Archie Johnson

Archie Johnson is a fictional character from the CBS crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, portrayed by Archie Kao. He first appeared in the second season episode "Caged", broadcast on November 8, 2001. Archie is the lab's audiovisual technician. Kao originally made a guest appearance in one episode, before he was asked to return in the recurring role of Archie by the show's executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer. Kao made his last appearance as Archie in the twelfth season episode "Split Decisions", which aired on April 4, 2012.

Casting

Actor Archie Kao was originally offered a guest appearance in one episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. When the show's executive producer, Jerry Bruckheimer saw the episode, he told Kao's agent that he wanted him to play a recurring character on the show. Kao told Frank Mustac from the Fairfax Times that he was "stunned" to learn that Bruckheimer wanted him back and said the show had given him a renewed confidence. Kao stated that his character was not named after him and it was just a coincidence they shared the same first name. Kao felt lucky to be cast in the show due to Asian actors having "severely limited roles" to play on television. From his introduction in the show's second season, Kao appeared in every season until his departure in 2012.