The members of the Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) is in the last position they want to be in when Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 17 begins: needing help from Elias Voit (Zach Gilford). Last season’s serial killer may be in custody, but thanks to knowing the words Gold Star, he may, in fact, be one step ahead of the profilers; after all, they had no idea what that meant.
Now, Gold Star is driving Season 17. “It has reached its ugly tentacles in more places than we realized,” Adam Rodriguez (who plays Luke Alvez) shared when he recently stopped by TV Insider. Because of that, they need help from Voit, “and we hate it.”
Though the agents are hoping that they can get the serial killer to slip up and give them something to use against him, “Voit is razor sharp and we’re playing the game that he created. And so he’s constantly feeling like he’s one step ahead of us because he’s designed this plan and we sort of know we have to be the mouse in the situation and let the cat toy with us until we find that moment where he slips up and gets comfortable enough that we know we can nail him,” Rodriguez continued. “But until that happens, to our frustration, Voit has the upper hand.”
As you might expect, Luke is none too pleased about the position the team is in. “I think Luke is just over this guy,” Rodriguez said of his character. “Luke hates the fact that we have to do this. And he’s not always quite as cerebral as everybody else. And so I think for Luke, his natural instinct is he just wants to manhandle this guy and put a beating on him, at the very least. And so I think he’s just frustrated. He’s waiting for that moment that he can let loose, and he gets a little break there early on.”
Watch the full video above for more from Rodriguez, including why Voit should be worried about Garcia (Kirsten Vangsness), the UnSubs of the week (which is the most disturbing one?), and whether there’s any time for anything in Luke’s personal life this season.
Criminal Minds: Evolution, Season 17 Premiere, Thursday, June 6 (two episodes), Paramount+
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