Season Three (Evolution)

Season Three
Network	Paramount+ CBS (US) Disney+ (Worldwide)
Production Status	Complete
No. Episodes	10
Premiere	May 8, 2025
Finale	July 10, 2025
Slogan	"These roots run deep..."
Season chronology
Previous	Season Two
Next	Season Four

Season Three (also known as Criminal Minds Season Eighteen) is the third season of Criminal Minds: Evolution. The series was renewed for a third season by Paramount+ on June 5, 2024, ahead of the premiere of Season Two on June 6. Filming began on August 20, 2024 and wrapped on December 13, 2024. The season premiered on May 8, 2025 and ran until July 10, 2025. The season also featured the 350th episode of Criminal Minds (including the original run from 2005 to 2020).

Cast

Main

• Joe Mantegna as David Rossi
• A.J. Cook as Jennifer Jareau
• Kirsten Vangsness as Penelope Garcia
• Aisha Tyler as Dr. Tara Lewis
• Ryan-James Hatanaka as Tyler Green (credited as RJ Hatanaka)
• Zach Gilford as Elias Voit
• Adam Rodriguez as Luke Alvez
• Paget Brewster as Emily Prentiss

Recurring

• Nicole Pacent as Rebecca Wilson
• Aimee Garcia as Dr. Julia Ochoa
• Silas Weir Mitchell as Cyrus Lebrun
• Winter Andrews as Ronald Graber
• Aaron Stanford as Kyle Mackey
• Geoff Stults as Evan Delray

Guests

• Matthew Gray Gubler as Dr. Spencer Reid
• Josh Stewart as William LaMontagne, Jr.
• Linda Lavin as Connie LaMontagne
• Mekhai Andersen as Henry LaMontagne
• Candy Clark as Sandy Jareau

Episodes

Image	Title	Airdate	Writer	Director	Season Episode	Series Episode
	"Swimmer's Calculus"	May 8, 2025	Breen Frazier	Bethany Rooney	1	345
	When a body washes up on shore in Ocean City, Maryland, the BAU investigates it and four other drowning murders on the East Shore. Rossi is questioned over the prison attack that left Voit comatose.
	"The Zookeeper"	May 15, 2025	Christopher Barbour	Aisha Tyler	2	346
	After Voit emerges from his coma, the BAU discovers footage from a dangerous dormant killer, suggesting a deadly network has sprung back to life. The team must face this threat while their key ally remains sidelined.
	"Time to Say Goodbye"	May 22, 2025	Erica Messer	Joe Mantegna	3	347
	Rossi and Lewis enlist the help of Ramona, Voit's sole survivor, to help unlock Voit's memory. JJ and the team say goodbye to Will.
	"I'm Fine, It's Fine. Everything is Fine."	May 29, 2025	Jayne Archer	Anthony Vietro	4	348
	While the team works an organ harvesting case, Voit's recovery process leads him to suspect he is more likely a prisoner than victim. JJ finds a cryptic video posted to the BAU-Gate website of a masked UnSub that could be connected to Voit's network.
	"The Brutal Man"	June 5, 2025	Sullivan Fitzgerald	Nelson McCormick	5	349
	JJ works with Dr. Ochoa to help Voit process the truth about his violent past, and tells him that one of his followers has a message from a mysterious unsub who appears to be organizing the remaining members of Voit's serial killer network.
	"Hell is Empty..."	June 12, 2025	Charles Dewey	Jackeline Tejada	6	350
	The team investigates a network killer who buries his victims alive, and Tara confronts Rebecca's ex who has recently re-entered her life; Ronald Graber delivers a message from his Disciple to Voit.
	"...All the Devils Are Here"	June 19, 2025	Carlton William Gillespie	A.J. Cook	7	351
	Network UnSubs torture and kill hostages as Voit works with the BAU to stop them; Rebecca's ex, Evan Delray, is appointed Voit's new liaison.
	"Tara"	June 26, 2025	Chikodili Agwuna	Sharat Raju	8	352
	When the team works to hunt down the person who shot Tara, they discover "The Disciple" deliberately had them chasing their tails; while undergoing critical surgery, Tara gets to the root of her relationship issues.
	"CollateRal"	July 3, 2025	Breen Frazier	Doug Aarniokoski	9	353
	The team inches closer to uncovering the identity of "The Disciple", someone they believe is linked to Voit's past, but Voit's unpredictable behavior puts their progress in jeopardy.
	"The Disciple"	July 10, 2025	Christopher Barbour	Glenn Kershaw	10	354
	After Voit and Ochoa are kidnapped by "The Disciple", the team races to find them. While in The Disciple's custody, Voit wrestles with keeping the monster inside him at bay.

Highlights

Season Three of Criminal Minds: Evolution was announced on June 5, 2024 via Instagram, one day before the premiere of Season Two on June 6.

Series showrunner Erica Messer teased future plans for JJ and Tara Lewis, stating "JJ and Lewis will have big stories this season". Messer also revealed the storyline for the season "picks up six months after prisoners attack the notorious Sicarius Killer, Elias Voit, leading his restless followers on the dark web to begin wreaking havoc all over the country. In order to stop this nefarious group from killing more innocents, the BAU is forced to work alongside an increasingly unpredictable Voit who has his own agenda."

On September 12, 2024, it was reported that Aimee Garcia will join the cast of Evolution in a recurring role for Season Three as Dr. Julia Ochoa, a leading neuropsychiatrist, in a multi episode arc where she is "assigned to help a high-profile patient recover from his injury-induced brain trauma," bringing her into conflict with Alvez, "who, by contrast, believes in a more aggressive approach than her gentle approach."

Speaking to Italian media in December 2024, original series star Matthew Gray Gubler stated he "shot a new episode of Criminal Minds" in an update on his career. It's unclear if Gubler is reprising his role as Dr. Spencer Reid or if he will be directing an episode in the third season or both. Gubler previously directed several episodes of the original series. Both Gubler and showrunner Erica Messer previously expressed enthusiasm for Reid to return in Evolution but stated it hadn't happened yet due to scheduling conflicts at the time of Season One's production. Reid, last seen in the original show's series finale, has been stated in Evolution as being away on a classified assignment with the option of returning to the BAU. Speaking on the possible return of Reid and fellow original series star Daniel Henney as Matthew Simmons, who also did not return for the revival, Messer previously stated "It’s a little bit of a mystery what Reid and Simmons are up to, but they’re certainly not forgotten." Messer also shared "Dr. Reid’s and I believe Matt Simmons’ desks are still there, still have stuff on it… Like, if any of you went back [to the office after the pandemic], you still have stuff on your desk that was there for two years. So we’re definitely playing that. But [Spencer and Matt] are not gone gone.”