After four long months, the SAG-AFTRA strike finally came to a close after the union and the AMPTP came to a tentative agreement. This means that Hollywood will finally be able to get back into the swing of things, and movies and shows can commence production. Some series are already planning on starting up very soon, including Paramount+’s Criminal Minds revival, Criminal Minds: Evolution, and Joe Mantegna is so ready to get back to work!
Criminal Minds: Evolution had its first season finale in February, but Paramount+ renewed the show for another season a month prior. While filming was supposed to kick off later in the year, they had to hit pause because of the strikes. Now that both strikes are over, production will be able to start soon. David Rossi himself, Joe Mantegna, took to Twitter to share his excitement about returning to work, and he is not the only one ready:
BACK TO WORK! @criminalminds @CBSTweet
It’s going to be so good to have the BAU back, even if it will be a while. From the looks of Mantegna’s tweet, he has been itching to return to work. His castmates have likely been feeling the same way. Considering they waited what seemed like forever to even get the Criminal Minds revival off the ground, waiting a little bit longer for the next season has to have them so ready to get back to work. Just knowing that filming is starting soon will hopefully be enough to keep fans excited.
The latest season of Criminal Minds ended on a cliffhanger that had viewers questioning what Gold Star was. For the last few episodes, the concept of Gold Star kept being brought up by the higher-ups, but we never found out what it was. On top of that, big bad unsub Elias Voit, played by Zach Gilford, knew about Gold Star. The two will still play a big part in the upcoming season, but how big and in what way is unknown. Meanwhile, the final seconds of the finale saw Voit getting a visitor, but again, fans never found out who it was.
There will be a lot to work into the second season of Evolution, but will it include the return of Matthew Gray Gubler’s Dr. Spencer Reid? The actor was unable to return for the first season due to other conflicts, so Criminal Minds: Evolution said that Reid and Daniel Henney’s Matt Simmons were away on an assignment. Gubler and Joe Mantegna have had a couple of reunions in recent months, while Paget Brewster expressed how much she missed her friend and former costar. Hopefully, he will be able to return for the upcoming season, but that all depends on scheduling and what the storyline would be.
It's unknown when Criminal Minds: Evolution will be returning to Paramount+ as it’s still quite early. Fans should expect it on the 2024 TV schedule, and hopefully, it will come out sooner rather than later. In the meantime, watch all 16 seasons of Criminal Minds with a Paramount+ subscription. Be sure to also check out the 2023 TV schedule too to see what will be premiering for the remainder of the year.
