV scoop. Please send all questions to mega_scoop@tvguide.com.
What's in store for Mariska Hargitay's Olivia Benson during the new season of SVU? — Crystal
MICKEY: Executive producer Neal Baer tells me the unofficial theme of Season 11 is "Benson and Stabler against the world." First all up in their grill is Wentworth Miller, who guest-stars as a cop with whom Benson will both clash... and make sexy eye contact! Next, Emmy winner Christine Lahti's ADA Sonya Paxton will be kickin' a-- and takin' names, which won't sit well for Stabler initially, and Benson ultimately.
I'm going crazy because there hasn't been any news on Criminal Minds. Please, tell me something about Hotch's future! — Francesca
MATT: You and many other Mega Buzz readers seem rather concerned about the gun that went off during Hotch's unexpected season-finale face-off with the serial killer known as the Reaper. Well, you should know that ...
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Remember all that talk last summer about Laurence Fishburne's CSI newcomer perhaps having something genetically in common with serial killers? Although the CBS procedural's producers subsequently backpedaled on such a far-out notion, Dr. Raymond Langston will start to reveal a darker side in upcoming episodes.
"There's going to be an episode where you get to see this 'aggressive tendency,'" Fishburne shares in the video Q&A below.
OK, but just how unsettling can this new side of Langston be? Says Fishburne with a chuckle, "With CSI, you can never worry about being too dark.... I'm anxious to see where it goes."
More in this Fishburne interview:
• Grissom may be gone, but is William Petersen's presence still felt on the set?
• To what question of mine did Fishburne respond, "Hell, no!"?
Watch and dicuss Fishburne's answers after the jump.
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How is CSI recovering from the loss of William Petersen's Gil Grissom? By giving country star Taylor Swift her acting debut, freeing new star Laurence Fishburne to find out more about his role, and promising Petersen's return as a guest.
Grissom's last episode — for a while at least — airs Thursday at 9 pm/ET on CBS. Then the ensemble drama will turn to Fishburne's brand-new CSI, Dr. Raymond Langston, as he learns to investigate — and Fishburne learns who his character is.
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Another trio of stars is set to orbit the Golden Globes.
Gossip Girl's Blake Lively, CSI newbie Laurence Fishburne and The Dark Knight's Aaron Eckhart have been added as presenters for the January ceremony.
The three join a star-studded lineup that already includes ...
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