Exclusive: Adam Rodriguez Speaks!
by Carita Rizzo November 30, 2009 02:31 PM EST
When Adam Rodriguez announced that his role on
CSI: Miami would be limited this season, Calleigh Duquesne’s wasn’t the only heart breaking. So when we visited Rodriguez on set for his December 14 return to the show, we couldn’t help but ask if he’d even consider being reinstated as a full-time CSI. Here’s what Rodriguez said about leaving
Miami, his current 10-episode stint and his future on the show.
It must feel great to be coming home?
Yeah, it feels great to be back. I hadn't seen the crew and the cast in about two months. Gosh, they made me feel like a million bucks. Everybody clapped, they were just happy to see me. I was excited to see everybody. It was really nice.
Did you expect that?
No, I didn't expect that. I mean, I was excited to see everybody, but to get that kind of welcome back, it was a great feeling.
Under what kinds of circumstances did you leave?
Totally amicable. We just got to a point where my contract was up. The network made some decisions that put me in a position where I had to make some decisions on my own. And my choice was to move on and see what else was out there. What was important to me was to make sure that I was able to come back and finish the character arc in a way that was satisfying for the fans. I had some lengthy discussions with [executive producer] Ann Donahue, and she was totally on board with that. I mean, really, she made it happen, because initially we were going to part ways the way that the season had ended, last year, which left everything incomplete. We made it a 10-episode arc, and Delko gets to come back and have this slow exit, that may leave room to continue to come back in the future.
You keep using words like exit and closure, and I think everyone is still hoping that there's a chance that you might come back for good?
It's hard to let go. So if there's a way to work it out for everybody, it's something that I'm certainly open to.
Did absence make the heart grow fonder?
I missed everybody for sure. I missed being here. Creatively, it's been very satisfying to get a chance to step out side of the CSI world and go and do something [different]. Especially something as completely opposite as
Ugly Betty. This is very morbid and dark and dealing with death in every episode, and trying to bring justice to something. And
Ugly Betty is completely about love and comedy. It's whimsical. So for me it’s been a great gift to get the chance to go and do that kind of thing. It certainly reawakened a desire to explore other avenues as an artist. That is going to be hard to give up now that I've had a taste of that after so many years. I'm open to finding a way to do it all. And hopefully we can do that.
When someone leaves a show, you never know if they leave doors slamming.
Right. I will say, when it initially happened, I did think that that was it. It was really sudden. I felt like that's what I needed to do for me, and they – they being the network – felt like they needed to do what they needed to do for them. And it was amicable. It was just like, okay, I guess this is the crossroads we're at, and thank you for everything. That was it. Certainly when it happened, I think both sides believed that that was the end of it. The thing that I did have a hard time living with was leaving the character and the audience without closure, like, “That's the end of Delko? That's how we're going to say goodbye to him?” I didn't feel good about saying goodbye to the character that way. And more than that I didn't feel good about leaving the audience hanging that way. Ann completely understood that, and that's why she really fought to make sure that I could come back and have this part to finalize the character.
Any idea of what your other episodes this season are about?
I don't. I know that I'll remain on the fringe of the group for a while. I don't know how it's all going to get resolved in the end. I'm curious to see. I haven't been this excited to see the scripts in a long time. You know what I mean? Now that I don't know exactly what direction everything's going, I'm like, “Oh, great, let me see what's up with Delko this time.” The one thing I'm always sure of is that the character is going to maintain his integrity and maintain this image that's been developed over the years. So that feels good. I'm always curious to see how it's going to be played out.
What's it like to work with Emily Procter again?
It's great. I missed her face. Yeah, it's really great to be with her again and have our little laughs and jokes, and get to play in this relationship that we've both really become attached to. We have so much fun having this dynamic between the two characters. And just to be in each other's company is great. We make each other laugh and we have a good time. We've really formed a great friendship over the years.
She thinks your characters are still together.
I think that she could be right about that. That we're at least in pretty regular communication. Especially since the audience has never really gotten to see this thing come full bloom. I think it's an interesting choice to play, that there still is definitely something going on. Even if it's just in our own minds, and we're still sort of doing this dance before we actually get a chance to go all the way with it.
