Scandals That Completely Shook The Criminal Minds Franchise

When you watch a long-running series, you may find yourself strongly attached to some of the characters. Sometimes, though, the actors in question end up disappointing you when they make headlines for their controversial actions, whether they're violent outbursts, sexist views, or extramarital affairs. These incidents usually backfire on the show itself, and more often than not, the performer (and their beloved character) or prominent crew member gets the boot. We remember all too well Charlie Sheen getting fired from the sitcom "Two and a Half Men" for publicly dissing the creator, Chuck Lorre, and for his substance abuse; Lori Loughlin resorting to bribery to secure her daughter's college admission and subsequently getting dropped from "Fuller House" and "When Calls the Heart"; or Phil Robertson's suspension from "Duck Dynasty" because of his racist and homophobic comments.

Similarly, the popular "Criminal Minds" franchise went through its share of scandals, outrages, and gossip. The show centered on a team of criminal profilers at the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) and aired for 15 seasons on CBS from September 22, 2005, to February 19, 2020. It was revived in 2022 on Paramount+ as "Criminal Minds: Evolution." Meanwhile, the show spawned two less-successful spin-offs: "Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior" (2011) and "Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders" (2016-2017).

These shows were infamous for their extreme violence and graphic content and for tackling dark themes like self-harm, pedophilia, sadism, and terrorism. They also had outrageous behind-the-scenes moments, including incidents of bribery, ageism, violence, catfishing, and embezzlement. Let's delve into the shocking details.

On April 8, 2016, The Hollywood Reporter published a piece denouncing acting workshops held by veteran casting directors that practiced pay-for-play auditions. The article stated that "more than half of new actors give the system a shot. A typical aspirant might spend $1,500 a year on two to three workshop classes a month in the hope of landing an entry 'co-star' role." Shortly after that, Scott David, the casting director of "Criminal Minds," who gave similar workshops through his company, The Actors Links, was let go from the show. In a letter addressed to his colleagues, he denied THR's claims and assured them that his company only gave "educational platforms where actors can come to better prepare themselves for future opportunities."

Because such schemes are punishable by law in California under the Talent Scam Prevention Act, the Los Angeles City Attorney's office later filed criminal misdemeanor charges against the owners of five talent training services, including David. According to a Deadline article from October 4, 2017, the casting director eventually pleaded guilty and was therefore sentenced to 36 months of probation and 125 hours of community service.

Many series and shows, including "One Tree Hill" and "The Kelly Clarkson Show," were suspected of fostering toxic work environments that bothered actors, guests, and crew members alike. For 14 years on the set of "Criminal Minds," it was Gregory St. Johns, camera operator turned director of photography, who was a focal point of such outrages. Not only that, but he was also involved in several sexual misconduct and harassment cases. According to Variety, a stand-in described him as a "tyrant," while another crew member labeled him an "ass grabber," adding, "If you dare to question his authority on any particular subject, he'll verbally abuse you right there in front of people."

As a result, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing filed a lawsuit against St. Johns and some members of the executive production team, stating that "he subjected production crew members to frequent sexual harassment, including touching and caressing numerous employees" and that "the executive production team knew of and condoned the unlawful conduct, firing over a dozen men who resisted St. John's harassment." Consequently, ABC Signature, the series' production company, paid a settlement of $3 million and agreed to conduct regular HR meetings and implement better policies for all its shows.

One of the most popular characters on the original "Criminal Minds" and its reboot, "Criminal Minds: Evolution," is Jennifer "J.J." Jareau, an empathetic communications and media liaison turned shrewd and tough profiler. She's portrayed by Canadian actress A.J. Cook, who also appeared in "Final Destination 2" and "The Virgin Suicides." During the show's sixth season, Cook was let go, and a few reasons were vaguely cited, such as creative differences and budget issues. Paget Brewster, who played two characters on "Community" and the calm, witty, and cultured BAU Section Chief Emily Prentiss on "Criminal Minds," was also dropped at the time.

Their fans, of course, wouldn't have it and petitioned — successfully — for their return. "It felt like a breakup with a guy," Cook told TV Guide in 2011. "It happened out of nowhere. And it was an 'It's not you, it's me' sort of thing. ... It's opened my eyes to the industry, and that had to happen, really."

