The series premiered on CBS on September 22, 2005, and concluded on February 19, 2020. It was the final series in the franchise to end, following its two spin-off series, Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior and Beyond Borders. In February 2021, it was announced that a 10-episode revival was officially greenlit and will air on Paramount+. The show was renewed for its fifteenth and final season of ten episodes.
The series follows a group of criminal profilers who work for the FBI as members of its Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) The team is supervised by Unit Chief Aaron Hotchner and later Emily Prentiss.