Season 1 cast: Mandy Patinkin (Jason Gideon), Thomas Gibson (Aaron Hotchner), Shemar Moore (Derek Morgan), Kirsten Vangsness (Penelope Garcia), Matthew Gray Gubler (Spencer Reid), Lola Glaudini (Elle Greenaway) and A.J. Cook (Jennifer “JJ” Jareau).
Mandy Patinkin as Jason Gideon
Patinkin portrayed Supervisory Special Agent Jason Gideon from the show’s inception in 2005 until he left the show at the start of Season 3. The last appearance of Gideon’s character was in Season 10, Episode 13, “Nelson’s Sparrow,” in which a young Gideon is played by Ben Savage.
Mandy Patinkin
Patinkin left Criminal Minds abruptly, and described the show as “very destructive to my soul and my personality” because of its violent and troubling subject matter. Since leaving, he’s starred in the musical Paradise Found, performed in An Evening with Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin on Broadway and is currently a regular on the Showtime series Homeland, for which he’s received both Golden Globe and Emmy nominations.
Aaron Hotchner then
SSA Aaron Hotchner (Thomas Gibson) has been the unofficial (and sometimes official) leader of the team since Season 1. A former prosecutor, Hotch, as he’s known, saw the birth of his son, Jack, during the first season, and struggled with the realities of work/life balance in his marriage to Haley (Meredith Monroe).
Aaron Hotchner now
Season 11 has been far less eventful for Hotch than those preceding it. With the help of his sister-in-law Jessica, he’s acting as a single parent to his son Jack after the death of wife Haley in Season 5. Right now, he seems to be doing only one job at the Behavioral Analysis Unit, as opposed to the many he’s done in the past. His romantic life is back to being a mystery, since he broke up with Beth (Bellamy Young) in Season 10.
Derek Morgan then
A former Chicago PD officer, Derek Morgan (Shemar Moore) has been known for kicking down doors since Season 1. His specialties include obsessional crimes, explosives and the ladies.
Derek Morgan now
After being kidnapped, tortured and almost murdered (twice) over the course of three episodes, Morgan made the decision to leave the BAU in Season 11, Episode 18, “A Beautiful Disaster.” Before the end of his final episode, Morgan saw the birth of his son, Hank, with wife Savannah.
Elle Greenaway then
SSA Elle Greenaway (Lola Glaudini) came to the BAU from Brooklyn, where she worked in sex crimes. In Seasons 1 and 2, she was the only female profiler on the team, and definitely made it clear that she wasn’t about to tolerate any special treatment. In the Season 1 finale “The Fisher King (Part 1)”, Elle was shot in her home by an unsub, and the episode ended with a cliffhanger as to whether she would live or die.
Elle Greenaway now
Elle survived her brush with death at the end of Season 1, but was never the same since, and after shooting an unsub in Season 2, she left the BAU. Since her Criminal Minds days, Glaudini has had roles on The Sopranos, NYPD Blue, The King of Queens, Two and a Half Men, Law and Order: Criminal Intent, Las Vegas and Persons Unknown.
JJ then
Jennifer “JJ” Jareau (A.J. Cook) joined the Criminal Minds cast during Season 1 as the Behavioral Analysis Unit’s press liaison, accompanying the team on the road.
JJ now
Between Seasons 1 and 11, JJ became a profiler, got married, had two babies, left the team to work at the Pentagon (Season 6), returned to the team (Season 7), was kidnapped and tortured, and along with Hotch, faked the death of another team member.
Spencer Reid then
The youngest member of team, Spencer Reid (Matthew Gray Gubler) turned 24 in Season 1. He has three Ph.D.s, an IQ of 187, can read 20,000 words per minute, and is remarkably socially awkward. In the first Criminal Minds episode, Hotch explains to Reid that Gideon always introduces him as “Dr. Reid” so that others will take him seriously. In the Season 1 finale, we learn that Reid’s mother, Diana (Jane Lynch), has schizophrenia and is a patient in a Las Vegas institution.
Spencer Reid now
Eleven seasons later, Reid is still on the team. He’s endured torture, a drug addiction, getting shot in the neck and the leg, contracting anthrax, mysterious headaches, the death of his mentor, his girlfriend being shot and killed in front of him, close friends leaving the team, and his mother’s deteriorating mental state. He’s also JJ’s son Henry’s godfather.
Emily Prentiss then
Emily Prentiss (Paget Brewster) joined the Behavioral Analysis Unit in Season 2. Her mother’s position as U.S. ambassador dictated that she live abroad, and Prentiss spent her childhood in Italy, Ukraine, France and several Arabic-speaking countries.
Emily Prentiss now
Due to a decision to fire both A.J. Cook and Paget Brewster in Season 6, Brewster saw a reduced role during that season. While Cook and Brewster were hired back, Brewster decided to leave the show at the end of Season 8, although she’s returned to reprise her role more than once. Since leaving the show, Brewster has appeared on Community, The Thrilling Adventure Hour, Modern Family, Two and a Half Men and Law & Order: SVU. She’s currently starring in Comedy Central’s Another Period, and Grandfathered.
Penelope Garcia then
Penelope Garcia (Kirsten Vangsness) is the technical analyst at the BAU. She appeared in the first episode of the show, and has been seen in her office, surrounded by computers and silly pens, ever since.
Penelope Garcia now
Although she doesn’t regularly leave Quantico, Garcia has seen her share of awfulness in the last 11 seasons. She’s been shot, gone into hiding and witnessed an execution. After JJ left the team in Season 6, Garcia took over her role as media liaison for a few episodes, before realizing it wasn’t for her. In addition to being the technical analyst, she’s also the team’s co-communication liaison. She’s also been seen on Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior, and Criminal Mind: Beyond Borders.
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