Laurence Fishburne To Join ‘CSI’
It was revealed last month that Laurence Fishburne was one of the leading candidates to become the newest member to the cast of “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” for the next season. Fishburne will join the show following the departure of William Petersen.
Fishburne will first appear in “CSI’s” ninth episode this season. He’ll star as a former pathologist turned college lecturer, who focuses on why people turn violent - including traits that he’s disturbed to find in himself. The character joins the Las Vegas Crime Lab as a Level 1 CSI after assisting in a murder investigation.
It’s a homecoming of sorts for Fishburne, who played Cowboy Curtis on the Eye’s classic Saturday morning series “Pee-Wee’s Playhouse” in the mid-1980s. CSI exec producers Carol Mendelsohn and Naren Shankar said Fishburne topped their “dream list.”
“He is a powerful and intense actor, with an incredible range,” they said in a joint statement. “We had the opportunity to see Mr. Fishburne in ‘Thurgood’ on Broadway a few weeks ago, and it was a truly profound experience… Mr. Fishburne is also a talented writer and director.”
Fishburne’s first TV role came at the age of 12, on ABC’s “One Life to Live.” As a teen, he appeared in films such as “Apocalypse Now,” and as an adult, made a name for himself in features such as “Boyz n the Hood” and “What’s Love Got to Do With It,” which earned him an Oscar nom.
Thesp’s TV credits also include the longforms “Miss Evers’ Boys,” which scored him an Emmy, and “The Tuskegee Airmen.” He also earned an Emmy for a guest spot on Fox’s short-lived “Tribeca.” He was most recently handed a Tony nom for “Thurgood.”