“Criminal Minds” has been one of the most popular long-running series since it originally premiered in September 2005. However, it has become a habit of the showrunners and producers to let go some of the important characters and replace them with fresh faces if not the returning ones. An example of a whirlwind cast replacement was Thomas Gibson when CBS fired him after an alleged altercation with one of the show’s writers. Gibson was eventually replaced by Damon Gupton who played as Special Agent Stephen Walker. However, Gupton’s character was the casualty in the huge car crash during the Season 12 finale.
Another character bids goodbye
Overall, fans are not impressed with the habitual cast termination and replacement in “Criminal Minds.” As a result, people decided to quit watching the show especially when Thomas Gibson was terminated in August 2016 where fans started the massive hashtag #NoHotchNoWatch on social media. Now, a year after Damon Gupton replaced Gibson in the show, his character is another casualty of CBS’ cast rotation, which doesn’t appeal to most fans. Fortunately, showrunner Erica Messer recently said that they don’t have plans to add more characters other than Daniel Henney.
Henney is not a fresh face in “Criminal Minds” as he was part of the cast in the spinoff “Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders.” "As you know, these decisions aren't made quickly or anything like that.
Everything was a thoughtful decision," she told TV Guide. "The decision was made that Damon would not be returning and Daniel would be joining, so then it's up to us to tell the stories and have them make sense." Although Messer said that they are not adding any more people to the show, she still hinted that anything can happen.
So, this can also mean that there are still chances that they might take more people soon and fans hope that Thomas Gibson will be one of them.
What’s in store for us in Season 13?
Messer recently spoke with Entertainment Weekly and offered some teasers of what “Criminal Minds” Season 13 has in store for fans. She said that Penelope Garcia (Kirsten Vangsness) and Agent Matt Simmons (Daniel Henney) drive to where the car crash happens, where they discover that someone is badly hurt.
What’s more interesting is that they also learn that one of their comrades is missing. There is no telling who this character could be but fans are hoping that it’s nothing serious, which will lead to another contract termination of the character.
“Criminal Minds” Season 13 returns on September 27 at 10 PM ET on CBS. Stay tuned to Blasting News for more updates about the show.
