CSI: Crime Scene Investigation turns 20 in October 2020, and the show could be back to with a limited series to celebrate. In February, it was announced that CBS was developing what TVLine called an "event series," set in Las Vegas and features original cast members of the crime procedural.
Now, the first two cast members who could be returning are in what the website called "advanced talks" to come back to the TV superhit, which once received 25 million viewers an episode.
Per TVLine, Gil Grissom star William Petersen and Sara Sidle actor Jorja Fox may both be returning for the as-yet-untitled CSI sequel. Petersen appeared in nearly 200 episodes of the CBS show before leaving in Season 9, while Fox starred in nearly 300 episodes across all 15 seasons of the show. Both also appeared in the 2015 TV movie CSI: Immortality, which acted as a two-hour finale for the series.
So far, they are the only two CSI cast members who are reported to be involved in the limited series, which will see Grissom and Fox joined by a cast of new characters.
Reportedly, the show will be run by Elementary executive producer Jason Tracey. However, the show has not officially been ordered by CBS–though the network has discussed bringing back the franchise ever since the final spin-off CSI: Cyber ended in 2016.
At the time, CBS Entertainment president Glenn Geller said during the network's upfronts, "We are incredibly proud of all CSI shows...It may come back in another incarnation." Deadline also reported that producers wanted to bring the show back to the network "after a break." Now, as the show has been off the air for four years, it may be time to bring what was once the most-watched show on TV back.
So far, Petersen and Fox are the only cast members thought to be involved in the project. A TVLine poll of CSI fans found that former stars Marg Helgenberger, George Eads, and Eric Szmanda were the cast members fans most wanted to return.
Fans who want to watch the original series after learning about this reboot can do so on Hulu. The streaming service has every single episode of the original CSI, plus the 10 seasons of CSI: Miami. These are also available on CBS All Access, as are Seasons 1, 2 and 15 of CSI. CSI: New York and CSI: Cyber, meanwhile, are not currently streaming, though all episodes are available to buy on VOD stores like AppleTV, Amazon and Google Play.
Newsweek has reached out to CBS for comment on the CSI event series and will update this article when we get a response.
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