Criminal Minds: Evolution ended its second season with so many questions — and luckily, Us is getting fans the answers.
Executive producer and showrunner Erica Messer teased where the Paramount+ show is heading next after season 2 ended on Thursday, August 1, with the BAU meeting the final player in the Gold Star case and Elias Voit (Zach Gilford) getting attacked in prison.
“We’re always looking [at] how to modernize the show and the crimes,” Messer exclusively told Us Weekly about the hit crime drama’s vision from season to season. “Even if the why of it is sort of timeless.”
Part of adapting involves introducing characters such as Voit. While serial killers usually don’t last long on Criminal Minds, the Evolution revival took a big swing by investing in Voit for the foreseeable future.
“To put him in jail and have [the agents] go consult with him felt like something new that we had never done before,” she noted. “So, we have a challenge for next season to keep him around. But that’s the plan — to keep challenging ourselves.”
Since 2005, viewers have tuned in weekly to watch criminal profilers who work for the FBI as members of its Behavioral Analysis Unit solve different fictional cases. After its conclusion in 2020, the original Criminal Minds series was revived by Paramount+ with Joe Mantegna, A.J. Cook, Kirsten Vangsness, Aisha Tyler, Adam Rodriguez and Paget Brewster returning. Gilford was brought on in a more villainous role.
Voit’s fate going forward is just one of many questions fans will have about Criminal Minds: Evolution following the season 2 finale. Keep scrolling for answers and hints from Messer about what’s next:
Has the Season 3 Arc Already Been Teased?
During the season 1 finale of Criminal Minds: Evolution, Voit set the wheels in motion for Gold Star to be the next focus. The procedural dropped more hints on Thursday about where the story goes from here.
“It felt like the minute Voit said Gold Star at the end of season 16 [of Criminal Minds], or season 1 [of Criminal Minds: Evolution], he led us on a new quest. We had to go down that route because he had this deal with the [BAU] director and we had to prove we didn’t want his help,” Messer explained to Us. “But Voit had a network of killers and we never really solved that.”
She continued: “So, this season will be a little bit more diving into that space. And because we have Voit, there’s no reason to reinvent the wheel on what that badness is. He’s given it to us this whole time.”
What Went Into Unmasking Doug Bailey’s Brother?
The second season introduced an unexpected twist when the last Gold Star turned out to be Doug’s brother, Pete (Alex Saxon).
“Alex was incredible. By the time we hit that episode, we’re learning why Prentiss [Paget Brewster] has been targeted all season. What is going on? And it’s like, ‘Oh, there’s somebody else who blames you for the thing you blame yourself for,'” Messer explained, referring to the fake conspiracy theory that Prentiss was the one who killed Doug. “[Pete] has a list of reasons why this was Prentiss’ fault and she’s been having this guilt all of season 2 about Doug.”
Messer enjoyed having Pete’s version of a villain not do a “mustache twirly thing,” adding, “It was a very intellectual approach [from Pete]. He wanted her to explain [some things to him] and it was very matter of fact. There was no super scary thing about it. And that can be really unsettling. In this show, the rules are a little different.”
How Will the Show Continue to Incorporate Voit?
Criminal Minds isn’t exactly the show for a serial killer to thrive — and yet, Voit has somehow managed to last two seasons. According to Messer, there are obstacles that come with bringing back a murderer on a show about FBI agents looking to arrest him.
“It definitely has challenges. I welcome them at this point because it just keeps us reinventing. We’re just always reinventing,” she shared. “And Zach has certainly presented that challenge for us because this is somebody who technically should have been gone after the first season. Once we arrested him, we should just be done. But we weren’t.”
Will More OG Cast Members — Including Matthew Gray Gubler — Appear in Future Seasons?
While most original stars from Criminal Minds returned for the revival, Matthew Gray Gubler and Daniel Henney‘s absences have been felt. (Thomas Gibson and Shemar Moore were also featured in important roles throughout the OG series.)
“We can’t not acknowledge who’s not here because they’re huge parts of why we’re all still here,” Messer detailed. “But the trick is, we have a much shorter window [now]. Back in the olden days, we had 10 months out of the year to shoot. Now we have four [months], so it just actually can be a scheduling nightmare to try to get anyone.”
The showrunner specifically addressed plans for Gubler to reprise his role as Spencer Reid. “We love [Matthew] and he’s always going to be a part of the family,” she added. “We would love for an opportunity to arise to get him back. And we have tried — and he has tried.”
Messer continued: “It just hasn’t worked out, timing-wise. I can’t speak to [season 3 of Criminal Minds: Evolution] because we’re not there yet. But it’s not for lack of trying. I think the characters also are going to acknowledge it.”
Does Jill Gideon Have More Stories to Tell on ‘Criminal Minds’?
Season 2 of Criminal Minds: Evolution introduced Felicity Huffman in the role of Jill Gideon, a.k.a Jason Gideon’s (Mandy Patinkin) ex-wife. In addition to helping the BAU on a case, Jill reconnected with Rossi (Mantegna), which hinted at her returning to the show in the future.
“Felicity was such a gift to us. She and Joe have known one another for 40 years, so it was like kismet that we were able to get her. There’s sort of a shortcut [in] getting a character to come in with all of that history of the BAU,” Messer noted. “It is just acknowledging the fact that we’ve had two decades of getting to know all these people in this world that they’ve been trying to keep safe all these years. And so, [we’re] acknowledging who’s been here before and maybe who can come back.”
Messer pointed out that Jill and Rossi still have unfinished business.
“Even with Felicity, it feels like she and Joe — she and Rossi — aren’t quite done yet,” she teased. “But she was such a huge help in bridging the gap [with story lines]. Her filling in those blanks with us — she just fit right in, didn’t she? She’s incredible.”
