The start of its new season is still weeks away, but fans of Criminal Minds: Evolution won’t have to wait that long to learn the fate of the long-running hit crime procedural. Execs at Paramount+ have already decided what the future holds for the members of the Behavioral Analysis Unit. Per The Hollywood Reporter, the show’s been granted an early renewal — one that, going by official Criminal Minds math, brings it back for a 20th season. As fans of the franchise are aware, the original Criminal Minds ran for 15 seasons on CBS before getting the axe; two years later, Paramount+ started airing the continuation series Criminal Minds: Evolution, with its first season later being billed as the show’s 16th overall. If that seems a little confusing, don’t worry — the point is mostly just that Criminal Minds has been around for a long time, and this latest renewal marks a significant milestone. Given that Season 19 won’t debut until May 28, we obviously don’t know anything about what Evolution’s cast of characters will find themselves mixed up in during Season 20. We do know, however, that Heated Rivalry star Connor Storrie will appear at some point during the current season, along with a lengthy list of special guests that also includes familiar faces such as Yvette Nicole Brown, Clark Gregg, Justin Kirk, Jeri Ryan, Paul F. Tompkins. Along with news of the show’s renewal, Paramount+ has also dropped a sneak peek at Season 19, which kicks off with a disappearance whose details mirror a decades-old case. Watch it here.

Criminal Minds: Evolution’s Season 20 renewal is good news for fans, but it isn’t entirely surprising; in fact, it continues a pattern that Paramount+ established years ago, when they announced that the show would be getting a Season 18 prior to Season 17’s premiere. In the world of the crime procedural, steadiness is a comfort as well as a virtue — every week, there’s a different crime to solve, but justice always prevails, and the stories keep going for years. Of course, that doesn’t mean the casts always stay the same, and the Criminal Minds universe has seen plenty of core characters pass through over the years. Fans can count on seeing the main Evolution cast stick together for at least another season, however; THR’s report notes that Joe Mantegna, Paget Brewster, A.J. Cook, Kirsten Vangsness, Aisha Tyler, Zach Gilford, RJ Hatanaka, and Adam Rodriguez are all back for the show’s latest batch of new episodes.

Start streaming the new season of Criminal Minds: Evolution when it premieres on Paramount+ on May 28, 2026.

Release Date

November 24, 2022

Showrunner

Erica Messer

Writers

Erica Messer

Franchise(s)

Criminal Minds