Criminal Minds Press Release for episode 6.19 'With Friends like These...'

THE BAU TRAVELS TO PORTLAND TO HEAD OFF A GANG OF SUSPECTED MURDERERS BEFORE THEY TARGET ANOTHER VICTIM, ON "CRIMINAL MINDS," WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30
"With Friends Like These..." - When a gang of suspected murderers begins targeting a new victim each night, the BAU travels to Portland to head them off before they can strike again, on CRIMINAL MINDS, Wednesday, March 30 (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.


SERIES REGULARS:

David Rossi................................ Joe Mantegna

Aaron Hotchner....................... Thomas Gibson

Emily Prentiss........................... Paget Brewster

Derek Morgan.......................... Shemar Moore

Dr. Spencer Reid........... Matthew Gray Gubler

Penelope Garcia.................. Kirsten Vangsness

Ashley Seaver........................... Rachel Nichols



GUEST CAST:

Ben.................................................... Bug Hall

Matt.......................................... Matt McTighe

Yolanda............................... Samantha Shelton

Tony......................................... Chad Lindberg

Karen Haywood.................... Vanessa Vaughn

Clerk.................................................. Liz Loza

Detective Colbern................. Wendy Schenker

Paul Jones...................................... Robert Wu

Mrs. Donnolly............................... Nancy Daly

Mrs. Foster.............................. Debbie Pollack

Minster........................................ Ivar Brogger

Priest............................................ Hugh Holub

Bus Driver............................... Greg Van Dyke

Sarah.................................... Lexi DiBenedetto

Evan......................................... Zachary Haven

Doctor........................................ Taylor Brock

Young Mrs. Foster........... Amanda Daisy Leak

Young Ben (10 years old)........... Cody Sullivan

Young Ben (5 years old)......... Nathan Sheperd

WRITTEN BY: Janine Sherman Barrios

DIRECTED BY: Anna Foerster

Criminal Minds Promo Pictures for Episode 6.20 'Hanley Waters'

Criminal Minds Press Release for episode 6.20 'Hanley Waters'

THE BAU INVESTIGATES A KILLER STRIKING TAMPA WHILE COPING WITH THEIR FEELINGS ABOUT LOSING PRENTISS, ON "CRIMINAL MINDS," WEDNESDAY, APRIL 6

Guest Stars Include Kelli Williams ("Lie to Me," "The Practice") as Suspect Shelley Chamberlain, and David Chisum ("One Life to Live") as Her Estranged Husband, Don "Hanley Waters" - As the BAU investigates targeted killings in Tampa, they also deal with their own feelings about the loss of Prentiss, on CRIMINAL MINDS, Wednesday, April 6 (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Guest stars include Kelli Williams ("Lie to Me," "The Practice") as suspect Shelley Chamberlain, and David Chisum ("One Life to Live") as her estranged husband, Don. SERIES REGULARS: David Rossi................................ Joe Mantegna Aaron Hotchner....................... Thomas Gibson Emily Prentiss........................... Paget Brewster Derek Morgan.......................... Shemar Moore Dr. Spencer Reid........... Matthew Gray Gubler Penelope Garcia.................. Kirsten Vangsness Ashley Seaver........................... Rachel Nichols GUEST CAST: Shelley Chamberlain.................... Kelli Williams Reporter................................. Angela Martinez Larry............................................... Allan Graf Chief Thiers............................... Louis Herthum Jennifer..................... Katherine Ann McGregor Gibbs............................... Preston James Hillier Sparks.................................. Brandon Morales Don Chamberlain....................... David Chisum Joy........................................ Dianna Catterton Father....................................... Doug Simpson Birthday Boy.............................. Aaron Berger Paul Lyons............................... Jason E. Kelley Surgeon................................. Chris Ivan Cevic Damien Chamberlain............... Quinn Friedman Bill................................................. Zach Lewis WRITTEN BY: Alicia Kirk & Randy Huggins DIRECTED BY: Jesse Warn

Thomas Gibson Interview with Entertainment Weekly SPOILER!

'Criminal Minds': Thomas Gibson On Team 'Reeling' from Prentiss 'Death'

Holy smokes. What an episode we saw on Wednesday! As many of you commented in Ken Tucker’s review of Paget Brester’s final episode, that’s how you do an exit! But if you’re like me, you’re asking the inevitable question: What the heck is next?

I hopped on the phone with Thomas Gibson (Hotch) to talk about the next new episode, “With Friends Like These,” which airs March 30, and learned about where the team goes from here. “We are all reeling, and yet, there is work to be done, and there’s a case we need to summon all of our professionalism for and dive into,” he tells EW. “We have a community who needs us, and they need us no less in that particular moment in our family’s history, no less than they would in any other moment. I think as the unit chief, [Hotch] is trying to keep everybody focused and keep himself on track as well. It’s something that obviously could be a cause for collapse, but there’s too much at stake to let that happen.”

