The cast of CSI: Where are they now?

It's no mystery: Here's what happened to William Petersen, Marg Helgenberger, and the rest of the Las Vegas Crime Lab.

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For 15 years, the night staff of the Las Vegas Crime Lab examined, dusted, collected, and analyzed the evidence on the original CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. The hit CBS show paired engaging character drama with a detailed look at murder investigations, inspiring successful spin-offs set in Miami, New York, and Washington D.C. Find out what the CSI cast has been up to since the feature-length series finale aired in 2015.

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William Petersen played Dr. Gil Grissom, a forensic entomologist and science nerd.Petersen told EW in 2015 that CBS didn't have much faith in the show at first, and everyone was surprised when it became a hit: "We always talked about how much of a kismet it was. It was the right idea, at the right time, with the right people, at the right place and we weren’t bothered by anybody."

Petersen had experience with law enforcement roles before CSI, playing a secret service agent in To Live and Die in L.A. (1985), an FBI criminal profiler in Manhunter (1986), and a county sheriff in Young Guns II (1990).

After nine seasons with the show, Petersen stepped down from leading CSI, though he stayed on as an executive producer. He later appeared in the Steve Carell/Keira Knightley comedy Seeking a Friend for the End of the World in 2012 and the TV drama Manhattan in 2015.

The actor returned to CSI several times as a guest star, including in the 2015 series finale. In 2021, he reprised his role in the first season of CSI: Vegas, where he also served as an executive producer.

Peterson has been married twice and has three children, including a set of twins via surrogate.

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Marg Helgenberger's ambitious Catherine Willows worked her way up from blood-spatter analyst to night shift supervisor and finally became the director of the crime lab.

Helgenberger began her TV career on the ABC daytime soap Ryan's Hope (1982–1986). Starting in 1988, she played K.C. Koloski on the ABC war drama China Beach, a role that earned her an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in 1990. She also appeared in the Julia Roberts drama Erin Brockovich in 2000.

Helgenberger's run on CSI ended in 2013. She was a regular in the 2014 action-adventure series Intelligence, and in 2015, she was featured in the final season of the CBS sci-fi mystery drama Under the Dome. She also returned to CSI for the series finale in 2015. From 2019 to 2021, she played Judge Benner in the CBS legal drama All Rise.

In 2022, Catherine Willows returned to the crime lab on CSI: Vegas. It was an easy transition for Helgenberger, who told EW, "In terms of establishing a camaraderie or an instant chemistry, it was pretty natural, I have to say, and I think it's because I played this character for so long. It felt great to be back in her boots and her tight jeans."

Helgenberger was married to actor Alan Rosenberg, whom she met on the set of Ryan’s Hope, from 1989 to 2010. They have one son together. She later wed stuntman Charlie Haugk in 2022.

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The ever-reliable Nick Stokes was the only main character in the original cast who stayed with the show for all 15 seasons, finally leaving Las Vegas at the end of the series for a new job in San Diego.

George Eads got his first big TV break on the prime time soap Savannah from 1996 to 1997, then had a small part on the NBC medical drama ER before landing a regular role on CSI in 2000.

Playing the same person for 15 years, Eads understood Nick better than anyone. "Every day I fight for the integrity of the character and where I want it to go," he told EW in 2002. "Sometimes I think the writers are better at writing story than dialogue, or maybe I just understand the character better than they do. But they do allow us to collaborate."

After the final season, Eads chose not to return for CSI's two-hour series finale special. In 2016, he began a three-year run as Jack Dalton on the rebooted CBS action-adventure series MacGyver.

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Jorja Fox played analyst Sara Sidle, who had an on-again off-again relationship with Grissom. After a painful breakup in season 13, the two happily reunited in the series finale.

From 1996 to 1999, Fox played Dr. Maggie Doyle on ER, followed by a recurring role in the first season of The West Wing as Secret Service Agent Gina Toscano.

Fox was a regular on CSI for the first eight seasons and then made occasional guest appearances before recommitting to the show in season 11. When the series ended, Fox admitted to EW that Sara may have been the most disliked character. "Maybe for my own survival, I tried to see it as a compliment," she said. "Whether fans loved you or hated you, at least they were emotionally invested or feeling passionate about Sara."

In addition to starring in Memento (2000), Fox appeared in two science-fiction films, 3022 (2019) and The Map of Tiny Perfect Things (2021), before reprising her CSI role for the first season of CSI: Vegas in 2021.

