20 Seasons: Criminal Minds to End Run on Paramount+ in 2027

The television series Criminal Minds will air 20 seasons before concluding its run, with the final installment scheduled to premiere in 2027. The show, which adopted the subtitle Evolution when it shifted to Paramount+, has completed five seasons on the streaming platform following a 15-season tenure on CBS.

Showrunner and executive producer Erica Messer confirmed the decision in a statement released on October 30, 2026. She noted the difficulty of expressing what the series meant to the team after two decades. Messer expressed gratitude toward the cast, writers, and crew who contributed to the project. She also acknowledged the global fan base that sustained the show through its revival.

The series originally premiered in 2005 and ended its CBS run after season 15 in 2020. Paramount+ revived the franchise a year later, changing its format to serialized storytelling. Under the new structure, each season consists of 10 episodes, a reduction from the 22-episode format used during most of its broadcast years. The show has produced more than 300 episodes in total.

The franchise has also generated two spinoffs, Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior and Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders, which ran for one and two seasons respectively. The current cast includes Joe Mantegna, A.J. Cook, Kirsten Vangsness, Aisha Tyler, and RJ Hatanaka. Adam Rodriguez and Paget Brewster also appear in regular roles. Hatanaka joined the production during the first Paramount+ season, while the other actors have been associated with the franchise since the CBS era.

Production is handled by 20th Television and CBS Studios. Messer serves as an executive producer alongside Breen Frazier, Chris Barbour, Glenn Kershaw, Stacey Hardt, and Mark Gordon. The final season will mark the end of a story arc that began over 20 years ago, capping a career-defining run for the cast and crew.