'Criminal Minds': Matthew Gray Gubler Not Returning for Paramount+ Revival

By Daniel S. Levine

When Criminal Minds returns for its 16th season, it will be the show's first-ever without Matthew Gray Gubler. The actor, who played Dr. Spencer Reid in over 320 episodes of the original series, is reportedly not planning to return. Six other Criminal Minds stars are planning to come back though.

Back on Feb. 4, Deadline reported that Joe Mantegna, Kristen Vangsness, Adam Rodriguez, A.J. Cook, Aisha Tyler, and Paget Brewster were all close to signing contracts to return for the Paramount+ revival. They are just waiting for ABC Signature to finish negotiations with longtime showrunner Erica Messer before signing their names on the dotted line. Gubler and Daniel Henney are the only two members of the Season 15 cast not returning. Henney is busy with Amazon Prime Video's The Wheel of Time, but is reportedly open to making guest appearances if time allows.

Gubler starred in more Criminal Minds episodes than anyone else and directed 12 episodes. He was a member of the main cast from day one. Cook, who played Jennifer Jareau, was a member of the Season 1 cast as well, but she missed most of Season 6 because of budget cuts. (She was later brought back for two Season 6 episodes before she returned as a main cast member for Season 7.) Vangnsess also joined in Season 1, but she wasn't promoted to the main cast until Season 2 and she starred in one less episode than Gubler.

Outside of Criminal Minds, Gubler is known for his roles in the films The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, Alvin and the Chipmunks, (500) Days of Summer, Life After Beth, and Horse Girl. In 2021, he starred in King Knight. He's starred in several episodes of Hulu's Dollface.

After the Criminal Minds finale aired, Gubler looked back fondly on his time on the show. It doesn't sound like there's any drama behind his decision to not return. Instead, he just wants to entertain people in other ways. "I know that everything has its time and I'm in no way sad that the show is closing, because I feel like we've done it beautifully, and I feel like there are roots there for it to re-hatch later," he told TVLine in 2020. "I kind of liken it to if you go to a concert, at a certain point the band has to leave the stage in order to have an encore. It's just the natural progression."

The Criminal Minds revival is expected to run 10 episodes. Brewster said last year the project was on the verge of death, but Paramount+ executives confirmed last week the project is still in development. While the new episodes won't include Spencer Reid, you can still catch Criminal Minds episodes featuring Gubler on Paramount+. Netflix also still has the first 12 seasons.

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