CSI takes on New York
By EVELYN TEOIt is impossible not to get excited about the newest addition to the CSI family for two reasons. One, CSI is a proven formula that works amazingly well and the latest series is set in New York, a vibrant melting pot. Two, CSI: NY has well-known character actor Gary Sinise (Forrest Gump, Apollo 13) heading the cast. It stands to reason that if someone of his calibre signs on, the show must be good.
Evidently, the American audience agrees. CSI: NY premiered to a tune of just under 20 million viewers, making it the fifth most-watched show that week. Though not as impressive as the new seasons of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and its first offshoot, CSI: Miami, premiering in the No.1 and No.2 spots, respectively, it was a great start nonetheless.
 |
The cast of CSI: NY. |
“It’s been a heck of a ride. Nine years ago, I was a tram host at the Mirage Hotel and now I’m a creator of the biggest franchise in the world,” Zuiker told international journalists visiting the set of CSI: NY at the CBS Radford Studios in Los Angeles two weeks ago.
His interest in forensic science stemmed from a show on the Discovery Channel, New Detectives, that his wife regularly watched. Inspired by what he saw, he hooked up with Bruckheimer Television to develop CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, a series about Las Vegas investigators using science to solve crimes. When the pilot was finally picked up, the series swiftly became the runaway hit of the year.
Zuiker, 36, chalks it up to people’s morbid fascination with death: “I think death and crime are things we can all relate to. And it’s good to know there are people out there who will help bring us closure if something bad happens to ourselves or a loved one.
And because (CSI deals with) forensics, it’s brand new. People were fascinated with how science worked and we found a way to make science sexy and interesting.”
“(Plus) The reason all three CSI shows are successful is because of the cast,” he adds. “The cast is the star of the show. It is a fresh twist on a cop drama and mystery but the cast brings the whole concept to life.”
What’s more, the show has that action-packed feel to go with the intelligent story telling.
Blockbuster movie producer Jerry Bruckheimer chipped in with the show’s visual style, pacing, lighting and directing. Basically, Zuiker says: “Everything that’s great about a Bruckheimer movie we infuse in the CSI shows”.
 |
Detective Stella Bonasera (Melina Kanakaredes) photographing a victim for evidence in a scene from an episode of CSI: NY. |
“For me, I’ve always thought of the spin-offs as positive,” Zuiker discloses. “We’re employing more people. We’re starting more people’s careers and they are part of a CSI family that’s making television history. The negative would be to not expand when you could.”
Zuiker snapped up the opportunity to become the show runner for CSI: NY despite the difficulty involved in having to live up to not one but two success stories.
“People may stick around because of the CSI name but you really have to earn that audience,” he explains.
The pieces started to fall into place when Zuiker convinced Sinise to do the latest incarnation.
“I was told it was a long shot that he would say ‘yes’ to serious television. For him to commit to TV, he really had to find something different, much like Billy (William Petersen who plays Gil Grissom on the original CSI),” recalls Zuiker.
“Gary wanted to make sure that he wasn’t just picking up evidence every week,” he continues. “He was interested in getting deeper into who his character was and that’s the direction the show is going right now.”
The show’s first year is not without its fair share of trials. “We made a lot of mistakes this year,” admits the affable creator. “We told stories that were not necessarily the best New York stories but those are rookie mistakes.
“It is my first year into show running – being in charge of the production and all the scripts. There have been a lot of hard lessons and that’s all part of growing and being a better writer and producer. I could have only done that by taking the leap to do New York rather than just stay on CSI.”
With three thriving CSI shows on the air now, will there be another?
“I just don’t see the rhyme or reason to do a CSI four domestically,” Zuiker replies. “I just know from doing the third show, it’s hard to be creatively different and have different ideas to do a fourth show. But I do think this is a successful formula in an international arena.
“I think Clive Owen could do CSI: London in a heartbeat.”
CSI: NY premieres on AXN (Astro Channel 17) this coming Tuesday at 9pm. Repeats are on Wednesdays at 1am, noon and 11pm; Thursdays at 3am and 4pm; Saturdays at 9am and 9pm; and Sundays at 5am and 2pm. CSI: NY is set to start on 8TV later in the year.
Related Stories:
Great chemistry between CSI: NY principal actors
The young guns of CSI: NY
RSS
