Jorja Fox has announced that she won’t be returning for the second season of CSI: Vegas. Fox exits the series after a second season was confirmed without William Petersen. Both Fox and Peterson starred in the original CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, the most-watched drama in television history.
Fox helped build CSI: Crime Scene Investigation‘s initial success as Sara Sidle, a crime scene investigator who ends up marrying her team leader, Gil Grissom (Petersen). The duo led the original series for fifteen seasons between 2000 and 2015, ensuring a long life for the franchise, which just returned for a revival last year. In CSI: Vegas, a new team led by Paula Newsome’s Maxine Roby uses the latest forensic technology to solve crimes in the titular city, counting with the support of legacy cast members such as Fox and Petersen.
While Fox‘s return was well-received by fans, the star announced on Twitter that “after much deliberating, I have decided not to ‘Sidle up’ for CSI Vegas.” Fox underlined how “CSI has always been a love story” to her, and that means following Petersen in his departure. As Fox explains it, “I personally just can’t split Sara and Grissom up again. So goes Grissom…..So goes Sara. Wherever they go, they belong together.” In a previous interview with Collider, Fox had also expressed a similar sentiment about the characters in her initial return to the series, saying:
“For Sara to come back without Gil Grissom, in a sense, would have meant that, once again something had happened to that relationship. That it had ended or fallen apart. And that would have been really tough. I think I’m really attached, Jorja’s really attached to the idea of Sara and Grissom, if they were going to return, to return together.”
CSI: Vegas aired on CBS from October 6 to December 8 and ran for ten episodes. After a slow start, the new series became a massive hit for CBS, with viewership rising from 3.71 million to 6.81 million during the original airing. That led the company to renew CSI: Vegas for a second season last December. Unfortunately, the news was bittersweet, as CBS confirmed Petersen would retire Gil Grissom and only come back as an executive producer for Season 2.
Besides Fox and Petersen, the first season of CSI: Vegas also saw the return of Paul Guilfoyle as Detective Jim Brass and Wallace Langham as David Hodges. There’s still no official information on whether the two legacy actors will remain on the show for Season 2. Fortunately for fans, the series is left in good hands, with the newcomers’ cast also including Matt Lauria, Jamie McShane, Mel Rodriguez, and Mandeep Dhillon.
The first season of CSI: Vegas is available right now on Paramount+. While the second season doesn’t have a release date yet, it’s expected to air during the 2022/2023 broadcast season. Check out Fox’s original tweet below.
Hey all you #CSI fans! After much deliberating, I have decided not to ‘Sidle up’ for CSI Vegas. For me CSI has always been a love story. The story that people can find love in the darkest of places and times. (1)
— Le Fox (@JorjaFoxofficia) January 25, 2022
via Collider