08-05-2025
Criminal Minds Video: Aisha Tyler Previews a ‘Hot Season for UnSubs,' Talks Directing Her Own Love Scene
The new season of Criminal Minds: Evolution is going to be 'a really hot one' for deviant UnSubs, Aisha Tyler promised during her visit to TVLine's NYC video studio this week.
The Season 18 premiere (now streaming on Paramount+) picks up six months after Elias Voit (Zach Gilford) took that beating in prison, and now, even in his (seemingly?) compromised state, the BAU will need to try and work with him, again, to shut down the network of serial killers left in Sicarius' wake.
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Tyler stepped behind the camera again to direct this season's second episode (dropping May 15), and it features Daredevil vet Elden Henson exhibiting some extremely un-Foggy Nelson behavior.
'He was amazing,' Tyler effuses in the video Q&A above. 'He has such a lovable face, and he was able to deliver this very nuanced performance of a guy who has a private life and presents in a very different way publicly.'
Henson's UnSub is not the most twisted one this season, though, Tyler goes on to warn.
On the personal front, Season 18 is a 'deeply personal' one for Dr. Tara Lewis, Tyler says at the 3:15 mark, 'which is really nice. It was great as an actor to do some stiff I haven't been able to do on the show before. We get to dive into my backstory a bit, which has been really beautiful.'
Tara's love life is also further explored. In fact, Tyler for Episode 2 had to direct the very rare Criminal Minds love scene, between her own character and Nicole Pacent's Rebecca.
'Sweating balls' is how Tyler sums up that challenge. 'It's never comfortable…. I couldn't wait for it to be over!'
Tyler goes on to tease the 'obstacles' facing Tara and Rebecca this season; talks about Tara sporting a sweatshirt from her and her alter ego's Dartmouth alma mater; and shares her wish to direct a full-on horror film, after handling similar fare in Criminal Minds, Evil and Walking Dead episodes.
What's in the box, in that first Season 18 photo released a while back? I threw that Q at Tyler at the 8:45 mark. She then talks about her margarita-flavored side hustle, and we wrap things up with a status report on Whose Line Is It Anyway?, the long-running improv series that exhausted its last episodes back in November.
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