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Gary Dourdan played the talented and troubled Warrick Brown, an analyst with a gambling problem who died tragically at the beginning of season 9.

Dourdan was first seen on television in a recurring role on the NBC sitcom A Different World from 1991 to 1992. He then worked on the films Alien Resurrection (1997) and Thursday (1998).

Following his work on CSI, Dourdan appeared on several BET shows, including Being Mary Jane (2015), The Family Business (2019), and First Wives Club (2021). Most recently, he had a guest role on the Sex and the City reboot series And Just Like That in 2023.

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Eric Szmanda began his run on CSI by playing lab tech Greg Sanders in a recurring role. The actor became a main cast member during season 3, wherein Sanders became an official investigator.

Szmanda stayed with the series until its end, telling EW in 2015, "I had no idea that the show was going to last 15 years. I don’t think I’ll ever have a job this long again, so I’m glad. I’m grateful for that."

Following CSI, Szmanda starred in the 2018 TV movie Near Extinction: Shangri-La. In 2023, he returned as Sanders in season 2 of CSI: Vegas.

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As head county coroner Dr. Al Robbins, Robert David Hall spent most of his time on CSI performing autopsies. "I fought for 15 years to get out of the morgue," he told EW. "But that’s okay. My job was to pull the bullet out of the ass and say, ‘They went that-a-way.’"

Before his lengthy run on CSI, Hall appeared in the films Starship Troopers (1997) and The Negotiator (1998), as well as many television series, including L.A. Law, Beverly Hills 90210, and The Practice. The CSI series finale in 2015 was his most recent notable role.

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LVPD Captain Jim Brass was there when the handcuffs came out, arresting and interrogating suspects. He appeared on the show for 14 seasons and again in the finale.

Prior to CSI, actor Paul Guilfoyle's film credits included roles in Three Men and a Baby (1987), Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), L.A. Confidential (1997), Air Force One (1997), and Primary Colors (1998). He also appeared in episodes of Miami Vice, Law and Order, New York Undercover, and Ally McBeal.

More recently, Guilfoyle had a recurring role in the first two seasons of The Good Fight and appeared in two episodes of Star Trek: Discovery. He’s also landed roles in buzzy Oscars films like Spotlight (2015) and Adam McKay’s Don’t Look Up (2021). The actor stepped up to play Jim Brass once more on CSI: Vegas in 2021.

Guilfoyle has been married to choreographer Lisa Giobbi since 1989. The couple shares one child.

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Wallace Langham played lab tech and expert witness David Hodges for 12 years. Hodges was often sarcastic and irritating, but he had an uncanny sense of smell that could sometimes break a case.

In the '90s, Langham was best known for his roles as head writer Phil on The Larry Sanders Show (1992–1998) and Kirstie Alley's assistant Josh on Veronica's Closet (1997–2000). In between playing Hodges, the actor enjoyed gigs in one-off episodes of shows like The West Wing and Curb Your Enthusiasm along with film roles in Little Miss Sunshine (2006), The Social Network (2010), and Hitchcock (2012).

Since the end of CSI, he's kept busy appearing on Grey's Anatomy, The Boys, Shameless, and For All Mankind. In 2021, Langham returned as David in the first season of CSI: Vegas. He recently had a recurring role on the HBO drama Perry Mason.

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Screen star Laurence Fishburne was brought on the show as Dr. Ray Langston to take the place of departing lead actor William Petersen in season 9.

Fishburne was well-known when he joined CSI in 2008. Early in his career, he played "Mr. Clean" in Apocalypse Now (1979) and later Furious Styles in 1991's groundbreaking Boyz n the Hood. Fishburne received an Academy Award nomination for his role as Ike Turner in the biopic What's Love Got to Do With It (1993), and won Primetime Emmy awards for roles in TriBeCa (1993) and Miss Evers' Boys (1997). He also played Morpheus in the 1999 science-fiction film The Matrix, and its sequels. His other notable works include The Color Purple (1985), King of New York (1990), Deep Cover (1992), Othello (1995),

Following his three-season run on CSI (and guest appearances on Miami and NY), Fishburne appeared as Perry White in the DC superhero films Man of Steel (2013) and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), as well as Bill Foster in Marvel's Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018). He had a recurring role as Pops in the ABC sitcom Black-ish (2014–2022), where he also served as an executive producer, and plays 'the Bowery King' in the John Wick film series. In 2020, Fishburne received another Emmy Award for his role in #FreeRayshawn.

