CSI Files: Do you feel like Danny's character has been subverted or changed to prop up her character?
Giovinazzo: It's funny; I came out of the box like an animal [in the show's first season]. They brought Danny out [right away]. And I think by season three, they had to pass the cards around. I'm hoping in [season four] he's going to be attacking again. That's what I'm hoping, to have Danny get back into some dirty, gritty stuff.
I think the thing with Lindsay is good because it's going to help define her. I know how people feel about that, but it's tough because they have to spread out the cards for everybody. Maybe they'll focus more on her as a single character this year. They gave her the back home story, but she's a year behind us so maybe this is the year she grooves. But I don't mind being the utility guy--you can use me for what you need to use me for. The main characters are just all helping each other right now, and whatever way the [writers] have to do it, they do it.
CSI Files: So you don't mind that Danny has been used to prop up Lindsay's character?
Giovinazzo: Like I said, I feel like I came out seasons one and two and had all these storylines. I don't disagree with some of the things you guys [at Talk CSI and CSI Files] have said about [Danny in] the third season. To tell you the truth, I just kind of mellowed out in the third season. It was kind of a character choice in that he's got to evolve and not be this erratic guy and just mature, growing as a cop and a detective. But at the same time I do want to go back to him being a bit more passionate. But you've got to understand, we're doing a TV series--it's hard to do that every day. I think I came up trying to do that every time, every moment. It's not like a movie. It's not an easy thing to do and keep him normal. But I'm definitely going to attack it more this [coming] season again. That's what I'm hoping, that when I read the script there's something for me to attack. Because obviously I gotta do what they write.
At this point with Lindsay, I think it would be a little more cut and dry. But I have to bow down to how they want to carry this on. They finally got to the point [where something happened]. I was pretty happy with the finale episode. We're at another good crossroad; it's got to go in a certain direction now.
CSI Files: Danny was being treated pretty poorly by Lindsay there for a while!
Giovinazzo: Yeah. That's another good thing about this. It's like, as an actor [the writers] making me do certain things that instinctively I don't want to do.
CSI Files: Is there anything you did object to this season, that you didn't want to do but had to?
Giovinazzo: There was. It was that courtroom thing between Anna and I [in
"Sleight Out of Hand"] that we did get into some discussion about which way we should go with that. There was one episode that kind of ended in a weird way (
"The Lying Game"). I thought it was interesting because I was becoming this punching bag. No matter what she did, I'd show up. So that was kind of a bug.