Why was JJ terminated?

Answered by Stephen Mosley

JJ was terminated from the show Criminal Minds for financial reasons at the beginning of season six. The decision to let her go was related to the premiere of the spin-off series Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior. The production company may have needed to allocate their budget differently in order to support the new show, leading to JJ’s departure from the original series.

The financial aspect of television production is often complex and influenced by various factors. When a spin-off is created, it requires additional resources and funding to ensure its success. In this case, it seems that the budget for Criminal Minds needed to be adjusted to accommodate the launch of Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior. Unfortunately, this meant that some changes had to be made within the original series, including letting go of JJ’s character.

The decision to write JJ out of the show was likely a difficult one for the producers and the network. JJ, played by A.J. Cook, had been a beloved character since the beginning of the series. Her departure would have been disappointing for many fans who had grown attached to her and her storylines.

To address JJ’s absence, the show’s writers decided to send her character to the Pentagon. This allowed them to explore a different aspect of her career and gave the character a plausible reason for not being present in the team’s daily investigations. While it may have been a creative solution to the problem, it still meant that JJ was no longer a regular part of the show.

It’s worth noting that the decision to terminate JJ’s character was not a reflection of A.J. Cook’s performance or popularity. Actors and their characters can often become casualties of the business side of television production. Budget constraints, scheduling conflicts, and other factors sometimes necessitate difficult decisions that impact the show’s cast.

In season nine of Criminal Minds, JJ’s time at the Pentagon is explored in depth. This allowed the character to have some closure and provided fans with a better understanding of what she had been doing during her absence from the team. While it may not have fully made up for her departure in season six, it at least provided some resolution for JJ’s storyline.

JJ’s termination from Criminal Minds was primarily driven by financial reasons related to the premiere of the spin-off series Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior. The decision was likely a difficult one for the producers and the network, as JJ was a beloved character. However, the show’s writers found a way to address her absence by sending her character to the Pentagon, allowing for further exploration of her storyline in season nine.