William Petersen Movies

When young Chuck Murdock (Joshua Zuehlke) visits a nuclear missile site, he learns that one bomb would destroy the earth in less time than it would take a piece of silverware to drop from his hand to the floor. This information sends the sensitive boy into existential angst. Wondering why anybody should do anything when the world can be destroyed so quickly, and hoping to raise consciousness about nuclear weapons, Chuck quits his Little League team. He gains a little bit of local press. One of those stories is read by NBA star "Amazing Grace" Smith (Alex English), who is so moved by the boy's story that he too quits playing his sport. This produces a great deal of national press, as well as a handful of stars from other sports that decide to join the ranks of Amazing Grace and Chuck. Some powers that be in the sports world, as well as the government, do not look kindly upon these "strikes" and set about to end the movement. Amazing Grace and Chuck came near the end of a cycle of nuclear anxiety films that included Testament, The Day After, and Threads. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Created by Anthony Zuiker, the CBS cop series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, which first aired on October 6, 2000, could be described as "Quincy for the 21st century." Set in Las Vegas, the weekly, 60-minute series focused on the activities of that city's Crime Scene Investigations Bureau. Working the overnight shift, the principal characters deployed state-of-the-art forensic technology to solve unsolvable crimes. Whenever scientific analysis failed, however, the lab's "criminalists" relied upon good, old-fashioned logic -- logical to them, if not to their superiors. So efficient was the CSI team that it was rated the number two such crime lab in America. The series' main protagonist was Gil Grissom (William L. Petersen), once the youngest coroner in the history of the L.A. police department, who after 15 years with the Vegas PD, was put in charge of the crime lab when its former skipper, the mercurial Captain Jim Brass (Paul Guilfoyle), was transferred back to the homicide division. Grissom's elite ensemble included his second-in-command, onetime exotic dancer Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger), who juggled her professional responsibilities with her home duties as a single mother; ex-grave digger Warrick Brown (Gary Dourdan), the only member of the team who was born in Vegas and, as such, the most savvy member when it came to the ins and outs of the casino industry that figured so largely in the proceedings; Warrick's friendly rival, the warm and outgoing Nick Stokes (George Eads), late of the Dallas PD; and the brilliant but somewhat distant Sara Sidle (Jorja Fox), who was initially brought in from San Francisco to investigate the murder of her predecessor, rookie criminalist Holly Gribbs (a case that had lost Captain Brass his position as head of the lab). Each of these worthies brought a distinct specialty to their work: Willows was a blood-splatter analyst, Brown an audio-visual expert, Stokes a hair-and-fiber specialist, and Sidle a materials-and-element analyst.

The criminalists generally worked in sub-teams to investigate the myriad of baffling cases which came across their desk in each episode (usually two crimes were depicted and solved per week). During the series' first three seasons on the air, there were no significant cast changes, though former recurring characters Greg Sanders (Eric Szmanda) and Dr. David Robbins (Robert David Hall) were gradually elevated to weekly-regular status. In many ways, however, there was an unbilled "major character" in the form of the series' fluid camerawork, deploying quickie montages, juxtaposed images, and dreamlike scene transitions -- all complemented by a driving but low-key background music score. Cinematographers like Michael Barrett and Frank Byers and editors like Alex Mackie and Alec Smight were as responsible for the "look" of CSI as were the series' producers, directors, and stars. As of 2002, the highly rated series had been nominated for a myriad of Emmy Awards, scoring one win for makeup artists Nicholas Pagliaro, John Goodwin, and Melanie Levitt. 2002 was also the year that the producers cooked up a spin-off series, CSI: Miami. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The freshman season of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation had ended with a dramatic rescue, as the head of the Las Vegas crime-lab unit, Gil Grissom (William L. Petersen), was saved from becoming the latest victim of a serial killer by the quick thinking of Gil's second-in-command, Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger). Clearly, the relationship between Gil and Catherine was destined to go beyond the "just friends and co-workers" stage during season two. With the series' ratings riding high -- so high that it was now network television's number one cop drama -- the producers saw no reason to make any radical changes in the format or cast. The list of regulars remained intact, with Eric Szmanda (as Greg Sanders) and Robert David Hall (as coroner David Robbins) graduating from recurring characters to weekly co-stars. The success of CSI encouraged the producers to develop a spin-off series, this one set in Miami and starring David Caruso and (briefly) Kim Delaney, two alumni from NYPD Blue. The pilot for CSI: Miami was telecast as the CSI: Crime Scene Investigation episode titled "Cross-Jurisdictions" on May 9, 2002. Nominated for several Emmy awards during the 2001-2002 season, CSI copped one Emmy, shared jointly by makeup artists Nicholas Pagliaro, John Goodwin, and Melanie Levitt. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Some dangling plot strands left over from season three of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation were tied up in season four; others were not, and of course, new complications ensued throughout the latter season's 23 episodes. Facing surgery to correct (or at the very least forestall) his hereditary hearing loss, CSI team leader Gil Grissom (William L. Petersen) emerged from the operation somewhat better off, though his hearing was still not 100 percent. Struggling to overcome the death of her husband and relieved that injuries sustained by her daughter were not fatal, team member Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger) nonetheless faced several other crises, not least of which was the discovery that unsavory casino owner Sam Braun (Scott Wilson) was her biological father; a hefty check given to Catherine by Braun for her indirect assistance in helping him beat a murder rap also caused a great deal of soul-searching on her part, not to mention an embarrassing situation when she came up for her annual departmental review. And the already seething tensions between Catherine and her fellow CSI'er Sara Sidle (Jorja Fox) were exacerbated by decisions made from the top pertaining to job assignments and promotions. Sara's inner demons threatened to overwhelm her by the end of season four, culminating in a drunk-driving charge that figured into the season-ending cliffhanger. The regular cast remained intact, though there were hints that at least two of them would be gone before season five began due to contract negotiations. New to the series was Xander Berkeley as Nevada sheriff Rory Atwater, who was prominently featured in at least one episode that, in true CSI tradition, was "ripped from today's headlines." Some critics carped that the series' storylines were more gratuitously kinky than in previous seasons, with episodes involving modern-day vampires, a cult of fur fetishists, and the like. Also, there were those who felt that the personal problems of the major characters tended to impede the investigations to an excessive degree. But most viewers didn't mind, as witness the excellent ratings posted by CSI throughout season four. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is a fast-paced drama about a passionate team of forensic investigators trained to solve crimes the old-fashioned way - by examining the evidence. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is on the case 24-7, scouring the scene, collecting the irrefutable evidence and finding the missing pieces that will solve the mystery.

