Why is 'Criminal Minds' ending? Was the show cancelled?

Criminal Minds recently saw the end to its 15th and final season on February 19, 2020. Although the makers have officially clarified that season 15 was the final season of the show, fans are still speculating if there could be a possibility for another season. The show has had a successful run for over 15 years and has gained a huge fan-base. While the Criminal Minds series finale was dramatic, fans got to say a proper goodbye before the door closed behind Penelope. 

Why is Criminal Minds ending? 

Why is Criminal Minds ending?

Earlier in January 2019, the makers of the show announced that they wanted to provide the writer enough time to be able to write a justified ending for all the characters for the 14th season hinting that it would be the last season of the show. But it was later announced that the series has been renewed for the 15th and final season.

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The makers originally wanted season 14 to be the last and focused on building a proper ending for it. They later decided that it would make more sense to have another season but with less episodes to give the show a justified ending and tie up all the loose ends. Hence, the final season only had 10 episodes, unlike the previous ones which had 20+ episodes. 

Criminal Minds ending explained

SPOILER ALERT!! The finale of the show ended with a party because what fans loved the most during the 15 years is the bond that the co-stars shared. The Criminal Minds ending was dipped in the past for inspiration but resulted in a gentle send-off into a happy future. Penelope Garcia, the dazzling fashionista and white0hat hacker was made the star of the show. Just like Reid, she made it from Season 1 to Season 15. One of the most loved characters, the fans thought that it was only fitting that the epilogue of the Criminal Minds series finale was about her. 

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For the Criminal Minds series finale, the writers took a substantial amount of time to justify the ending to Reid's character. They resolved his issues through a purgatory-like hallucination while he wobbled on the edge of death. A vision of Maeve walks him through confronting his endless problems and makes him realise his worth as a human being and implored him to move on. 

Was Criminal Minds cancelled? 

When the show was just renewed for a final season, there were a lot of rumours going around about it being cancelled. The show's writer Erica Messer said that her biggest fear was the channel not bringing back the show. She added that they respected the cast and crew enough to give the series a proper ending. 

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