Melina Kanakaredes Quits CSI: New York when CBS Demands Pay Cut
By Ryan Christopher DeVault
Melina Kanakaredes is leaving CSI: New York. The reason Melina Kanakaredes is quitting CSI: NY is because CBS demanded a pay cut and she has refused to take one. It seems like a pretty clear-cut reason for an actor or actress to leave a show, no matter how good it has been doing in the ratings.
CBS has been looking to cut the costs of a number of its dramas, and CSI: NY isn't the first show to feel the wrath of the cut paychecks. Criminal Minds, CSI, and CSI: Miami are all going to have cast shake-ups when they premiere in the fall, but this could be the biggest cast change of all the shows simply because Melina Kanakaredes has been one of the two main players on that show.
According to Michael Ausiello of Entertainment Weekly, Kanakaredes already released a statement that said, "I made some amazing and lifelong friendships during my six seasons on CSI: NY, and I will treasure them forever." CBS released a statement of their own to say, "We hoped Melina would return to CSI: NY for another season, but we respect her decision to move on."
This certainly seems to be one of the most pleasant separations of a network and one of the stars of a hit show that we have seen, and it appears that maybe both sides were ready to move on. It's disappointing that CBS isn't taking more responsibility in this decision though, even though they basically pushed Kanakaredes to walk away from the show.
There could be more that comes out in the situation between Kanakaredes and CBS, but right now everything shows that both sides are willing to go in their own directions. There hasn't been an ill word from either side, and six seasons on a hit show had to make Kanakaredes quite a bit of money that is waiting in the bank for her. Kanakaredes had been on the show for 140 episodes over the first six seasons of the show before she walked away.
She will probably be making royalties off of the syndication for CSI: NY for quite a few years as well, so the money will keep coming in for her. She is also the type of actress that will probably catch on to another show pretty soon, unless she decides that the six years straight she has worked on CSI: NY has given her a great reason to take a break. The bad news for fans is that the final episode of CSI: NY with Kanakaredes in it has already aired in the spring.

Friday is suicide shift for TV nets, if they had to cut cast costs to turf Melina, why the fuck would they go to a night guaranteed to lose them a few million viewers?

It makes no sense, unless the production costs are so high in NY that they want to axe CSI NY.

A few million less viewers will translate to multiple cast members salaries and production cuts.