How Aubrey Plaza is involved
Criminal Minds is back Wednesday -- and so is Reid (Matthew Gray Gubler).
"Even my mom texted me, "'Where's Matthew?!'" executive producer Erica Messer tells TVGuide.com of Reid's three-episode absence. "It was very funny. There are contractual things that happen that we don't control as storytellers. By the 11th season of a series, actors make their own contracts and deals, and we're left creatively to make sense of why a character is missing for a few episodes. ... I was like, 'Don't worry! He'll be back soon and there'll be lots of him!'"
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Reid fans will be happy to know that he is back in a very big and pivotal way after tending to his schizophrenic mother Diana. In the last episode before the show's winter hiatus, Hotch (Thomas Gibson) told Garcia (Kirsten Vangness) he found a breakthrough in the case to take down the Dirty Dozen hitmen ring that's after her. That manifests in an elaborate ruse on Wednesday's bottle episode-like hour (9/8c, CBS) involving Reid and his date Cat Adams (guest star Aubrey Plaza), who spices things up with a cat-and-mouse (no pun intended) interrogation by holding him hostage at gunpoint in a restaurant.
"Aubrey's [character] is a huge part of that plan," Messer says. "There are a lot of twists to it and it feels like old-school Criminal Minds. It's an amazing episode written by Breen Frazier and Matthew is really at the center of it, which is nice because Dr. Reid has been away with his mom. We wanted to be able to come back and kick-start the new year by acknowledging our arc that got established in the premiere and having it dovetail with Matthew's return to the BAU. That was the goal and Aubrey Plaza was the dream, and it happened. She and Matthew are friends and did a movie together [Life After Beth]. They are fantastic in it. It's an edge-of-your-seat psychological thriller almost, and Dr. Reid is forced to share some things he never has before."
That's because Cat will go for Reid's Achilles' heel: pressing him about his mother. There is a flashback to a young Reid and Diana, which was written in after conflicts with Angel From Hell prevented Jane Lynch from reprising her role as Diana for the first time in more than six years. "Jane Lynch once again is super-busy on another show!" Messer says with a laugh. "We were hoping to get her this year so that it's not happening off-screen, but because we couldn't, Breen crafted some flashbacks, so you see the younger Reid and his mom, who does look surprisingly like Jane. It was our way of acknowledging that this is a man who has a very strong connection with his mom, and the memories of him as a child are part of his core. If we had had Jane, we would've done something different, but we couldn't. I thought the way Breen added those layers in was lovely. It's really beautiful and a reflective case and story, and certainly for Dr. Reid."
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But when all is said and done, is the Dirty Dozen arc over for good after Reid's high-risk efforts? Reid will -- spoiler alert -- save that day in, as Messer describes, a "heroic" and "bad-ass way." (Don't worry, there are no uncharacteristic fights, just classic Reid kill-you-with-words chess moves.) And Garcia will be out of Witness Protection, but that will be the only good news for now.
"It ends to a degree, but I won't say it's totally put to bed in this episode because we still have our 250th coming up, so I will leave it at that," Messer says. "It might not be as easy as they had hoped it would be. But there's a satisfying end of [Episode] 11 after what Dr. Reid does. It's everything we love about him -- what he does. You kind of breathe a sigh of relief and then by the time our 250th airs in March, there will be a new baddie in town. It's sort of the aftermath of something like this. ... I often equate it to my Alias days of you take down SD6 and there's still another head to that monster."
Criminal Minds airs Wednesdays at 9/8c on CBS.
(Full disclosure: TVGuide.com is owned by CBS.)
FAQs
This detail is revealed in a focus-or-miss-it moment during one of the best storylines in Criminal Minds. Hitmen target an anonymous member of the BAU known as the "Dirty Dozen." It turns out it's Garcia. They label her this way because she normally uses 12 botnets to hack into systems and conduct investigations.
Who does Spencer Reid end up with? ›
With the series finale on CBS, Reid's story didn't exactly come to a satisfying end. In the final season, he has started a romantic relationship with Maxine Brenner (Rachael Leigh Cook), and the two continue in their romance after Cat Adams (Aubrey Plaza) attempts to break them up.
