“The setting is so ominous and it’s such an unusual vibe for a crime scene,” Matt Lauria, who plays CSI Joshua Folsom tells Parade.com in this exclusive interview. “It’s not in the heat of battle of the Las Vegas streets. It is out in this abandoned ghost town and everything about it is curious and isn’t lining up.” At first glance, it appears that the driver of the car was killed when her convertible smashed into a telephone pole, but as Josh and Allie Rajan (Mandeep Dhillon) begin to investigate more deeply, things aren’t lining up—and without any CCTV cameras, there’s no witnesses. “That’s another thing that makes it really interesting,” Lauria continues. “You have these young teens who have stumbled upon this crime scene, but we’ve got to rely on ourselves. Add to that, there’s a little bit of tension. I am the lead on the case, and I get to work with the beloved Allie Rajan, but we’re a little less in sync than we have been in the past.” The lack of their synchronicity may be due to the fact that when Allie returned to the Las Vegas crime lab after her training in Los Angeles, she didn’t expect Josh to be in a relationship. Maybe she thought that now that she was available, he would have waited for her. But we don’t actually know what Allie is thinking! Photo: Bill Inoshita/CBS “I think it’s a classic ships passing in the night scenario,” Lauria explains of Josh and Allie. “Fortunately, Josh is a respectful guy, a man of great character. He wasn’t going to intrude on somebody’s relationship. Unfortunately, when she was out of the relationship, she was away. Then, Josh never imagined she’d be returning from Los Angeles as soon as she did.” While Allie was in L.A., Josh began dating Det. Serena Chavez (Ariana Guerra), who’s smart, good at her job, no-nonsense, and truth be told, a good match for Josh. “The problem is we’re deep enough into the relationship that there’s some substance there,” Lauria says. “There’s affection and a real relationship there. But it’s not so deep into the relationship that it’s, ‘This is the woman I’m going to marry.’ So, it’s a complicated situation that everybody is trying to feel their way through." Also during our chat, Lauria talked about his previous guest starring appearance on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, the pleasure of working with original cast members William Petersen, Jorja Fox, and Marg Helgenberger, and how much of the science he really understands. You actually guested on the original version. How was it joining the new franchise as a series regular? Back about 10 years ago, I guest starred on several episodes. I had a blast. Back then, I never imagined I would be in this position now. It is this beautiful, full-circle situation. I had an amazing time. I got to work with Ted Danson, Jorja Fox, George Eads, Eric Szmanda, and Marg Helgenberger. It was Marg’s last three episodes on the series. So, now, here I am full circle and I get to work with Marg again. She’s back. I got to work with Jorja again last year, and I had never met Billy (William Petersen) before. But now Marg is back for this really wonderful and somewhat surreal experience. What is it like having Billy and Jorja and now Marg on. What does it add? Could CSI: Vegas have been done with just the new cast? Photo: Sonja Flemming/CBS It’s an interesting question and I don’t know the answer to that. I do think it’s only a benefit. I do think we’re lucky to have people come back who were the reason that the show was such a success in the first place. Undoubtedly, [showrunner] Jason Tracey and our gifted writers have forged forward with a new take on the show and their own variety of telling the CSI lab story in Las Vegas. Again, I don’t know the answer but we’re having a blast with Marg this season. She’s an amazing lady, and it adds a dynamic when you’re able to marry a version with the original. A lot has changed in 20 years. So, you have the original practitioners of this type of law enforcement and a whole new world of technology and a whole new world in which criminals have gotten smarter due to all the work that they’ve done in the past. Criminals have gotten more savvy. I think it creates an interesting dynamic because you have people like Penny Gill, played by Sarah Gilman, and Chris Park, played by Jay Lee, these young guns in there and then you have someone like Catherine Willows, who is such a pro who is at a place in her life and her career that she is in a mentorship role. Having those two worlds collide is really fun and interesting. I don’t think criminals have gotten smarter. I think they watch shows like CSI and learn. That’s what I mean. I think it’s trickier to get away with things. I hope we’re not giving a blueprint for criminals. Josh is this good guy. Last week, he agreed to take part in the off-the-books investigation which Catherine is heading up which could cost him his career if they’re busted. Why would he volunteer? Two clear reasons. One, Max (Paula Newsome) is my family. This crime lab means the entire world to me. And, although Max gives me the option, I know that there’s a certain level of her endorsement placed on this investigation. She is willing to extend herself to help Catherine. So, by extension, I would extend myself to do what I believe Max would do. The other side of it is that Catherine Willows is another person from Las Vegas, just like Josh is, and we come from a similar, gritty background. Not only has she been a force for good in Las Vegas, she’s been an iconic member of the law enforcement community and changed a lot of lives. She’s also in a mentorship position now. She represents everything Josh would want to be in so many ways. Josh was a kid who came from a dodgy background with a lot of criminality in his family, and suddenly he’s looking at this woman and going, “You know what? She’s iconic and if she can do it, I can do it.” She’s someone whose very aspirational to Josh. It’s a chance to be close to someone who is very inspiring and learn. Were you a science guy in school? Or is this all Greek to you? It’s Greek to me. Look, even if you were an ace in science in high school, I doubt that many high school students ever encounter the term (he rattles off a big term ending in leukocytes). Maybe, but not in any high school science class I ever took. Look, I love science, but it was never my strong suit. I am an actor, and my entire high school career was dedicated to that. I did well in math, and I did well in science, but this is definitely the next level. Most of the time, I have no idea what we’re talking about. CSI: Vegas airs Thursday nights at 10 p.m. ET/PT on CBS. Next, Everything You Need to Know About Season 2 of CSI: Vegas, Including the Return of Marg Helgenberger
