Criminal Minds is set to return on Paramount+ after its initial cancellation in 2020, but the Behavioral Analysis Unit has proven that it no longer needs Dr. Spencer Reid (Matthew Gray-Gubler). While the core of the original cast is set to return, there is still no word on if Gray-Gubler will be involved. In the event that he doesn’t sign up for the upcoming Criminal Minds revival, however, the BAU will still be able to effectively do its job as it has shown before.
Ever since its inception, the BAU has always tailored its team composition so that everyone has their own area of expertise. For Reid, aside from the fact that he is one of the most seasoned members of the squad that’s left, his intelligence, not to mention eidetic memory, has been instrumental in hunting down unsubs and locking them up in jail. It’s always a pleasure seeing first-responders from various towns react to him when he goes on a quick rundown of a case. That being said, with Gray-Gubler’s involvement in Criminal Minds season 16 still unknown, there are concerns that his potential absence will leave the BAU less effective.
Luckily, that won’t be the case. Even if Reid doesn’t return in the Criminal Minds revival, Emily Prentiss (Paget Brewster) and her team will still be able to catch serial killers. Granted that Reid’s involvement would make things easier for the BAU given his vast knowledge and experience, the FBI unit has long proved that it can do its job well without him. In Criminal Minds seasons 13 and 14, Reid missed working on several cases because he was mandated to go on regular leaves following his traumatic experience of being framed and locked up for murder. Knowing that Reid would need something to keep him busy, Prentiss arranged for him to teach seminars for new agents. This caused the BAU to operate without him for a time, and the unit did just as well.
Given this, in the event that Reid is a no-show in Criminal Minds season 16, it’s safe to say that watching the BAU figure out serial killers will still be enjoyable. As helpful as he is in cracking these cases, his other teammates are as capable as he is in working to profile these unsubs. Aside from being the team’s boy genius, Reid’s dynamic with the rest of the group is perhaps the biggest loss from his possible non-involvement. His personal arc had also been shaping up to be interesting again towards the end of Criminal Minds‘ final season when he started dating Maxine (Rachael Leigh Cook). After a series of heartbreaks, the budding relationship appeared to have a high potential of succeeding, which would be nice to see play out on the screen.
As a fan-favorite character, Reid’s possible absence in the Criminal Minds revival will definitely be felt. He’s one of the only two characters who have remained in the BAU in all 15 years of the CBS procedural, the other being JJ Jareau (AJ Cook). In the event, however, that Gray-Gubler decides not to reprise his best-known role, it’s safe to say that the BAU will be able to carry on with their job even without Reid.
