Criminal Minds is giving a spin-off another try and introducing an international BAU unit in a backdoor pilot airing on April 8. The show’s previous attempt at a spin-off resulted in the short-lived Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior , starring Forest Whitaker and Matt Ryan (now seen on Constantine , which has yet to be renewed for a second season), and that was cancelled after only one season of 13 episodes. Will this potential series be better received?
As the Inquisitr previously reported, the new team of agents includes CSI: NY’s Gary Sinise and Breaking Bad’s Anna Gunn . Sinise plays International Unit Chief Jack Garrett, while Gunn is the unit’s law expert, Lily Lambert. Also on the team are Daniel Henney’s Special Ops Agent Matthew Simmons and Tyler James Williams’ (most recently seen on The Walking Dead as Noah) tech guru Russ “Monty” Montgomery. The backdoor pilot, “Beyond Borders,” also features guest stars Tom Everett Scott and Bonnie Somerville as two members of a family kidnapped while on vacation in Barbados, the case that brings the BAU and the international unit together. Jack’s unit is the FBI’s top division for handling cases involving Americans abroad, and the teams discover that this latest case matches one from the previous year in Florida.
TV Guide has more details about this Criminal Minds episode from executive producer and showrunner Erica Messer, who explains that the UnSub the two teams are after is one of those who “got away” for Jack – and that bothers him.
“We find out that the unsub eluded Jack’s team two years ago. He killed a family in Aruba and it [haunts] Jack that they weren’t able to catch him. Last year, he got away from the BAU when he killed a family in Florida and now this year, he’s striking in Barbados, and we’re gonna get these two teams together to finally catch this guy.”
While Jack’s team is the international unit and has yet to be seen on screen, the two teams do know one another, but Messer explains that this is the first time they work together.
“They all are very aware of one another. There’s no, ‘Who’s that?’ ‘Can we really work together?’ or ‘Why are we doing this with you?’ They’re all the best at their jobs. We go all over the country. These guys go all over the world. There’s a familiarity between all of them, but they never get a chance to work together until now.”
For those wondering if one of the women who have entered Reid’s life recently, whether it be forensic scientist Dylan Einstein from “Hero Worship” or Agent Dorian Loker from “Rock Creek Park,” might show up again as a new love interest for him, TVLine has revealed that Erica Messer has explained that the rest of the season has already been planned, but it is possible that you could see something in Criminal Minds Season 11 . Watch the clip below to see Reid and Loker on their stakeout.
Criminal Minds Season 10 airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. on CBS.
[Image via CBS]