Criminal Minds cast not thrilled with franchise

From TVGuide

‘Minds’ cast not thrilled with franchise

By Diana Cowan

2011-01-20

Shemar Moore wants ‘Criminal’ spinoff to fail

In less than a month’s time, Criminal Minds will shift from being a singular crime drama to a franchise brand. Feb. 16 marks the debut of its spinoff, Suspect Behavior, and to say the original cast is less than thrilled is an understatement. In fact, they offered up some rather frank opinions on the subject to TV Guide Canada.

“I’m flattered that we’ve done such a good job that they would like to do another show, but there’s another part of me that wants it to fail,” states Shemar Moore on the show’s L.A. set. “CBS, as far as I know, has never had a failed spinoff. I’m not gonna lie, I hope this is their first. Nothing against those actors, but because if it fails [CBS will] realize that this shit ain’t easy.”

“We worked with a guest cast and they used our resources and our crew, and we worked really hard to create this thing for them (and) we kinda got shafted,” continues Paget Brewster. “And it was what we were afraid of. We were afraid that we would be cannibalised for the creation of this next show and unfortunately, that’s a little bit of what happened.”

On the flip side, Thomas Gibson notes the whole Criminal brand would look bad if any part of it didn’t succeed and Matthew Gray Gubler says he’s “very curious” to see the spinoff; however, he does point out he prefers fresh ideas to Hollywood remakes.

Regardless, Suspect Behavior was the source behind the changes to the original, which was confirmed by CBS president Nina Tassler at the recent TCAs. Though the cast appears to have welcomed new addition Rachel Nichols with open arms, Cook’s dismissal threw them for a loop and sadly, it looks like Brewster may soon be following in her footsteps. This season, the actress says her character will face a growing problem that stems from her past with a European organization, which “may or may not lead to my demise.”

Those who keep abreast of Criminal news know that Brewster’s Season 6 deal includes a pilot out, meaning she’s free to film another television show should she so choose to. While she says nothing has struck her fancy to date, it’s very possible the BAU will have another spot to fill come next fall — yet another upset to both cast members and fans alike.

“I don’t even want to cross that bridge. I really don’t,” says Gibson.

Criminal Minds airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET on CTV/CBS. Suspect Behavior debuts post-Criminal

Criminal Minds Promo Video for Episode 6.13 "The Thirtheen Step"

Matthew Gray Gubler at The Golden Globes

2011 InStyle/Warner Brothers Golden Globes Party - Arrivals

Actor Matthew Gray Gubler arrives at the 2011 InStyle And Warner Bros. 68th Annual Golden Globe Awards post-party held at The Beverly Hilton hotel on January 16, 2011 in Beverly Hills, California.

( January 15, 2011 - Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images North America)

Criminal Minds Sneak Peek at Episode 6.12 "Corazon"

Criminal Minds Press release for episode "Today I do"

THE BAU IS CALLED TO UPSTATE NEW YORK TO INVESTIGATE MYSTERIOUS DISAPPERANCES, ON "CRIMINAL MINDS," WEDNESDAY, FEB. 16

Guest Stars Include Rachel Miner as a Missing Person, Molly; Corbin Bernsen as Molly's Father, Jerry; and Joshua Leonard as Molly's Boyfriend, Lyle

"Today I Do" - The BAU is called to upstate New York to investigate mysterious disappearances. Also, Prentiss gets some disturbing news about one of her former Interpol colleagues, on CRIMINAL MINDS, Wednesday, Feb. 16 (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Guest stars include Rachel Miner as a missing person, Molly; Corbin Bernsen as Molly's father, Jerry; and Joshua Leonard as Molly's boyfriend, Lyle.


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:

Molly.......................................... Rachel Miner
Jane........................................... Rebecca Field
Lyle......................................... Joshua Leonard
Tsia Mosely................................. Siena Goines
Chief Barrows............................... Don Harvey
Donnie.......................................... Peter Cilella
Bill.............................................. Aaron Wilton
Jerry........................................ Corbin Bernsen
Carla Wendel............................ Karen Landry
Ian Doyle.......................... Timothy V. Murphy
Peter............................................ Derek Smith
Mantis........................................ John Hemphill
Dr. Weingold.............................. Taylor Brock


WRITTEN BY: Alicia Kirk
DIRECTED BY: Ali Selim

Nina Tassler talks about Criminal Minds cast change at the TCA

From TheFutonCritic

-- And lastly, in regards to cutting A.J. Cook and Paget Brewster back on "Criminal Minds," Tassler said, "I wouldn't say it was just budget reasons. And I would say that over the past couple of years, you know, many shows take a look at adjusting their casts, their cast members, you know, sometimes for financial reasons. Other times, and in this case what it's about, which was we were developing a spin-off. And when we had 'Suspect Behavior' we looked at sort of the evolution of the franchise, we looked at what this vision of the FBI, how they actually did their jobs, what were the nature of the characters being introduced in the sequel and that did give us an opportunity to reflect back on the desired structure of the team on 'Criminal Minds.'

So there were some discussions about, you know, what role did A.J. play, what role does Paget play, is there an opportunity here with the spin-off to look back at the original show and say how can we build out that brand, how can we, we can evolve so that the roles of the agents in the original show? We hope Paget stays with the show, she has the option to stay there, we would like for her to continue on the show but I can tell you that across the board there are discussions about cast members changing [on every show]. It happens more often than necessarily is shared by the press but it is the nature of the evolution of any show.

From Deadline

On the decision to drop A.J. Cook from Criminal Minds. Tassler said it came out of the discussion related to the development of the show's upcoming spinoff. "We though, 'is there an opportunity with the sipnoff to evolve some of the roles (on the mothership series)?'." On Paget Brewster, whose episode commitment was reduced this season and whose future on the show is uncertain: "We'd hope that she would stay, she has the option to do so."

Criminal Minds Promo Video for Episode 6.12 "Corazon"

International version by Kévin