Everything you need to know about Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds takes you behind the doors of the FBI’s Behavioural Analysis Unit (BAU), a crack team tasked with profiling criminals in order to help track down suspects.
The team has to get inside the minds of the criminal to understand how they work, what they could be like as people, and at times even predict their next move before it’s too late.
The crime procedural runs on a ‘case of the week’ basis, though at times does extend to multi-episode arcs.
Originally launching in 2005, the show ran for 15 seasons before ending in 2020.
During that time, it became an international favourite, and at its height was nominated for Best TV Crime Drama at the People’s Choice Awards for seven years in a row.
While the show initially ended in February 2020 on CBS, it was later given a new lease of life and rebooted.
The resulting series, Criminal Minds: Evolution, launched on Paramount+ in November 2022, and has now aired for two seasons.
Find out more about getting Paramount+ here.
Who stars in Criminal Minds and where have we seen them before?
Due to the length of the show, Criminal Minds has had a large cast. Although it’s centred around a core team, only a handful of stars have appeared in every episode.
Most notable key cast members for the series were:
- Kirsten Vangness (Pretty The Series, In My Sleep) as Penelope Garcia (342 episodes)
- Matthew Gray Gubler (500 Days of Summer, Life After Beth) as Dr Spencer Reid (324 episodes)
- A.J. Cook (The Virgin Suicides, Final Destination 2) as Jennifer Jareau (323 episodes)
- Joe Mantegna (The Godfather Pt. III, Joan of Arcadia) as David Rossi (294 episodes)
- Thomas Gibson (Dharma and Greg, Chicago Hope) as Aaron Hotchner (258 episodes)
- Shemar Moore (The Young and The Restless, SWAT) as Derek Morgan (255 episodes)
- Paget Brewster (Community, Another Period) as Emily Prentiss (215 episodes)
- Aisha Tyler (CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, 24) as Dr Tara Lewis (107 episodes)
- Adam Rodriguez (CSI: Miami, Magic Mike XXL) as Luke Alvez (90 episodes)
- Mandy Patinkin (Homeland, The Princess Bride) as Jason Gideon (51 episodes)
- Daniel Henney (X-Men Origins: Wolverine, The Last Stand) as Matt Simmons (49 episodes)
- Jeanne Tripplehorn (The Terminal List, Big Love) as Alex Blake (48 episodes)
How many episodes of Criminal Minds are there?
The original series of Criminal Minds ran for 15 seasons, totalling 324 episodes.
Each episode is 45 minutes to an hour long, with each season running between 22 to 26 episodes. The only exception was season 15, with the show opting for a stripped back final season.
The reboot has now run for two seasons, each running for 10 episodes.
Are there any Criminal Minds spin-off shows?
Criminal Minds has become a huge franchise from its origins, with South Korea making their own adaptations, video games, and spin-offs.
- Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior launched in 2011. Starring Janeane Garofalo and Forrest Whittaker, the show focuses on a “Red Cell” rapid response team that reports to the FBI director. It was cancelled after one season.
- Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders, starring Gary Sinise, launched in 2016 and ran for two seasons, and focused on a team of elite FBI agents who work on solving cases with the International Response Team. It ran for two seasons before ending in 2017.
- Criminal Minds: Evolution launched in 2022, but is technically considered a continuation/reboot of the main series with a new subtitle, rather than a spin-off.
What is the age rating of Criminal Minds?
Criminal Minds’s official rating in the UK, as certified by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) is 15 for the overall series.
This means the show contains material considered not suitable for children.
Reasons for this rating is due to the show containing:
- Depictions or insinuations of sex or sexual activity
- Some scenes of sexual violence
- Discussions of necrophilia and pedophilia some may find upsetting
- Graphic violence and gore including depictions of skin flaying and muscle matter
- Frequent depictions of blood
- Violent imagery
- Depictions of dead bodies
- Use of guns and gun violence
- Mild profanity
- Some discussions of drug use and drug addiction
- Intense scenes of peril some may find hard to watch
How to watch Criminal Minds in the UK
Criminal Minds is available to watch in full now on Paramount+.
Because we strive to bring you the best, Paramount+ is available for Sky customers with Sky Cinema at absolutely no extra cost.
If you already have Paramount+, you can connect it to your Sky account.
You can find out how to do so here.
Find out more about what shows are on Paramount+ here.
