The CSIer talks about her website, her beliefs, and the possibility that CSI may lose fans because of Liev Schreiber

Jorja Fox is refreshingly forthright, until you ask her about upcoming CSI storylines. But as long as we don’t, Fox is willing to talk about anything, including the possibility that fans may tune out while co-star William Petersen is gone from the forensic drama.

TV Guide: Hey Jorja, how are you doing?

Jorja Fox: I’m great. Hey, sorry about the changes in my scheduling and everything.

TVG: No, no, no. You’re busy. You’re on a hit TV show.

JF: I’m on a crazy, chaotic, wonderful, dysfunctional show.

TVG: Are you on a day off?

JF: I’m actually shooting today, and I just got out of makeup.

TVG: I checked out your website, and you are very passionate about PETA, clean air, human rights and hurricane relief, among other causes. Do you find you’re able to use your celebrity status to get the word out?

JF: I’ve had the website for quite awhile now, but it took me a couple of years to do something with it. There are already a bunch of fansites about me - put together by wonderful people - so I knew I didn’t want to do that. I’m pretty opinionated on my website, and I don’t hold back. The bulk of the site is about the Gulf states right now. I grew up in Florida, in hurricane country, so a lot of the songs and the commentary is still timely to what’s going on in the Gulf coast.

TVG: The music on the site is great.

JF: Thanks! I’m pretty bad at updating the site though. I should be updating a least once a week, but I don’t have the time.

TVG: Well, let’s talk about what’s been keeping you so busy - CSI.

JF: OK.

TVG: Last summer, the big news was that ABC was putting Grey’s Anatomy up against you guys, and the question was who would win the timeslot. Turns out that you’re both doing quite well. But, can CSI handle the loss of William Petersen, if only for a few episodes?

JF: That’s going to be interesting, isn’t it? I think Liev Schreiber, who is one of my favourite actors, really has the hardest job in TV in the last 20 years. Not only does he have to come in and fill the space that Billy Petersen is usually in, but he’s got one show to grab everybody. And if he can’t do that, it’s a distinct possibility that viewers will change the channel for the next several weeks. The stories are set up to wrap around his character - he almost becomes the protagonist of the show - so I think there is a danger there. Now that’s just a theory, that’s not neccessarily going to be the reality. It’s a tall order for him, though.

TVG: Was it weird to have a new guy on the set?

JF: For us it’s always cool for us to have someone new to play off of. For him, I’m sure it was hard. Coming into an established show with a cast like ours - we have our own language and ways of communicating because we’ve been working together for so long. But for us, he came in with so much passion and enthusiasm, and so much excitement, he was contagious to be around.

TVG: Was it frustrating, from an acting standpoint, to have the Gil and Sara romance come to a head, only to have Gil leave?

JF: I think of Gil and Sara as a tango. It’s slow, and has a tremendous amount of endurance. You haven’t seen the end of Sara and Gil by any means. The idea is to let the dust settle a bit, but we’re gearing up for some stuff at the end of the season that I hope the fans like. We could fall flat on our faces, but the writers are willing to take the risks.

TVG: But, won’t they be starting from square one again?

JF: It will be a surprise. That’s all I can say. [laughs]

TVG: We saw a box get dropped off on Gil’s desk in the episode in which he left. It looked like the same type of box that had the models inside that Ernie, the serial killer, used to make. But Ernie killed himself - who’s sending the boxes?

JF: Someone might have made a mistake, right? That box did look a lot like the ones that had the miniatures inside of them, didn’t it? That’s all I can say, other than in this season, storylines are all linked. In the past, we had self-contained episodes, but this season, everything kind of ties back together, so viewers have to pay attention.