The thirteenth season of ''

Criminal Minds ''Criminal Minds'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series created and produced by Jeff Davis (writer), Jeff Davis. The series premiered on CBS on September 22, 2005, and originally concluded on February 19, 2020; it was r ...

'' was ordered on April 7, 2017, by CBS with an order of 22 episodes. The season premiered on September 27, 2017 in a new time slot at 10:00PM on Wednesday when it had previously been at 9:00PM on Wednesday since its inception. The season concluded on April 18, 2018.

Cast

The entire main cast from the previous season returned for the season, except

Damon Gupton Damon Jamal Gupton (born January 4, 1973) is an American actor and orchestral conductor, best known for his series regular roles as Charles Foster on ''Deadline'', Evrard Velerio on ''Prime Suspect'', Adam Page on '' The Divide'', Detective Cal ...

(Stephen Walker), who was written out of the show. His character was killed off in the season premiere off-screen. Following the cancellation of '' Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders'', it was announced that

Daniel Henney Daniel Phillip Henney (born November 28, 1979) is an American actor and model. He first came into international prominence with his television debut as Dr. Henry Kim on the Korean drama ''My Lovely Sam Soon'' (2005). He has gone on to star in f ...

(

Matt Simmons Matthew Roy Simmons (April 7, 1943 – August 8, 2010) was founder and chairman emeritus of Simmons & Company International, and was a prominent figure in the field of peak oil. Simmons was motivated by the 1973 energy crisis to create an invest ...

) would join the cast this season as a series regular.

Main cast

Joe Mantegna Joseph Anthony Mantegna (, ; born November 13, 1947) is an American actor. Mantegna began his career on stage in 1969 in the Chicago production of the musical ''Hair''. He earned a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play and a Joseph Jeffe ...

as Supervisory Special Agent David Rossi (BAU Senior Agent) *

Matthew Gray Gubler Matthew Gray Gubler (, ; born March 9, 1980) is an American actor, filmmaker, fashion model, painter, illustrator, director, and author. He is best known for his role as criminal profiler Dr. Spencer Reid in the CBS television show ''Criminal Min ...

as Supervisory Special Agent Dr. Spencer Reid (BAU Agent) *

A. J. Cook Andrea Joy Cook (born July 22, 1978) is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her role as Supervisory Special Agent Jennifer "JJ" Jareau on the CBS crime drama ''Criminal Minds'' (2005–2020, 2022). Cook has also appeared in ''The Virgin ...

as Supervisory Special Agent Jennifer "JJ" Jareau (BAU Agent) *

Kirsten Vangsness Kirsten Simone Vangsness (born July 7, 1972) is an American actress and writer. She is best known for her portrayal of FBI Technical Analyst Penelope Garcia on the CBS drama series ''Criminal Minds''. She portrayed the same character on the sp ...

as Special Agent Penelope Garcia (BAU Technical Analyst & Co-Communications Liaison) *

Aisha Tyler Aisha Nilaja Tyler (born September 18, 1970) is an American actress, comedian, director, and talk show host. She is known for playing Andrea Marino in the first season of ''Ghost Whisperer'', Tara Lewis (Criminal Minds), Dr. Tara Lewis in ''Crimi ...

as Supervisory Special Agent Dr. Tara Lewis (BAU Agent) *

as Supervisory Special Agent Matt Simmons (BAU Agent) *

Adam Rodriguez Adam Michael Rodriguez (born April 2, 1975)"Adam Rodriguez" (2006). ''Contemporary Theatre, Film and Television''. Vol. 71. Detroit: Gale. Accessed via ''Biography in Context'' database, August 7, 2016. is an American actor, screenwriter and ...

as Supervisory Special Agent Luke Alvez (BAU Agent) *

Paget Brewster Paget Valerie Brewster (, ; born March 10, 1969) is an American actress and singer. She was first recognized for her recurring role as Kathy on the fourth season of the NBC sitcom ''Friends''. Her breakthrough role came as FBI Supervisory Specia ...

as Supervisory Special Agent Emily Prentiss (BAU Unit Chief & Co-Communications Liaison)

Special guest star

Shemar Moore Shemar Franklin Moore (born April 20, 1970) is an American actor. His notable roles include Malcolm Winters on ''The Young and the Restless'' (1994–2005), Derek Morgan on ''Criminal Minds'' (2005–2016), and the lead role of Sergeant II Dani ...

as Derek Morgan, Former FBI BAU Agent

Recurring cast

Josh Stewart Joshua Regnall Stewart (born February 6, 1977) is an American actor who is best known for his role as Holt McLaren in the FX TV series ''Dirt'' and as Detective William LaMontagne, Jr., on the CBS series ''Criminal Minds''. He was also cast as ...

as William LaMontagne Jr. *

Kelly Frye Kelly Frye is an American actress. She is best known for her roles in '' Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders'', ''Criminal Minds'', ''Rake'' and ''The Flash''. Early life Frye was born in Houston, Texas and attended Clear Lake High School. Frye is ...

