'CSI' Exclusive: William Petersen Says Goodbye

The cast can take some comfort in knowing that, so far, Petersen's impending departure has not ended CSI's ratings dominance. Fishburne's debut episode on Dec. 11 attracted a healthy 20.9 million viewers, marking a 19 percent bump from the previous week. Buoyed by the results, the writers are eager to play with their newest lab rat. Langston's transition onto the team will be anything but smooth: He'll make a mess of his first crime scene while investigating an arson, and will have trouble adjusting to the brutal, late-night hours. He'll embark on a puzzling new case with Nick (George Eads) and Brass that involves the death of an FBI agent, while Wallace Langham's Hodges, who was always Watson to Grissom's Holmes, keeps Langston at arm's length back at the lab. 
Fortunately for Langston, he finds a quick ally in the amiable Dr. Robbins (Robert David Hall). ''This is a man who is in transition,'' explains Fishburne of his character. ''This is a man who had one career as a pathologist and sort of lost his way. It's not until he becomes a CSI that he finds his real second career path. The fun stuff begins when Grissom makes his exit, and Langston comes in as a bona fide CSI.''

First things first, though: The man with the funny beard still has to take his final bow. If fans were to follow the clues this season, all those private moments of reflection and despair suggest that Gil regrets allowing Sara to get away. But a scene in this season's fifth episode, in which Sara sent an upbeat video message intimating that her life was actually fine without him, could mean that his ex-fiancée won't be so receptive to a reunion. An even bigger cliff-hanger than how Grissom will leave, however, is what will happen to the show after he's gone. ''I'm sick he is leaving,'' says one EW.com poster named Betty. ''CSI is Gil.'' Jasmine puts it more bluntly: ''Once Grissom is gone from the original CSI, so am I.''

Mendelsohn, who cops to frequenting the blogs, doesn't hide her concern. ''I do care what they think,'' she concedes. ''But all you have as a writer are your instincts...and we always thought Grissom having a life outside of CSI is where we were going to take him.'' As he looks forward to the next chapter in his 
career, Petersen hopes viewers will adopt his attitude about Grissom's exit: no tears necessary. ''I think there's a way for the audience to remember him, like losing a great co-worker they've known for years,'' says the actor, who hasn't ruled out starring in another TV show — someday. ''He didn't die in a plane crash, he didn't get a brain tumor. He's out there.''

More CSI:
'CSI': Fishburne comes on the scene
Laurence Fishburne talks CSI
Ken Tucker's review of CSI
Exclusive: House private eye spies CSI gig