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Criminal Minds has a history of dramatic exits for its main cast, including fan-favorite Thomas Gibson, whose firing in the wake of the actor’s alleged altercation with Virgil Williams left fans furious. While the #NoHotchNoWatch campaign garnered a lot of steam at the time, Damon Gupton, who was brought in to fill the void, did prove to be a great addition to the team.

Thomas Gibson in Criminal Minds | Credit: CBS

But similar to Gibson, Gupton’s Stephen Walker was written off the show by the time season 12 ended, which, in hindsight, was a mishap of epic proportions.

Damon Gupton’s short-lived tenure in Criminal Minds

When Damon Gupton was initially approached to step in to fill the void left by Gibson’s firing, the actor had “no trepidation” about joining the show and was “excited to bring something new” (via TVGuide). Unfortunately, despite being a primary character in...

Dennis Quaid and Annaleigh Ashford star in the Paramount+ true-crime series “Happy Face,” about the real-life Happy Face killer Keith Jesperson, which premieres with two episodes this week.

Some of the names and details have been changed from the actual people — his daughter, Melissa Moore, who is an executive producer on the show is now Melissa Reed — but the story is essentially the same.

Here is who plays who in the cast and where you might have seen them before.

Annaleigh Ashford as Melissa Reed (Credit: Bettina Strauss/Paramount+) Annaleigh Ashford as Melissa Reed

The actress, who is known for “Masters of Sex” and “American Crime Story,” plays the lead character, Melissa Reed, a makeup artist who decides to come forward as the daughter of the Happy Face killer to save a man who is on death row for one of the crimes her father actually committed.

Dennis Quaid as...

Criminal Minds dominated the airwaves for over a decade before concluding its original run with a 15th season. Over the original 15 seasons of Criminal Minds as well as the revival titled Criminal Minds: Evolution, multiple agents have joined and later departed the Behavioral Analysis Unit. These agents played a big role in shaping the story of Criminal Minds and crafted personal storylines that allowed viewers to connect to the series' main characters.

Throughout Criminal Minds, certain agents have had incredibly emotional tenures on the series. These emotional connections added more poignancy to the circumstances of their exit from Criminal Minds and affected fans as much as the characters themselves. One of the best parts of Criminal Minds is its strong character development, exemplified by how certain characters left the series.

Updated on January 17, 2025, by Michael Colwander: There have been countless heartbreaking exits in Criminal Minds. Whether it's a character's untimely death,...

When it comes to Criminal Minds, there have been several FBI agents enter and exit the Behavioral Analysis Unit over the 15 seasons of the original series. The Behavioral Analysis Unit is an elite unit of criminal profilers who analyze the behavior of serial killers and other predators known as 'Unknown Subjects,' referred to as unsubs. These elite agents are exposed to some of the most heinous criminals ever seen on television and are dedicated to arresting these offenders.

Due to the dangerous nature of the agent's job, there is a notable turnover rate when it comes to the Bau. New profilers joining the team is not uncommon in Criminal Minds. New agents replacing other characters in Criminal Minds vary drastically in quality, with some barely leaving a mark and others becoming truly iconic series characters.

Stephen Walker Had a Brief Run That Ended in Tragedy

Experienced profiler Ssa Stephen...

The Behavioral Analysis Unit (Bau) in Criminal Minds has dealt with all manner of masterminds and unsubs, but Peter Lewis may be one of the most diabolical and terrifying they’ve ever investigated. Criminal Minds is a police procedural that first ran for 15 seasons on CBS before ending in 2020, but then it was revived for season 16 in November 2022 on Paramount Plus. The series follows the Bau, a special division of the FBI, as they use behavioral profiling and analysis techniques to find the culprits, or unsubs (unknown subjects), behind the United States’ most grim and difficult crimes.

Over the course of the show, the main cast of Criminal Minds has investigated dozens of unsubs, from simple con artists all the way up to near genius-level serial killers. While some criminals were only of the “villain-of-the-week” variety, some like Peter Lewis were season-spanning foes who dug into the investigators as much...