Laurence Fishburne Joins "CSI"

After reports surfaced (including ours) last month that said Laurence Fishburne was on the verge of joining CSI, it seemed like it would be a perfect fit for both actor and TV show.

Well, now the match is done.

CBS announced Monday that Fishburne (who was a vital part of the Matrix series) would, basically, replace William Petersen as the lead of the Las Vegas Crime Lab.

CBS seems rather happy with bringing Fishburne aboard: "Fishburne will play a former pathologist who is now working as an itinerant college lecturer, teaching a course in criminalistics. His focus is on understanding criminal behavior, how and why people commit acts of violence -- tendencies he disturbingly sees within himself. In the course of a murder investigation, he comes into contact with the CSI team and ultimately joins the Las Vegas Crime Lab as a Level-1 CSI."

"CBS asked us, 'Who's at the top of your dream list?'" CSI executive producers Carol Mendelsohn and Naren Shankar said in a statement released Monday. "Without hesitation, we said Laurence Fishburne. He is a powerful and intense actor, with an incredible range. . . . If you distill CSI down to its essence, it's a collaboration -- and we are so looking forward to collaborating with Mr. Fishburne. For all of us at CSI, this is truly a dream."

"I am elated and delighted to be joining the cast of CSI," Fishburne said. "I look forward to a wonderful collaboration with the creative and talented team of such a successful and distinguished show."