CSI Vegas fans have come to fall in love with Josh Folsom (Matt Lauria) and Allie Rajan (Mandeep Dhillon), and their will-they-won't-they relationship. Close friends who met while working at the Crime Scene Investigation lab, over the last two seasons the pair's timing has never worked out, yet vewers finally saw Allie acknowledge their chemistry earlier in season two when she told Josh she needed to step back from their friendship for her own sake.
"We both do our separate processes and homework, and then we show up and there's so much trust in the space that whatever one of us is going to do the other is going to follow," Matt tells HELLO! of working with Mandeep, and building this electric chemistry.
© CBS"It's really a magic collaboration. Mandeep and I love each other so much as humans, and trust each other so much, and we love our characters so much, and we love their relationship and the nuances."
Allie was in a relationship in season one, but fans saw her break things off with her partner and move out of Vegas to train in Los Angeles. When she returned in season two, it was clear she had hopes to maybe start something with Josh - only to discover that he was now in a relationship with Detective Serena Chavez, played by Ariana Guerra.
© CBSJosh is a "man of great character and he has so much admiration for her and it's just so beyond Josh to be a homewrecker when she was in a relationship," Matt says of why Josh never made a move on Allie.
"But professionally he puts her on a pedestal because she is aspirational, and he holds her in such high esteem. There's also the risk of ruining something - for either of us but especially her - professionally, and Josh would never want to selfishly do something that would in any way hinder her career."
© CBSThe CBS show is different to other procedurals in that it has so far refused to follow traditional tropes and throw Josh and Allie together to give viewers a quicker conclusion.
Instead, the writers are taking their time and offering detailed nuances into each character's backstory and emotional states – and this is never clearer than in the season two finale on Thursday May 18 when Josh is forced to sit out an investigation that hits close to home, only for the investigator to take matters into his own hands.
Josh's actions will change not only the team forever, but his relationships with Allie, Serena, and his boss Max Roby.
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© CBSWith season three's return date up in the air due to the ongoing writer's strike, it's unclear when the cast will discover what comes next. But don't expect Josh and Allie to be riding off into the Nevada sunset anytime soon, even if things are dicey between Josh and Serena.
"There is this dark fear and shame that if she really knew everything there is to know about him, she would maybe find it loathsome or unacceptable. That's terrifying for Josh," Matt continues.
© CBS"And yet she's the one that he's opened up to the most, more than Serena, because there's a little bit more context there; she already knew some things with his mom and some of it was circumstantial, but some of it was because she was a trusted safe space.
"And lately, there's been so many times when Serena has blown things out of proportion where she maybe didn't feel like the safest or most appropriate place to go."
© CBSIt's not all heavy on the set, however, as Matt acknowledges that he's beginning to master the art of not breaking during a scene.
"We're really good friends and another complication that can add is not breaking in scenes. If one of us gets the other going… but fortunately I have to say I've been getting the upper hand lately. Usually I'm the absolute world's worst at breaking but now she's the worst; it's easier for me to get back on track. She's hopeless but her philosophy – because she worked with Ricky Gervais – is when you get into the giggles, let it be."
CSI: Vegas season two episode 21 airs on Thursday May 18. Check out stills from the episode below....
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