#CSI: Vegas Fans React as William Petersen Exits Revival

CBS is moving forward with CSI: Vegas Season 2, but it will be without series star William Petersen.

Petersen is the most familiar face in the franchise’s history, toplining the original series in the franchise.

But news dropped that the actor was officially done with the franchise after CSI: Vegas Season 1, and fans are upset about the imminent change to the series.

Fans lit up social media after the announcement dropped.

“As a fan of CSI since the beginning, it’s not going to work without William Petersen as Gil Grissom,” said one fan.

“I honestly just can’t see the show lasting long without Jorja Fox and William Petersen imo,” said another fan.

“I’d love to have William Petersen AND Jorja Fox back for S2 & if they don’t I’ll miss them bigtime, but I love the new team on [CSI],” a fan said on social media.

“It’s a different vibe but it is just as cool, the science is just as fascinating & the writing keeps me guessing.”

CBS officially picked up CSI: Vegas Season 2 this week, with the network citing high ratings for the decision.

“The incredibly talented CSI: Vegas creative team and cast did a superb job this first season, brilliantly updating and portraying the CSI universe with fresh stories and a new crime lab, proving that after 20 years, the CSI fan base is still hungry for more and ready to embrace a new chapter in this illustrious franchise,” the network said.

TV Fanatic recently spoke with showrunner Jason Tracey about the future of the series.

Tracey was vocal about the door being open for CSI stars from the past, but he liked that the first season ended with Gil and Sara in a good place.

Jorja Fox has not officially exited the revival, but there is still a chance she could return, perhaps as a guest star.

The pickup is for the 2022-23 TV season, so there’s plenty of time for Fox to close a deal.

Then again, maybe we’ll get some other CSI stars from the past to show up for the next chapter.

The good news is that the show is definitely returning, and it will be fun to see how it plays out without it’s leading man.

Paula Newsome, Matt Lauria, Mandeep Dhillon, and Mel Rodriguez — the new era of CSI introduced in the series — are all locked in to return.

What are your thoughts on the show coming back without Petersen?

Do you think it can survive?

Hit the comments below.

Remember you can watch CSI: Vegas online right here via TV Fanatic.

Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.