As chief and backbone of BAU, Gibson says Hotch takes his role even more seriously as the loss of Emily threatens to briefly derail them. “She feels like one of the essential limbs of the team, and now that limb has been cut off and they are missing it and missing her. They very acutely feel the loss,” he explains. “I think, at that point, he doesn’t have internal dialogue about that. I think the internal dialogue needs to take place, and it will take place at an appropriate time and moment, but it should not take away from the time the team is needed and when they need him.”

“There are going to be repercussions emotionally, and it’s not going to be easily digested and moved on from.”

Source: Entertainment Weekly.

Associated Press Interview with Thomas Gibson

Salute to Paget and Emily!

The day we’ve all dreaded has come. When the curtain falls tonight we will say goodbye to the incredible character of Emily Prentiss, a solid pillar of the Criminal Minds family. While the rumors say the door is open for her return, nothing is certain in this world and we at the Criminal Minds Round Table wish to take this opportunity to honor a great actress and character as she departs, for now at least, the CM world.

There are no words to express how much Emily Prentiss will be missed. If anything tonight’s episode is even more heartbreaking because it will showcase Paget Brewster’s amazing talent, why she should never leave, and the huge void she will leave should she not come back to CM. The screen and the fans will miss her character’s strength, her grace, her snarky humor, her compassion and her big heart.

Thank you, Paget Brewster for gracing us with your talent. We bow to you great lady, with sadness in our hearts and tears in our eyes. We are certain that the future will be very bright for you and we’ll certainly tune in to your next project whatever it may be.

E!Online Interview with Matthew Gray Gubler

by Jennifer Arrow

Tonight, "Spencer Reid" goes behind the camera to direct Paget Brewster's final appearance as BAU Special Agent Emily Prentiss on the hit CBS procedural Criminal Minds. Fan-fave actor-director Matthew Gray Gubler teases to us that "Lauren" features "a very tricky ending" that hits Spencer and Garcia (Kirsten Vangsness) "the hardest." Sniff.

How do quesadillas make everything better, what was the hardest part about saying farewell to a friend and fellow castmember, and why is "Lauren" perhaps even more important than this season's finale? Find out:

Who is the "Lauren" of the title?
Lauren may or may not be the secret alter ego of our beloved Emily Prentiss character. Her secret coming to fruition.

Lauren's got herself in some trouble.
She does. She's in hot water.

Is it true that Paget asked that you direct the episode?
It's actually a funny story, I directed my first episode of the show last year, and it went exceptionally well. I was very proud of it, so they let me do another one this year. It was sort of a multirequest—she knew that she was leaving, and they asked her what they could do to make her a little happier about it, and she said, "One thing you could do is assure me that Matthew will direct my final episode." And I was very honored. So yeah, that's how it kind of came about.

Your character and Garcia often serve as the comic relief in the series. Is Spencer able to lighten the mood in this episode, or are you mostly just behind the camera in this episode?
Garcia and Reid are both in it quite a bit. Obviously, it hits maybe the two of us the hardest.

How bad is it going to be?
It's a very tricky ending. I don't want to give away too much, but it's a unique one for sure. Having one of our friends and coworkers in the sort of line of fire is never easy.

How was directing different the second time around?
It was exponentially easier, because I overprepare for everything. The first time around I was prepared to clean the lens, I was ready at any moment to take over any miniscule detail like, "Oh oh oh, I brought in the quesadillas for lunch." I was sort of comically overprepared for the first one. This one I was just exceptionally prepared, as a guy who's been through the fire once before who knows how to sort of prepare—it was a little bit more fun this time.

What's your favorite part of directing?
It's funny, I truly love every aspect of it. The three things that fit me the most that I just really enjoy: I love casting—finding the right unique people for each part; I love set design quite a bit, setting the mood, I like costuming, the music; and then finally talking with the actors—I've learned directing is nothing more than learning how to communicate with 300 different people in 300 different languages. I sort of pride myself on my ability to talk to everyone in their own specific vernacular.

Is this episode a turning point for the season?
For selfish reasons, I approached this as though it was the show's finale. To give it what it needed, I pretended like this was possibly the last episode we'd ever make of the show. That's merely my brain. But again we do something on the show that we've never been able to do with a character before. So it's a bit of a momentous episode.

Things have changed a lot this year on Criminal Minds; what are the strengths of the new structure of the show?
It is sort of a turning point for the show. It's very unique that we are in the sixth season, the end of it, and we're still doing tremendously well in the ratings, we still have loving fans. I think right now it could be, depending on what happens—there were a lot of changes made earlier in the season. I don't know, there may be changes in the seventh season—it seems to me we are on the precipice of either of becoming great or not.