Fishburne has been married and divorced twice. His second wife was actress Gina Torres (Suits). He has three children.

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"Super Dave" Phillips was the assistant coroner for Al Robbins who was often sent out to pick up bodies for autopsy.

Actor David Berman joined CSI early in his career. Cast in a recurring role for the show's first nine seasons, he graduated to a lead role in season 10. In addition to his CSI duties, Berman also appeared on Heroes, Drop Dead Diva, and Desperate Housewives. In 2019, he had a character arc on the NBC crime thriller The Blacklist.

Berman and his CSI costar Jon Wellner founded Entertainment Research Consultants to help inform crime and forensics television shows.

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TV legend Ted Danson replaced Laurence Fishburne as CSI's lead attraction in season 12. His character D.B. Russell was a warm and friendly leader of the team, in keeping with Danson's typical screen persona.

Danson's breakout role was pitcher turned bartender Sam Malone on the beloved sitcom Cheers, which ran on NBC for 11 years (1982–1993). He was nominated for 11 Emmy Awards during the show's run and took home the prize twice in 1990 and 1993. He then played a misanthropic doctor in the CBS sitcom Becker for six seasons and was a supporting actor on FX's Damages for two seasons, earning another three Emmy nominations for the latter. He’s also been a staple on Curb Your Enthusiasm, playing himself (a.k.a. Larry David’s informal nemesis) since 2000.

As for film, Danson has starred in movies like Body Heat (1981), Made in America (2003), Saving Private Ryan (1998), and Three Men and a Baby (1987) with his future CSI costar Paul Guilfoyle.

After CSI wrapped season 15, Danson jumped to the spinoff CSI: Cyber for a year. He went on to star in the NBC afterlife sitcom The Good Place from 2016 to 2020, and then led the cast of another NBC sitcom, Mr. Mayor, from 2021 to 2022.

Danson has been married three times. His current wife is actress Mary Steenburgen.

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Morgan Brody joined the force in season 12, moving to Vegas in the aftermath of the Nate Haskell serial killer case.

Elisabeth Harnois began her career as a child actress, starring as Alice in the Disney Channel series Adventures in Wonderland (1992–1995), followed by a lead role in the Disney Channel original movie My Date With the President’s Daughter (1998). She’s appeared on various TV shows, including All My Children, Criminal Minds, CSI: Miami, One Tree Hill, and 90210. She also notably starred in the romantic drama Keith (2008) opposite Jesse McCartney.

Following her four-year run on CSI, Harnois has mostly been working on TV movies, including several Christmas-themed films.

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Elisabeth Shue's Julie "Finn" Finlay joined CSI in season 12. "[Finn] sometimes gets too passionate about things and oversteps her boundaries — but she’s usually right," Shue told EW in 2021. "[She has] a child-like need to go out there and throw herself into things without knowing the consequences — and when she knows, she doesn’t care."

Arriving on the scene in the mid-1980s, Shue became well-known for her starring roles in The Karate Kid (1984), Adventures in Babysitting (1987), Cocktail (1988), Back to the Future II (1989), Soapdish (1991), The Saint (1997), and Hollow Man (2000). She was nominated for an Academy Award for her work in the 1995 film Leaving Las Vegas.

Following CSI, Shue appeared in the Death Wish reboot (2018) and the Tom Hanks war film Greyhound (2020). She also played a key part in the first season of the Amazon Prime superhero series The Boys (2019–2020) and reprised her Karate Kid role in season 3 of Cobra Kai (2021).

Shue shares three children with her husband, documentary filmmaker Davis Guggenheim, whom she married in 1994.

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Actor Jon Wellner has worn many hats during his tenure at CSI. He first started working on the show in production as a researcher before taking an on-screen part as a zookeeper in season 5. Nine episodes later, he landed the permanent role of lab tech Henry Andrews, who has a prolific knowledge of toxins and stuck around until the series finale. Wellner continued to verify research behind the scenes until the show ended in 2015.

CSI was Wellner's first major gig, although he'd appeared in one-off episodes on a handful of other shows such as Gilmore Girls and Providence. In between playing Henry Andrews, the actor also guest starred in series like NCIS, That’s So Raven, and Bones. After bidding CSI farewell, he appeared in an episode of Shameless.

In 2009, Wellner and fellow CSI cast member David Berman cofounded Entertainment Research Consultants, a research firm that works with forensics shows.

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