Anthony Zuiker, CSI franchise creator, shares what prompted him to pen an episode about the Suicide Girls, the attitude they represent and what it was like to work with them.

Three years ago, Zuiker was in a bookstore and opened a hardback Suicide Girls book just by accident. Inside, he found a picture of one of the girls, Al, nude in a bathtub wearing a pink wig. “I was so inspired to keep looking at the pictures. I brought the book back to work and then it was stolen,” recalls Zuiker. He went out and bough the book again. A week later, it was stolen. He bought it again. Again, it was stolen. “So I figure if people are stealing these books out of my office or off my coffee table, it must be something of interest to people. Then, on accident I saw the Suicide Girls on HBO Real Sex. My wife, who has impeccable taste, was watching it with me and her quote about Missy was, ‘That bitch can shoot’ meaning she’s a great photographer. When she pointed it out to me, I was inspired by that and then pretty much the next week I saw Icons episode on G4. That was enough for me to pick up the phone and call Missy and say, ‘Hey. How’d you like to do a show with the Suicide Girls playing themselves on CSI:NY?’ Missy, of course, was down for that,” says Zuiker.

“Suicide Girls promote individuality, strength and the courage to really live as free as possible without any shame,” is how Zuiker describes the aesthetic they add to the world. “The courage of what they exude is so inspiring, to the viewer and to me because we do live in a very conservative time right now, especially politically and in terms of entertainment. I think a show like this is going to break a lot of barriers.”

Zuiker feels the attitudes of the girls on the show reflects the real attitudes of the girls that are playing them pretty well. Zuiker had a lot of interaction with them throughout the creative process and Missy was involved in every step of the way from wardrobe to the production meeting to the script. “I wasn’t so worried about capturing the exact attitude of the individual, more of the spirit of what Suicide Girls represented. I made sure they all had different sassy, naughty, interesting attitudes,” says Zuiker. “What I was so amazed with was that when I came to the set, they were just so gung ho. They were so low maintenance and so high-spirited. I would tell them constantly, ‘If I hired eight actresses in this town to do the same thing, it would be a completely different ballgame.’ For the most part they’d be complaining. These women from Suicide Girls didn’t complain once. They went on stage. They were ready. They kicked ass. It was a dream to work with. If I could work with the Suicide Girls every day, I would.”

According to Zuiker, the Suicide Girls’ acting was “phenomenal” and if the response to them is overwhelming, there’s a possibility he would bring them back next season.

To read the full interview with Zuiker, head over to the Suicide Girls’ website.

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