Matthew Gray Gubler Directed 12 Criminal Minds Episodes, Every One Ranked by Cases, Trauma and Team Storylines
Gubler behind the camera
Gubler became a fan favorite as Spencer Reid, the brilliant but conflicted BAU member. He directed 12 episodes of Criminal Minds, bringing intricate investigations and intense character moments to the screen.
Since the series first ended in 2020, his acting roles have included Horse Girl in 2020, King Knight in 2021, and seven episodes of Dollface. His return as Reid in Criminal Minds: Evolution was brief, but left room for him to return as an actor or director.
The Capilano brothers’ crimes
In “The Capilanos,” the BAU travels to Guymon, Oklahoma, to investigate robberies by two brothers who work as rodeo clowns. One brother secretly murders the victims, and the team learns the brothers, Sal and Tony, were abused by their alcoholic father.
Sal wears a clown costume when he kills and marks locations on a map with smiley faces. The episode uses that imagery to build unease and was described as one of season 13’s best-directed installments.
A chilling case in Delaware
In “Elliott’s Pond,” the BAU investigates three young children who vanished while riding their bikes in Delaware. The team also revisits the disappearance of two children from the same path 30 years earlier.
The story reveals the missing children from decades before are alive and held captive by their childhood kidnapper. The episode also advances the team’s wider story, with new information emerging about the absent Hotch and affecting Prentiss and her colleagues.
Dark stories and personal grief
Season 8, episode 20, “Alchemy,” follows the BAU as it investigates the ritualistic murders of two young men in Rapid City. The killers are Tess Mynock, who is trying to recreate a child she lost, and Raoul Whalen, a sociopath who takes pleasure in helping her murder.
The case drew Reid’s attention, while he was still grieving the loss of Maeve. Gubler also directed season 9’s “Blood Relations,” a disturbing investigation in rural West Virginia involving two feuding families and a family secret about teenage siblings.
Key points
- Gubler directed 12 Criminal Minds episodes while playing Spencer Reid.
- “The Capilanos” features a killer who dresses as a clown and marks locations with smiley faces.
- “Elliott’s Pond” connects missing children to a disappearance from 30 years earlier.
- “Alchemy” pairs a ritualistic murder case with Reid’s grief over Maeve.