What does JJ say to Reid? ›
Turns out, JJ didn't exactly mean it when she told Reid, "I've always loved you," at gunpoint. The truth behind JJ's confession surfaced in a bittersweet conversation between the two friends at the hospital, hours after JJ nearly died following a gunshot wound to the abdomen suffered during a tense standoff.
In what episode does Garcia realize she's the dirty dozen? ›
They seemingly refer to their targets as "The Dirty Dozen." However, in the episode "Target Rich," it's revealed that the nickname refers solely to Garcia, who had investigated the group on the dark web. Impressed by her technical skills, the group determined she posed a threat to their work.
Who was the worst serial killer in Criminal Minds? ›
1 Floyd Feylinn Ferell Is the Most Gruesome Unsub in the Series
| First appearance: | Season 3, Episode 8, "Lucky" |
|---|
| Portrayed by: | Jamie Kennedy |
Feb 2, 2024
"God Complex" is arguably the single most disturbing episode of Criminal Minds for its extreme body horror. The episode centered around a slew of victims who would wake up to discover that someone had amputated their legs. On the other hand, other victims even had new legs.
Who has the saddest backstory in Criminal Minds? ›
Top 10 Criminal Minds Unsubs with the Most Tragic Backstories
- #2: Shelley Chamberlain “Hanley Waters”
- #5: Paul Westin “Broken” ...
- #6: Tobias Hankel “The Big Game” & “Revelations” ...
- #7: Vincent Rowlings “The Big Wheel” ...
- #8: Desi Gutierrez “Dust and Bones” ...
- #9: Jonny McHale “True Night” ...
In the season ten episode "Nelson's Sparrow", Gideon was murdered off-screen, having been shot dead at a close range by a serial killer named Donnie Mallick (Arye Gross), which prompts the BAU team to investigate Gideon's murder.
Does Reid have a daughter? ›
The Kansas City Chiefs head coach is the father of five children, all of whom he welcomed with wife Tammy Reid. They share sons Garrett, Britt and Spencer Reid and daughters Drew Ann and Crosby Reid. The couple's first child was born when Andy was finishing his master's degree in Utah.
Who did Reid love? ›
Reid eventually got into a serious relationship with Maeve Donovan, which resulted in a heartbreaking tragedy. However, looking back at all the romantic partners that the SSA had in the original Criminal Minds show, it's difficult not to feel disappointed that it didn't do more with Reid and Austin's story.
Reid, a man who struggled to find love due to his awkward social abilities found someone in Maeve who he really connected with. Maeve, a Geneticist, even took a look at Reid's brain scans in hopes of finding an answer for Reid's prolonged migraines. At times, Maeve almost seemed to be too perfect for Reid.
Did Spencer and JJ kiss? ›
Witness the electrifying chemistry between Spencer Reid and JJ as they share a passionate kiss. Explore the emotional depth of their relationship in this unforgettable scene.
What secret did JJ tell Spencer? ›
In the finale of Criminal Minds season 14, an emotional episode that saw both a wedding and a hostage situation, JJ Jareau (played by A.J. Cook) told her longtime coworker, Dr. Spencer Reid (Matthew Grey Gubler) that she had loved him all along. I repeat: JJ loved Reid all along.
Why was Penelope called the Dirty Dozen? ›
Her identity was unknown to the network, so they dubbed her as "The Dirty Dozen". This was unknown to the BAU until the events of "Target Rich," where she realized that she inadvertently uses a dozen servers to bounce her signal while working.
Why was Garcia called the Dirty Dozen? ›
At the end of the episode, it is revealed that "The Dirty Dozen" is Garcia, as she investigated them in the deep web during Montolo's case and is subsequently perceived as a threat by the network.
What is the creepiest Criminal Minds episode? ›
Season 13, Episode 17
"The Capilanos" played on some fans' biggest fears and one of the most beloved horror tropes: killer clowns. This episode is one of the scariest Criminal Minds episodes and follows a killer clown who breaks into several houses.
What does the dirty dozen refer to? ›
Across fruits and vegetables from EWG's Dirty Dozen™ – the component of the Shopper's Guide that identifies the 12 non-organic, or conventional, fresh produce with the most pesticides – four of the five most frequently detected chemicals the fungicides fludioxonil, pyraclostrobin, boscalid and pyrimethanil.
