Criminal Minds season 16: Paramount+ confirms revival, talks story
In a statement, the streaming service revealed that Joe Mantegna, A.J. Cook, Kirsten Vangsness, Aisha Tyler, Adam Rodriguez and Paget Brewster are officially coming back as their former characters, while noting that additional cast will be announced at a later date. The only two season 15 cast members not coming back are Matthew Gray Gubler and Daniel Henney — in the case of the latter, it is because he has a new job on The Wheel of Time.
Watch our review now for the Criminal Minds season 15 finale! In case you need a refresher, we are here to help! Once you watch, remember to SUBSCRIBE to Matt & Jess on YouTube for even more TV updates.
We also now have a little more info about what the story of the revival will be, and it is a little more topical than we first imagined in advance:
In the all-new CRIMINAL MINDS episodes exclusively available on Paramount+, the FBI’s elite team of criminal profilers come up against their greatest threat yet, an UnSub who has used the [global health crisis] to build a network of other serial killers. Now, as the world opens back up, the network goes operational, and our team must hunt them down, one murder at a time.
We didn’t quite expect that the series would take on the events of the past few years as specifically, but that is what they are going to do. It feels already like this season could have both standalone and serialized components to it, which should satisfy fans of the original while also bringing something new.
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Here is some of what Nicole Clemens, President, Paramount+ Original Scripted Series, had to say about bringing the show back:
“For 15 seasons, CRIMINAL MINDS was at the forefront of cutting-edge scripted drama as it explored the psychology behind crime – thrillingly … The series never stopped evolving during its run, and we are beyond excited to bring it back into a new era with new stories for a new generation of viewers at Paramount+. [Showrunner Erica Messer], the whole cast and creative team are building a season full of new twists that we are sure will electrify audiences.”
We reported yesterday that the cast have signed deals that could allow them to continue beyond a season 16, while still having room to pursue other projects.
What do you think about the story behind Criminal Minds season 16 at the moment?
Be sure to share right now in the comments! Also, come back for other updates that we don’t want you to miss. (Photo: Paramount+.)
This article was written by Jessica BunBun. Be sure to follow her on Twitter.