as Kristy Simmons * Declan Whaley as David Simmons *

Kim Rhodes Kimberly Rhodes (born June 7, 1969) is an American actress who is known for portraying Cindy Harrison on the soap operas '' Another World'' (1996–1999) and ''As the World Turns'' (2000–2001), Carey Martin on the Disney Channel sitcoms ''The ...

as FBI Assistant Director Linda Barnes

Guest cast

Bodhi Elfman Bodhi Pine Elfman (born Bodhi Pine Saboff) is an American actor and the child of filmmaker Richard Elfman and Rhonda Joy Saboff. He is best known for playing the roles of Avram Hader in the Fox television series ''Touch'' and for his recurring r ...

as Peter Lewis / Mr. Scratch *

Tracie Thoms Tracie Nicole Thoms is an Emmy-nominated American television, film, and stage actress and singer. She is known for her roles in ''Rent'', ''Cold Case'', '' The Devil Wears Prada'', ''Death Proof'', and the short-lived Fox television series ''Won ...

as Monica Walker *

Jamie Kennedy James Harvey Kennedy (born May 25, 1970) is an American actor and comedian. He has played Randy Meeks in the ''Scream'' franchise (1996–2000) and a multitude of characters in ''The Jamie Kennedy Experiment'' (2002–2004) on The WB. His othe ...

as Floyd Feylinn Ferell *

Corey Reynolds Corey Reynolds (born July 3, 1974) is an American actor known for originating the role of Seaweed in the Broadway adaptation of ''Hairspray'', and for the TNT crime show ''The Closer''. Early life and career Reynolds was born in Richmond, Virgin ...

as Phil Brooks *

Zelda Williams Zelda Rae Williams (born July 31, 1989) is an American actress, director, producer, and writer. She is the daughter of actor and comedian Robin Williams and film producer and philanthropist Marsha Garces Williams. As a voice actress, she is bes ...

as Melissa Miller *

Lou Diamond Phillips Louis Diamond Phillips ( born Upchurch; February 17, 1962) is a Filipino-American actor and film director. His breakthrough came when he starred as Ritchie Valens in the biographical drama film '' La Bamba'' (1987). For ''Stand and Deliver'' (198 ...

as Sheriff Clifford *

Daniella Alonso Daniella Alonso is an American actress and former fashion model. She has appeared in a number of horror films, including ''The Hills Have Eyes 2'' and '' Wrong Turn 2: Dead End''. Alonso was a regular cast member in the NBC post-apocalyptic seri ...

as Lisa Douglas *

Gail O'Grady Gail Ann O'Grady (born January 23, 1963), an American actress and producer, is best known for her roles on television. Her roles include Donna Abandando in the ABC police drama ''NYPD Blue'', and Helen Pryor in the NBC drama series ''American Drea ...

as Krystall Richards * Danielle C. Ryan as Portia Richards * Sebastian Sozzi as Carlos Garcia *

James Urbaniak James Christian Urbaniak (born September 17, 1963) is an American character actor. He is best known for his roles as Simon Grim in three Hal Hartley films: ''Henry Fool'' (1997), ''Fay Grim'' (2006) and ''Ned Rifle'' (2014), Robert Crumb in ''Ame ...

as FBI Special Agent Owen Quinn *

Karen David Karen Shenaz David (born 15 April 1979) is a Canadian actress, singer, and songwriter, best known for portraying Princess Isabella Maria Lucia Elizabetta of Valencia in ABC's fairytale-themed musical-comedy television series ''Galavant'', as we ...

as FBI Special Agent Mary Meadows * Michael Hogan as Benjamin David Merva * Ben bower as Chief Steve Gaines

Production

Development

''Criminal Minds'' was renewed for a thirteenth season with an episode order of 22 episodes on April 7, 2017. The entire main cast from the previous season returned for the season, except

(Stephen Walker), who was fired from the show.

directed the seventeenth episode of the season and it was said to be "the spookiest episode of Season 13" and involved clowns. On August 10, 2017, it was revealed that

will make her television directing debut and direct the sixth episode of the season. On August 12, 2017 it was revealed that

Erica Messer Erica Messer is an American television writer, producer, and story editor. She has written episodes of television series such as ''Alias'', ''The O.C.'', ''Charmed'', and ''Criminal Minds''. She has also co-produced two television shows: ''Cha ...

and

will be co-writing the eleventh episode of the season, which will be the fourth episode they have co-written together. On October 31, 2017, it was announced that

will make his Criminal Minds directing debut and direct the sixteenth episode of the season.

Casting

On June 11, 2017, it was announced that Damon Gupton had been let go from the show after one season. CBS said his departure was "part of a creative change on the show". On June 20, 2017, CBS announced that

, who was a series regular on '' Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders'' as

, would join the main show as a series regular for the thirteenth season. On October 12, 2017, it was announced that

would reprise his role as Derek Morgan in the fifth episode of the season ("Lucky Strikes"). His character returned to help Penelope Garcia get through a tough time.

Episodes

Ratings

Home media

References

External links

* {{Criminal Minds Criminal Minds 2017 American television seasons 2018 American television seasons Television series about cults