Late Sitcom Legend to Appear Posthumously in ‘Criminal Minds’

A late sitcom legend is making a posthumous appearance in the upcoming season of Criminal Minds: Evolution.

After passing away in December at 87, Linda Lavin is set to appear in an undisclosed role in Season 3 of the Paramount+ revival.

The trailer for the new season, which marks the overall 18^th season of Criminal Minds, reveals Lavin’s guest appearance but her exact role is still unknown, according to TVLine. Fans won’t have to wait much longer, as the season will be dropping on May 8. However, since details surrounding Lavin’s appearance are unknown, it’s also what episode or episodes she’ll be in. It will still be exciting to see her on the show in one of her final roles.

Lavin passed away on Dec. 29 from lung cancer. Some of her more notable credits include CBS’ Alice, The Back-up Plan, The Good Wife, and I Want to Go Home, among many others. She also just starred in Hulu’s new comedy Mid-Century Modern, also released posthumously. Lavin died during filming, completing seven episodes. Some of her scenes from the fourth episode were used for Episode 8, so the late actress appears in eight of the 10 episodes.

Meanwhile, Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 3 picks up six months after the events of the Season 2 finale, which saw inmates attacking Zach Gilford’s Elias Voit, “leading his restless followers on the dark web to begin wreaking havoc all over the country. In order to stop this nefarious group from killing more innocents, the BAU is forced to once again work in concert with an increasingly unpredictable Voit, who, of course, has his own agenda.”

The series was renewed for Season 3 in June, just before Season 2 premiered. Evolution has already been renewed for Season 4, so there will be much more on the way for the BAU after this season. How Lavin will play a part in these upcoming episodes will be interesting to see, especially since it is more than likely her final television role. Unless she makes another surprise appearance on a different series later down the line, that she filmed prior to her death.

Make sure to tune in to a new season of Criminal Minds: Evolution, premiering on Thursday, May 8, on Paramount+, to see Linda Lavin in one of her final roles. All 17 seasons of Criminal Minds are streaming on Paramount+.