This story contains spoilers from the Criminal Minds franchise.
Criminal Minds fans, it looks like we aren’t the only ones feeling the absence of Matthew Gray Gubler these days. As it turns out, his former co-star A.J. Cook has been thinking about him.
With the recent success of Criminal Minds: Evolution streaming on Paramount+, viewers haven’t gotten past the fact that the actor hasn’t appeared on the reboot as Dr. Spencer Reid. While the boy genius may be radio silent at the moment, the man who plays him certainly isn’t. ICYMI: Matthew has actually been working on a completely different project and he’s been keeping folks updated on Instagram.
In a series of photos posted on December 4, the Alvin and the Chipmunks star revealed he had more up his sleeve with Rumple Buttercup, the title character behind his 2019 New York Times best-selling children’s book. Posing with a “huggable” plush version of the kid-friendly monster, he announced that fans would be able to purchase one for themselves (along with other collectibles) on his merchandise site.
Naturally, longtime followers were ecstatic to see what the Dollface actor had in store after spending more than a decade working on the CBS drama. But no one was more excited than actress A.J., who famously worked alongside him as media liaison-turned-agent Jennifer “JJ” Jareau.
“Woah woah woah … detachable banana peel hat???? I need this right NOW!!” she replied in the comments on Instagram. “Holy smokes I miss you GUBE!!!!!!”
As folks may recall, A.J. and Matthew’s characters were particularly close throughout Criminal Minds‘ 15 seasons on the air. JJ even confessed her love for Reid during an intense hostage situation, despite being married with two sons at the time of the reveal.
Due to the nature of their alter egos’ relationship on-screen, it makes sense the two would have had a very similar rapport when not on TV. What’s more, their friendship is so strong that A.J. almost considered not returning to the hit franchise without him.
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“Matthew is one of the most charismatic, larger than life, yet very real, people I’ve ever met,” she told BuzzFeed in November. “It was actually really, really difficult for me when I found out he wasn’t gonna be able to come back. I considered not [returning] … I was like, ‘I don’t know how to do this without him. Like, how do we do this?’ [Spencer and JJ are] best friends. I kind of struggled with that at first.”
For those wondering where JJ and Reid are these days, the procedural drama confirmed that they both still work for the BAU. But between JJ looking for this season’s UnSub (Zach Gilford) and new FBI Deputy Director Bailey (Nicholas D’Agosto) moving Reid to a different unit, it may be a while before fans see A.J. and Matthew reunite.
Fingers crossed we get to see this dynamic duo together very soon!
Editorial Assistant
As the entertainment and news editorial assistant 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.
This content is imported from youTube. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.