Paget Brewster Returns to ‘Criminal Minds’: Emily Prentiss is Back, But is it for Good? [Spoilers!]


Paget Brewster is returning to Criminal Minds. Yes, Emily is back to help her friends at the BAU catch an international serial killer, just as the team begins to adjust to the empty hole left by Derek Morgan. What will “Baby Girl” do?

According to yesterday’s post on Ecumenical News, CBS confirmed Brewster’s temporary return last February. Fans have been eagerly waiting on the edge of their seats ever since.

But before you get too excited, it’s only for next Wednesday’s episode. At least, for the time being. Criminal Minds producer, Erica Messer, indicates there has yet to be any discussion in regard to exactly how the show will move forward.

Due to Shemar Moore’s shocking exit last week (as previously reported by The Inquisitr), die-hard fans definitely need something to lift their spirits. Maybe this will do the trick.

In Season 4’s Episode 19 of Criminal Minds, Emily is taking a hiatus from her job with Interpol to help nab the most famous serial in the past 150 years. Step aside, Ted Bundy! Here’s a sneak peek.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLwCz-B8FUk

CBS reminds viewers Paget Brewster made her debut on Criminal Minds in 2006. It was during Season 2, in case you’re curious. Emily left her job at the BAU during Season 7. At the time, if you remember, she told the team about her dream to work on international cases.

Many fans don’t know the whole story when it comes to Brewster leaving in the first place. Cinema Blend reports that CBS reduced her role “on a whim” and then brought her back on another one… a whim, that is.

As soon as that contract ended, Paget left the show. To say she was disillusioned with the network is an understatement. From that day forward, Criminal Minds had an extremely tough time filling Emily’s shoes. A fact that’s backed up by the introduction of new characters with every season.

At the end, Brewster stated her heart just wasn’t in it anymore. So, it’s no surprise the show’s writer’s wrote the same goodbye speech for the then-exiting Emily Prentiss. Paget Brewster had this to say about that.

“They wrote Emily Prentiss saying, ‘Since I’ve come back, I’ve realized that my heart isn’t in it, and I want to do other things.’ And it was true. That was just true from how I was feeling about the situation, and I wanted to do comedy.”

Shortly thereafter, reports surfaced indicating that CBS originally let both Brewster and A.J. Cook go in an effort to save money. Seemingly, network execs thought relieving Criminal Mind’s female BAU agents of their duties would be cost-effective.

On the episode airing Wednesday, the team tries to save the victim, thought to be an American, before it’s too late. The question remains… will they be successful without Derek’s assistance? Only time will tell.

Paget Brewster’s first TV role was on Friends, according to TV Guide. She played the part of Joey’s girlfriend. Before she took up acting, she was a singer in the New York-based rock band Sleeping Pills. She also hosted 65 episodes of her own late-night San Francisco talk show, aptly named The Paget Show.

What is your favorite Emily Prentiss moment? Where you elated when you found out she really wasn’t dead, or ticked off because you were left in the dark? Feel free to leave your comments about Paget Brewster and Criminal Minds below.

[Photo by Paul A. Hebert/Invision/AP Images]

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