For her part, Brewster assured AV Club in 2015, "[T]hat wasn't budget cuts. ... CBS had just called [executive producer] Ed Bernero and said, 'I want new women.' ... I was heartbroken. I was so happy there. I loved everyone there, and it was easily one of the most hurtful things that's ever happened." Both Cook and Brewster were eventually brought back, and they remain in their fan-favorite roles to this day.

Thomas Gibson, who co-starred on the sitcom "Dharma & Greg," played BAU Supervisory Special Agent turned Unit Chief Aaron "Hotch" Hotchner on "Criminal Minds." His character was calm, determined, and sensible. Fans raved about his elegant demeanor, courage, and leadership skills — not to mention Gibson's well-defined features.

On August 12, 2016, Entertainment Tonight reported that the actor was immediately dismissed for kicking a writer-producer. Gibson quickly issued the statement, "I love 'Criminal Minds' and have put my heart and soul into it for the last 12 years. I had hoped to see it through to the end, but it won't be possible now." In a different version of the events, Gibson explained to People (via Vanity Fair) that the incident was exaggerated, recalling, "As he brushed past me, my foot came up and tapped him on the leg. If I hadn't moved, he would have run into me. We had some choice words, for which I apologized the next day, and that was it." According to Variety, though, this wasn't Gibson's first violent outburst, and he had apparently been verbally abusive to several people on set and shoved an assistant director back in 2010. As a result, he was sent by the studio to anger-management classes.

Hotch's final appearance was in Season 12's second episode, in which he joined the Witness Protection Program to save his son from a stalking killer. He would later "quit the force" to become a full-time dad.

Centering on the rescue of endangered Americans in other countries, "Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders" aired on CBS from March 16, 2016, to May 17, 2017, and starred Alana de la Garza, Daniel Henney, Gary Sinise, Tyler James Williams, and Joe Mantegna. One of the reasons this spin-off was canceled after only two seasons was its reputation for xenophobia and its stereotypical characterizations of foreign characters.

One episode set in Singapore, titled "Cinderella and the Dragon," outraged the Singapore Tourism Board for its attempt to tamper with the island-nation's peaceful image. For instance, calling Singapore's Geylang district the "dark side of paradise" and an "overcrowded slum with a thriving underworld" was a major faux-pas. For his part, a local vlogger posted two videos in which he renamed the show "Beyond Stupid" and criticized it for implying that only those staying within U.S. borders were safe. He also highlighted many language mistakes and factual errors in the script.

Overall, Redditors didn't look favorably on the show either, with comments that included "Cartoonishly incompetent local police in nearly every episode"; "It implies America is the only 'civilized' and 'developed' nation, which is both false and offensive"; and "As a Southeast Asian myself, their profiling of the unsubs and the way they talked about the case are borderline racist."

Jennifer Love Hewitt, who played a medium on "Ghost Whisperer," joined the 10th season of "Criminal Minds" in the fall of 2014 as Kate Callahan, an undercover agent. It was Erica Messer, the showrunner and executive producer, who announced her as a series regular to the press at the time, saying, "We're thrilled to introduce a new special agent by adding the very talented Jennifer Love Hewitt to our amazing cast. Many of us on the show have enjoyed working with her over the years and look forward to again."

Unfortunately, the addition of Kate didn't go as planned. Fans couldn't stand her and filed a petition on Change.org titled "Write Jennifer Love Hewitt's character off 'Criminal Minds,'" citing reasons like "The acting and writing for this character is just wild corny," "Developing a new character just takes away screen time and distracts from the cases," and "We can only stand so many more episodes of this Lifetime Movie-style acting."

Ultimately, it was Hewitt's pregnancy that influenced her decision to leave the show after one season. As Messer told Entertainment Weekly at the time, "I really want to honor her wishes of being able to go home and concentrate on being a mama to two babies. I've been there; it's a lot of work." Still, the creators left the door open for her return, with Hotch saying to Kate, "You always have a place here."

The "Criminal Minds" franchise has welcomed many guest actors over the years, including Keith Tisdell, who portrayed Rodney Harris, a drug dealer and serial killer. At the time, Tisdell befriended Shemar Moore, who played Special Agent Derek Morgan from 2005 to 2017. Together, they founded a charity for multiple sclerosis called Baby Girl LLC, named after Morgan's iconic catchphrase.