Criminal Minds is one of the few shows that has both ratings and a devoted online fandom—how does that success make you feel?
It makes me the happiest person in the world. If we had two fans, or one fan, I would be incredibly happy and touched. The fact that we get to entertain that many people on a weekly basis just really means the world to me. And the international level too, we're in Japan and France, we're all just so thankful that we can be a part of something that makes people happy. I think some people get a bit, "Oh, we're never noticed for awards or anything," but I never believed in awards. For me, if I could choose between people liking the show or critics liking it, I would always, a 1000 times over, choose people because I'm only playing for the people. I'm just happy it's been well received.

Now, use the comments as a gathering place where you all can bow down and collectively worship at the altar of MGG. You know you want to. Go!

source: E!Online

THR interview with Matthew Gray Gubler

How behind-the-camera skills prepared Matthew Gray Gubler for prime time.

For six seasons, Matthew Gray Gubler has played socially awkward genius Dr. Spencer Reid on the CBS procedural drama Criminal Minds. In the fifth season, Gubler—or "MGG" or "The Gube," as he is known to his fans—took on another role at the show: director. He helmed the "Mosley Lane" episode and follows it up this season with the segment called "Lauren," airing March 16.

Gubler is no stranger to directing. He attended NYU's Tisch School of the Arts intent on being a filmmaker. Lack of actors for his friends' school projects put him frequently in front of the camera. "Tisch has a great film program and a great acting program, but they are segregated; you don't really intertwine," says Gubler. "My peers knew I liked acting, so they'd be like, 'Go get that guy Gubler. He'll be in your student film.' I was in the same building. I became their go-to guy. So I left NYU having been in probably one thousand short films. That was the most acting training I had."

While at film school, Gubler was required to take part in an internship. He landed one with his favorite filmmaker, Wes Anderson. While Anderson was directing The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou, the director cast Gubler in the part of "Intern." "And that's how I luckily and miraculously became a working actor," says Gubler.

He also directed a "behind the scenes" short documentary called Life Aquatic: Intern Journal, which Anderson included on the DVD. That short, as well as others and music videos he directed, garnered Gubler attention, so he moved to Los Angeles and got a directing agent. When the agent found out his new client had also acted in Anderson's film, he was impressed and tried to persuade Gubler to go on some auditions.

"I was like, 'No, Wes is known for using outside nonactors and the real people in his life,'" says Gubler. "I had never considered [pursuing acting], but my agent said, 'There's this interesting character you should read for. I think it would be something you might have fun with. Go in and try out. If nothing else, it will be a good experience on learning what it's like to cast actors.' Because, you know, I had never made anything with a budget, really. So I went in. Literally, my first audition after 'The Life Aquatic' was for the Criminal Minds pilot."

Gubler decided to audition for Criminal Minds, playing the character Dr. Spencer Reid as sincerely and honestly as possible. They told him he was great, but totally wrong for the part. "I think I was too gregarious," says Gubler. "Originally, they wanted the character to be more stoic, like Data from Star Trek. Maybe they were worried I would bring too much weirdness." Even so, the next day he got a callback. He went in, did the same thing and again they said, "You're so wonderful, but so wrong." After the fourth or fifth audition, they decided to cast him.

Though Gubler was thrilled to get the part, he was also terrified. "One day I woke up and I was on CBS in front of millions of people and I'm like 'Oh man, I don't know anything,' " he says. "The only thing I'd ever technically studied was filmmaking. [I did learn] a lot of technique like camera understanding and lens appreciation. Plus, I knew what I liked when I was directing actors and I knew what I liked to watch, but, as my friend and co-worker Joe Mantegna said, I was 'in the middle of the public eye and learning everything on a giant basis."

Gubler doesn't want to undersell how grateful he is for the opportunity to act. "I've had this unbelievable amount of good fortune and I'm just so thankful for it," he says. "But at the same time I feel exceptionally guilty. I have so many friends who are talented graduates of Juilliard and are exceptional actors and I'm the lucky one that somehow got such a fortunate break."

