Joe Mantegna talks where we find Rossi in Criminal Minds: Evolution

Rossi isn’t dealing very well with the case in Criminal Minds: Evolution. Joe Mantegna talked to us about the revival and what to expect.

Just one look at the Criminal Minds: Evolution trailer will make it clear that we will see Rossi unravel during the case. He wants to catch the UnSub, and this one is difficult. He’s studied for years but he never once studied criminal behavior during a pandemic.

Ahead of the release of the revival, we sat down with Joe Mantegna to discuss Rossi and what’s to come in the season. We also talked about the journey to getting the revival on the air.

Where will we find Rossi in Criminal Minds: Evolution?

We had to know where we find Rossi at the start of the season. Rossi went through questions about his future with the BAU at the end of Season 15. At one point, he was going to retire, and then he decided not to leave after all. What’s happened in the last few years?

"“I think people will discover that Rossi’s not in a great place when we start off. I think that opens the door to where does it go from here? You knock a person down and we’ll accept that, but are they going to get up?”"

It certainly seems like it when you look at the trailer for the season. Rossi has always taken cases hard. We’ve seen them get personal for him as he goes down rabbit holes. This is one of those times. He needs to figure out what’s going on, but the pandemic years have taken their toll.

"“I live by the dictum that everybody’s got a story and nobody gets a free ride. This is Rossi’s story, and he’s not getting a free ride.”"

The case itself is very different to what we’ve seen before. While Criminal Minds Season 15 had a serialized element to it, Criminal Minds: Evolution pushes that further. Mantegna discussed what it was like going from the procedural storytelling to a serialized approach.

"“It is an evolution. I think we’ve taken it to the next level. This version of Criminal Minds has stepped up. We pushed the envelope even more in terms of the language, in terms of the look, in terms of the subject matter…Not that we could have gotten it any more serious…but we didn’t think it could get any more darker.”"

What was it like with the back and forth about the revival series? We heard there was something in the works and then Paget Brewster shared that it didn’t look like it was going to happen. Surprise! We have it coming!

"“It’s like life. You can’t count on anything…I’ve been around long enough to go ‘we’ll see.’ I didn’t count on it.”"

Mantegna has a healthy look on life, which you need to in the business of showbiz.

"“I can’t control that outcome, but if it happens, I’m Ready Freddy.”"

Take a look at the full interview with Joe Mantegna about Criminal Minds: Evolution below:

Criminal Minds: Evolution premieres on Thursday, Nov. 24 on Paramount+.