It’s been more than a year since CSI: Vegas, aired its final episode after three seasons on CBS. The cancellation of the series marked the first time in nearly 25 years that the franchise or one of its spinoffs hasn’t been on the air since CSI: Crime Scene Investigation first premiered in October 2000.
The franchise certainly had an impressive run. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation ran for 15 seasons from 2000 to 2015, which was followed by CSI: Miami, airing from 2002 to 2012. Next came CSI: NY, which ran for nine seasons from 2004 through 2013, followed by two seasons of CSI: Cyber from 2014 to 2016, and finally CSI: Vegas.
Given all the spinoffs, it’s not the craziest idea in the world that CSI could be revived yet again. To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the original series, TV Insider spoke with creator Anthony Zuiker was asked if there was any way the crime procedural could ever see the light of day again.
“It’s a tricky question. I’ll try to answer it,” Zuiker responded. “I don’t think another CSI will be born unless I’m involved in it. I don’t think you can hire people to do this show at this level in this generation.”
Zuiker noted that if they were to produce another show where he was involved, it would have to be a new spin on the series, such as a CSI set 100 years ago when there was “exclusive access to forensic science to solve old school crimes.” Alternately, he envisions a show about futuristic crimes set 75 years from today, such as space crimes, time crimes, crypto miscreants, brain hacking, AI, and robotic crimes.
“It’ll be things that you hadn’t seen before. And then how CSIs 75 years from today would solve that in the future,” he explained. “I think those are the only two CSIs that would work under my series. But this is not going to be a franchise, in my opinion, where you would do a CSI: UK or a CSI: Singapore and then hire a production company to pull off 10. That’s something that I wouldn’t approve.”
Given the success of Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone spinoffs, 1883 and 1923, not to mention the forthcoming 1944, a prequel series in particular could indeed be a recipe for success.
As an example, Zuiker floated the idea of putting a character in the year 1896 and having to solve a murder of a railroad worker on the Mason-Dixon Line. “There was some discrepancy about a cigarette, and one railroad person took their shovel and smacked the other one over the head and killed him dead,” he said.
“today the police arrive on horseback. Who did it? Well, the forensic scientist of 1896 says this: Everybody put their shovel in front of their person that was used for the railroad and let’s just wait,” Zuiker continued. “And about three hours later, this is what happens. A gaggle of flies go on best of the shovel in front of [the murderer’s] shovel, and they know right there, that was the killer. Fabulous.”
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