After getting the part of Dr. Reid, Gubler started going out on more auditions and getting cast in films like "(500) Days of Summer," in which he played Joseph Gordon-Levitt's best friend, Paul. Because of his filmmaker background, Gubler says he understands the casting process and has learned to love auditioning. "I know when an actor goes in to audition, if they don't get the part it's not because they're a bad actor at all; it's because it's not quite the right fit. I've been in a lot of casting rooms as a director where I see these 17 superb actors, but I need the one that looks a certain way or brings a tiny tinge of an element—equally as good as the others but just different."

source: THR

Criminal Minds EW Interview with Matthew Gray Gubler SPOILER for 6.18 'Lauren'

By Sandra Gonzalez

‘CRIMINAL MINDS’: MATTHEW GRAY GUBLER ON THE TEAM’S BIGGEST CHALLENGE YET

“Lauren” is easily one of the most important episodes of Criminal Minds ever. And that’s not even necessarily in regards to the headline-making events, like Paget Brewster’s exit and the return of A.J. Cook. But as a team, the BAU is about to face what episode director and star Matthew Gray Gubler calls an action-packed, “epic” episode, complete with grenades, machine guns, and some heart-wrenching performances from the cast as Emily is captured by her nemesis Ian Doyle.

“I think our greatest episodes are the ones where all of the main characters on it get their moment to shine and do their unique thing,” Gubler tells EW. “The writer on this one did a great job of giving us all really great moments [that were] true to the character and true to the situation at hand. Joe, in particular, has some great stuff. I love it when Joe gets to be the old-timey tough guy.”

For Gubler, the highlight was communicating the team member’s unique reactions as they dealt with Emily being in a life-or-death predicament. “These characters exhibit a different form because of the sacrifice she’s making. Not to ruin it, but to save us, she’s going on a suicide mission. With Reid, I sort of wanted to represent the younger brother — almost the child she’s losing. That was my take on it as an actor. Morgan takes it as her boyfriend in a sense; he’s offended that she had this – I don’t want to give away too much – but this relationship with a killer. Joe takes it like he’s losing a daughter, and Hotch like a sister. A lot is on the line in this one.”

Fans know that the result will be Emily’s exit from the team (though most say the door is left open for her return). But what will this mean for big baddie Doyle?

“You never know,” Gubler teases. “There’s definitely some doors left open, and if we ever wanted to find a guy and smash a guy’s face in, it would be this one. If there’s ever a need for a BAU to take something personal, Doyle might have a number on his back.”

source: EW

Criminal Minds Matthew Gray Gubler on Work

Criminal Minds Matthew Gray Gubler on Work, L.A

Mar 14th 2011 2:00PM / by Jessica Radloff

Interviewing Matthew Gray Gubler, currently starring in CBS' "Criminal Minds," might mean singing '80s theme songs together and joking like you've been friends for years (at least that's what happened to me). His love for acting, directing, sketching, Tweeting, his earnest passion for life and people -- really, he's one of the most charismatic and genuine guys around. "The Gube" discussed perpetual life as Dr. Spencer Reid and directing an episode of "Criminal Minds" for the second time.

Wednesday's episode marks your second time directing "Criminal Minds." What's different this time around?
I have more confidence. The first time I was more nervous having never done a TV show and wanting to do the best job imaginable. [This time] it's a very special episode for one of the main characters. It's a high-speed frenzied espionage action/adventure story. We got to do things we don't typically do on our show. I was so thankful to be given the opportunity.

What do you think is your best quality as a director?
Ha! This gives me a moment to kind of sell myself [laughs], so I'll try to say it as modestly as possible. I'm good at listening to actors -- that's the director's main job. You have to learn what each department needs to do their best job. It's about motivating people and getting them as excited as you are.

The last time you finished directing, you cut your hair. What did you do this time?
This time was less dramatic. I opted to get extension dreadlocks [laughs]. No, I didn't do anything.

I just listened to your "Golden Girls" theme song rendition on YouTube. That was hilarious!
[Laughs] I'm pretty proud of that. Not many people know I have the voice of an angel. No, it's terrible! I have one for "Cheers," which is probably even worse.

What's your favorite '80s theme song?
Wow! This is the best interview already! [Laughs] I think the one from the "Karate Kid" ... [singing] ... The training montage. And "Family Ties." That's always been a favorite. Oh, and "The Chipmunks" definitely! What's yours?

Oh, god, I loved "Full House."
Oh, yeah! [Singing] "Whatever happened to predictability ... "

"The milkman, the paperboy, the evening TV!" ... I could do it all day long!
[It's so] sad the '80s theme song is a thing of the past. I wish "Criminal Minds" had one ... "You got yourself a murder, you got to find this murderer ... " [laughs], but I don't think they'd go for it.

You're such a likeable, fun guy. What's your biggest pet peeve?
I'm a very positive, understanding person, but the one thing that drives me insane is entitlement. I cannot stand it.

OK, last question: Best bowling score?
Did you see my bowling video ? I do a dance move that will blow your freakin' mind. It's a really, bizarre dumb dance, but every time I do it, I get a strike. My high score is like 187. I can stand to improve though.

source: LA Times