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is a fast-paced drama about a passionate team of forensic investigators trained to solve crimes the old-fashioned way by examining the evidence. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is on the case 24-7 scouring the scene collecting irrefutable evidence and finding the missing pieces that will solve the mystery.

In this romantic comedy, two people brought together by marriage are brought even closer by their mates. Maria Hardy (Isabella Rossellini) and Larry Konzinski (Ted Danson) first meet at a wedding, where Maria's mother and Larry's uncle are tying the knot. However, the new cousins also have something else in common: Maria's husband Tom (William L. Petersen) is having an affair with Larry's wife, Tish (Sean Young). Maria and Larry get to talking at the wedding reception after their spouses go missing for a while, and they develop a rapport. A friendship grows between them, and they start seeing each other on a regular basis. When Maria confronts Tom about his infidelity, he responds by asking her if she's sleeping with Larry. As Maria and Larry become aware of what's happening between their not-so-better halves, they decide to get revenge by pretending to have an affair as well. However, the longer they pretend to be in love, the more they realize that they aren't pretending after all. Cousins was based on the popular French film Cousin Cousine. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Carl Schultz' made-for-television thriller Deadly Currents stars George C. Scott as a man with a secret. The former captain of a ship that exploded, Cornelius Wettering (Scott) runs a bar in Curacao. He is friendly with the head of security for the American embassy, Guerin (William Petersen). The CIA assigns Julia Fernandez (Julie Carmen) to observe Guerin. This is complicated by the fact that the two are former lovers. Soon buried secrets are revealed, including the reason for the explosion of Wettering's ship. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Mark Wahlberg stars in one of his first features as a hoodlum drug dealer from the wrong side of the trackswho falls in love with Nicole Walker, an upper-middle-class high school girl (Reese Witherspoon). In this psycho-drama (with the emphasis on psycho), Nicole happily loses her virginity to her first love, but, when she begins to doubt the relationship, his tenderness turns to violence, as he stalks and terrorizes her and her friends and family. The girl's father never trusted him in the first place, but his reservations about his daughter's first serious boyfriend are interpreted as Oedipal paranoia, until the boy and his drug-dealing, date-raping buddies besiege the overly fortified house in a twisted attempt to win back Nicole's love. The Seattle setting juxtaposes a grunge rock underworld with an over-privileged suburban household, and includes a very sexual ride on a roller-coaster. And yes, former underwear model Wahlberg appears shirtless several times. ~ Laura Abraham, Rovi

William Petersen's High Horse Films produced this romantic comedy that endeavors to recall the glory days of Cary Grant and Irene Dunne. Petersen stars as Joey Coalter, a roving adventurer who has been married to his wife Chris (Sissy Spacek) for almost thirteen years but has rarely been home. During that time Chris has become fed up with Joey's cavalier ways. But it comes as a complete shock to Joey when, while talking to a group of cowpokes about Tahitian women somewhere on the prairie, he receives a wedding invitation sent by his daughter Beth (Olivia Burnette) that announces the wedding of Chris to dull business man Walter Humphrey (Brian Kerwin). Beth hopes the surprise wedding invitation will prod Joey to try to get back together with Chris. Chris hopes so too, as Joey drops what he is doing and takes off to stop Chris's pending nuptials. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

Based on a novel by Thomas McGuane, this made-for-TV feature stars William Petersen as Joe Starling, a painter suffering from creative block. For inspiration, he returns to his family's Montana home, only to find the land coveted by a malevolent developer (Jack Palance). ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi

Jeff (William L. Petersen) and Marty (Gary Cole) are two businessmen who are sent to the Philippines for a project. The two men share a growing disenchantment with their professional lives and the responsibilities of adulthood, so they impulsively go on a drug and alcohol-fueled bender in search of the lost freedom and joie de vivre of youth. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi