ThoughCriminal Minds: Evolutionseason 4 is already filming, there is a forgotten character from the original Criminal Minds series on CBS who would make a great addition to the season.
While not much has been revealed about what is to come for the Behavioral Analysis Unit in season 4, what we do know is that Elias Voit (Zach Gilford) will be back after a bit of a time jump to open up the season.
With Voit back on the show and his crimes now known to the public,Criminal Minds: Evolutioncould benefit from the inclusion of a unique character.
Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 4 Will See A More Famous Voit
Voit’s Infamy Has Been Confirmed By The Showrunner
The first three seasons ofCriminal Minds: Evolutionhave been largely devoted to Elias Voit as the Sicarius serial killer and his network of other killers. He will return for season 4, but he will no longer be kept secret by the BAU.
Instead, showrunnerErica Messer explained toColliderthatVoit will have a lot more fame in season 4. She referenced him as becoming “a bit of a celebrity” when speaking withCollider, but that he “doesn’t want to be known for the darkness that is inside him.”
Her full comment speaks to a new challenge for the BAU when it comes to Voit:
In Season 16, he had been getting away with murder forever. In Season 17, he was our dirty little secret because of the Gold Star conspiracy. They knew about this Sicarius guy, but they didn’t really know Elias Voit was Lee Duval. That was still something we were protecting. We were protecting his secret.
And then, by Season 18, he’s a patient who’s under federal custody, but it’s not really clear who he is or what he is. As Dr. Ochoa and everybody else figured out, and he gets his memories back, he’s a killer, and he confesses to his crimes.
Now, he’s a bit of a media spectacle. Between Seasons 18 and 19, he confessed to the kills, he got sentenced to life in prison, and now all of that darkness and all of those secrets are out in the light.
What that does is that it makes him into a bit of a celebrity, and this is a character who wants nothing to do with that because he’s now a changed man and doesn’t want to be known for the darkness that is inside him. But that brings up all new challenges for Season 19.
Voit’s fame is not just a challenge for Voit, but also for the BAU because, asAisha Tyler confirmed toTV Insider, the BAU is still consulting him on cases in season 4.Tyler described the relationship between the BAU and Voit as symbiotic, referencing the way the BAU was actually built - by interviewing serial killers to understand them.
That means characters, especially like Tyler’s Dr. Tara Lewis, who is a forensic psychiatrist, will be interviewing Voit about his past and his perspective. It also, however, means that other characters outside of the main cast could try to get to Voit.
There is currently an influx of true crime podcasts and documentaries on streaming platforms, often about cold cases, lesser-known cases, or even cases that have only recently gone to trial with new information.Criminal Minds: Evolutionseason 4could certainly incorporate producers of a true crime documentary or podcast interested in Voit in the new season.
…season 4 needs to be the season where the show transitions away from the bestCriminal Mindsvillain.
The pop culture obsession with true crime stories means that someone like Voit would earn a lot of public interest. While that would create a compelling story for Voit, season 4 needs to be the season where the show transitions away fromthe bestCriminal Mindsvillain.
BAU Trainee Ashley Seaver Understands Having A Serial Killer In The Family
Seaver Could Provide Insight Into Voit
Someone who would understand the public interest in a serial killer isCriminal Mindscharacter Ashley Seaver.Seaver, played by Rachel Nichols, was introduced inCriminal Mindsseason 6. Seaver was already training to be an FBI agent when Agent Rossi (Joe Mantegna) brought her to the team to finish her training in season 6.
Rossi believed Seaver could offer a unique perspective to the team as they tracked serial killers because her own father was one. Seaver was actually born Ashley Beauchamp, the daughter of Charles Beauchamp, a man who killed 25 women when Ashley was a child.
Ashley changed her last name to hide her connection to her father, but decided to use what she learned to become a federal agent. Agents Rossi and Hotchner (Thomas Gibson) were the men who caught and arrested her father for his crimes, and Rossi kept in contact with her over the years.
Ashley is loosely inspired by Melissa G. Moore, the daughter of Keith Hunter Jesperson, the Happy Face Killer.
Because of Seaver’s past, she has an insider’s perspective on how a serial killer lives his life, commits his crimes, and what it’s like for his family. She would actually be a great asset for the team while trying to understand Voit and learn more from him about the way serial killers work.
Seaver’s integration into Voit’s story could also help the character even more. Voit regrets what he did and, though he still has violent urges and daydreams, abhors the darkness inside him after his brain injury.
Working with Seaver, potentially building a rapport with her, could go a long way toward humanizing Voit for the audience as well as ending his time with the BAU team.
How Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 4 Can Bring Back Seaver
Seaver Likely Still Works For The FBI
Getting Ashley Seaver involved with Voit’s story would not be difficult to accomplish. After all, she and Agent Rossi kept in contact after her father was initially arrested, and he knew about her interest in becoming an FBI agent.
Following Seaver’s time with the BAU in season 6,Seaver was mentioned as having transferred to the Domestic Trafficking Task Force. That task force specifically investigates human trafficking rings in the United States, even embedding undercover agents within them.
Ashley Seaver only appeared in 10 episodes of the original series.
WhenJennifer Love Hewitt’s Kate Callahanjoined the BAU for season 10, the team was referenced again as Callahan was asked about Seaver being on the same team. While that FBI task force might have been a good fit for Seaver then, that does not mean she could not work on or with other FBI units.
After all, Spencer Reid (Matthew Gray Gubler) is technically still a member of the BAU, but he has been mentioned as working on an undercover assignment. Luke Alvez (Adam Rodriguez) also used to be on the Fugitive Task Force before joining the BAU. It’s possible for agents to bring their expertise to other teams.
If Ashley Seaver is still with the FBI, she would have been an agent for over 10 years now. She would have the experiences of her own childhood as well as her professional background as an agent to draw on when it comes to Voit.
It would not be a surprise for Rossi to recommend reaching out to her because of her perspective. It would also not be a surprise for her involvement to be recommended by someone outside of the team, since her past would have to be known to her FBI superiors.
Agent Ashley Seaver should be used to finally bring Voit’s story to its conclusion.
With Seaver’s own past connection to a serial killer, she may even have a chance to contribute to storylines involving true crime enthusiasts coming for Voit or his family. Seaver changed her name and severed her connection to her father, but that does not mean her past has never become public knowledge.
Agent Ashley Seaver should be used to finally bring Voit’s story to its conclusion. Bringing her in to interview Voit could work to transition him away from the BAU agents we all know and love, allowingCriminal Minds: Evolutionto focus on new stories.
