Paget Brewster may be a bit behind in watching Criminal Minds: Evolution, but she's not forgetting to shout out her good friend Matthew Gray Gubler!
After months of teasing Matthew's return to the Criminal Minds reboot as Dr. Spencer Reid, fans finally got to see him make a brief appearance in the third episode of season 3. While the installment initially aired on May 22, Paget went on X (formerly Twitter) on June 4 to reveal she finally got around to watching the moment her former co-star came back to the show. What's more, she also had to acknowledge how special the entire episode was for her to see, with A.J. Cook (who plays J.J. Jareau)'s performance and Joe Mantegna (who portrays David Rossi) as director.
"Guys, I finally watched episode 3 of @criminalminds and it is amazing," she emotionally wrote. "@ajcookofficial is extraordinary, @JoeMantegna directed it and @GUBLERNATION is in it. Please watch!!"
After fans realized Paget shouted out Matthew in her short review of the Criminal Minds: Evolution episode, they immediately shared their own opinions about seeing him come back to the BAU.
"I cried the entire time. It was a masterpiece. The hug between you and Matthew was one of my favourite parts 💖," one person penned. "It’s my favorite episode of the season so far!!! cried the whole time," another declared. "It was SO good and very well done. When I saw @GUBLERNATION appear my jaw dropped!! That was such a perfect way/time to have him be there 💜 in a very sad moment that put a smile on my face!" a different follower added.
Despite Matthew's time on Criminal Minds: Evolution being so short, it's clear Paget loved having him back for any time he could give the show. As she shared with Good Housekeeping in May 2025, Paget was happy to just have Matthew back in step with the rest of the cast after leaving the franchise in 2020.
"One hot second of Matthew Gray Gubler is worth a thousand years of someone else," she exclusively told us at the time. "It was as if no time has passed, and he's a personal friend so we communicate with him all the time. So, it wasn't a big deal, because it was like, 'Oh, this is nice! Alright dude — think about doing this again!'"
As the entertainment and news associate editor for Good Housekeeping, Adrianna (she/her) writes about everything TV, movies, music and pop culture. She graduated from Yeshiva University with a B.A. in journalism and a minor in business management. She covers shows like The Rookie, 9-1-1 and Grey's Anatomy, though when she’s not watching the latest show on Netflix, she’s taking martial arts or drinking way too much coffee.