In January 2016, Tisdell was arrested for embezzling more than $60,000 from the charity and was later charged with grand theft. In order to get his records expunged and avoid going to prison, the actor agreed to stay out of trouble for at least three years and repay Moore $61,084.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Moore couldn't believe his "friend" would do this, especially after he helped him with personal expenses, too, like getting $10,000 rims for his car and funding long-distance trips. When he first suspected Tisdell, he tried to make him confess, but "he wasn't man enough," as he put it. "I'm not here for money," Moore stated. "I'm here because he betrayed a friendship. This is not OK. You don't do this to people." Eager to put this dreadful incident behind him, he took to Instagram on August 12, 2016, to advise his fans to "Appreciate who and what is good in your life. We all have to weather storms from time to time. Learn lessons. But find your smile and keep dreaming 'n' pushing."

Avast defines catfishers as people who "build a relationship with their victim to gather sensitive personal information, usually via social media or online dating apps," and that's exactly what happened with Thomas Gibson, who was already battling rumors of verbal and physical abuse on set. Three years before he was fired from "Criminal Minds," news of the actor falling victim to a woman who baited him with lewd photos and videos circulated.

On August 18, 2013, TMZ dropped a bombshell story that included a video of Gibson in a hot tub taken around Christmastime in 2012. It was addressed to the mystery woman, who allegedly was a fan of his work and had feelings for him, too. It turned out that for two years, he had carried on an online romance with her and exchanged many sexy photos and videos — except hers were fake and meticulously selected from different porn sites. "Criminal Minds" fans are certain of one thing: Chief Aaron Hotchner would never.

Eventually, Gibson realized he was being scammed and had his lawyers instruct the catfisher (an unnamed woman from North Dakota) to cut all ties with him. He also claimed that the hot tub video was edited and that he was already separated from his wife Christine Parker at the time. The couple filed for divorce in 2014 "because of discord or conflict of personalities."

Crew and cast members who work for many years on a show that's infamous for its extreme violent and sexual content are bound to be affected by all that darkness. That ugly side of human nature is a hard pill to swallow for some people. For this reason, Primetime Emmy Awards and Golden Globes nominee Mandy Patinkin, who played Senior Supervisory Agent Jason Gideon on "Criminal Minds" from 2005 to 2007, decided he needed a break from disturbing crime procedurals. So, he abruptly left before Season 3 started, to the dismay and distress of the show's creators and fans.

"The biggest public mistake I ever made was that I chose to do 'Criminal Minds' in the first place," he later confessed to New York magazine in 2012. "I thought it was something very different. I never thought they were going to kill and rape all these women every night, every day, week after week, year after year. It was very destructive to my soul and my personality. After that, I didn't think I would get to work in television again." Fortunately for his fan base, he eventually did resume TV work: He portrayed Saul Berenson in "Homeland" and Hal Wackner in "The Good Fight."

As a police procedural and thriller television franchise, "Criminal Minds" is bound to feature many unhinged criminals and shocking episodes. As such, these captivating shows have been heavily criticized for their recurring dark themes, extremely graphic scenes, profane language, and rather realistic gore. So many sensitive, taboo, and brutal issues have been covered so far, such as substance abuse, mental health, kidnapping, rape, pedophilia, necrophilia, cannibalism, body mutilation, self-harm, suicide, crimes against kids and teens, torture through acid and nail pulling, terrorism, and capital punishment. Sadism and violence against young, beautiful women, in particular, is a regular occurrence, which was precisely what drove Mandy Patinkin away.

According to The Artifice, "In many episodes, women and children are seen being abducted against their will, kept hostage in appalling conditions, and the barbaric actions of killers who torture and murder their victims are often depicted." In "Remembrance of Things Past," for example, the kidnapped women are subjected to torture and fatally electrocuted. In "Lucky," the victims are forced by their captor, a cannibal, to eat human fingers, while in "To Hell ... And Back," they're experimented on and then fed to pigs. As for "Mosley Lane," it features a couple who enjoy burning "naughty" and older kids alive, while in "The Lesson," the kidnapper proceeds to dislocate people's joints before turning them into human marionettes.

Frankly, despite providing insight into the criminals' psyche, such disturbing scenes would make most anyone's stomach queasy and are definitely not meant for younger audiences.