Hill Harper (Dr. Sheldon Hawkes) recently visited South Africa, where he revealed to a local newspaper why he loves CSI: New York.

"I am the forensic pathologist on the show, so everyone has to come to me first," Harper told the newspaper Cape Times. "What I love about the show is that I get to play this young black guy who is the smartest person on the show."

Harper is hyper-aware of CSI's popularity, and also knows what has so many tuning in each week. "I think it is because it is simply an old fashion murder mystery," he revealed. "In other shows the cops browbeat the accused and try and get them to confess. In CSI we browbeat the evidence. I think it is exciting and hopefully other TV shows will also start incorporating a bit more style in their show."

The actor is currently filming the Wes Craven film, The Breed. "It's a horror film about killer dogs," Harper said. "We're having a good time, myself and Michelle Rodriguez, Oliver Hudson, Taryn Manning and Eric Lively. It's a great cast, and it is real people and real dogs, so it's different to a lot of these horror movies you see now, which are all special effects."

A graduate of Harvard and Brown, Harper also revealed that a change in careers is not something he has disqualified. "I may ultimately get into politics, but I've always believed that you should do what your passions dictate," he said. "I studied theatre in college and I was opened up to art and acting there and I love it, but having studied law and politics inform what kind of person I am and my acting."

To read the rest of the article, which includes more information about the actor's latest project, visit Cape Times.

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