Adam Rodriguez : “I hope ‘Criminal Minds’ ends up on another platform”

After three years playing Special Agent Luke Alvez, the very genuine Adam Rodriguez (43) doesn’t feel the end of the CBS show is right. He told me how much he’s like left unsatisfied.

Hi Adam, thank you for this interview. First of all, how do you feel about « Criminal Minds » ending ?

The first thing I felt was disappointment. I’m disappointed that the show is coming to an end, and I am really feeling like I’m just gonna miss the people I get to work with. I’m gonna miss making this show. I think it’s such a well done television show. I think the stories are always great, and the plot points are always interesting. I’m gonna miss showing up every day. I also feel lucky to have been a part of it, to get to spend three years with everybody here. And then I get lastly, a wave of emotions. The way it goes is, the disappointment, the gratitude, and the then kind of the excitement about what’s next, and maybe what’s next for the show. Maybe the show stays alive. Maybe we end up on another platform.

Do you think it’s possible ?

Why not ? There’s so much out there and with a show that’s been as successful as this is, that has such a strong following, there’s a bit of hope that maybe somebody sees it as a good business move to pick the show up and put it somewhere else. That would be great.

Do you think Netflix could do it ?

Yeah, Netflix, maybe ABC themselves decides to buy the whole show and air it on ABC. It’d be cool to be able to continue the show, but we’ll see what happens. I guess that’s where I’m at now, it’s sort of that feeling of in between hope that maybe the show continues and then if it doesn’t, the excitement of not knowing what’s coming next.

If the show really stops after season 15, what would be the ideal way for your character Luke Alvez to say goodbye? Doing his job as usual, or with a special ending?

Oh, man. I think of how the meshing of those two things would be great. I think if my character could be doing his job and have there be a special ending, it’d be great. It would be great to go out saving a life or to go out helping someone save a life. People think that the show is about how critically we can get with the serial killers and these demented minded people that are out here perpetrating really heinous crimes. But I actually think that the thing that makes the show work is that it is really about the people that are fighting against those people. The people who are putting their lives on the line to make sure that these people don’t continue doing what they’re doing. So we could all go out doing something heroic, and leave on a high note. I think that’s a nice way to close things out. Leaving people with hope that there is light fighting against the darkness.

What would you like to do next, acting wise, if anything was possible ?

I’d love to do comedy. I would love to do some comedy. The jobs that I had actually right before … Right before Criminal Minds came my way, I had done a half-hour comedy pilot and I really loved it. It was a sitcom, yeah. It was a half-hour sitcom, single camera. It didn’t get picked up, and the beauty of it not getting picked up was that I ended up on Criminal Minds.

Cool !

I would love to go back to pursuing that, ’cause I’ve been dealing with crime shows for a long time. I love playing these characters but I’d love to have my challenge of going to work every day trying to make people laugh. I’d really love to put a smile on people’s faces that way. Ideally, that would be a good thing for me if I could land a comedy.

Tell me about the people you got really close to by working with them on « Criminal Minds » ?

There’s not one person. I loved that time with everybody on the cast. It seems like the real simple way to answer the question but in fact there’s not one … Everybody makes me laugh. Everybody there is a pleasure to work with, and just true professionals. Everybody shows up prepared, everybody shows up with gratitude and appreciation for having the great job, and we all go there and really put in the work but we have a great time putting in the work together. It’s a wonderful group, man. I will miss everybody.

What could you specifically say about A. J. Cook ?

First of all, she is such a talented actress. I always think her work is terrific on the show. Whenever I watch an episode, I always feel like she really has a strong inner life. There are things going on when I watch her work and I always wanna know more about her character when I watch her. In person, I think she’s a superhero. She’s just a really solid human being. She’s got her priorities together. She manages to put in the kind of hours we need to put in to make a television show, and yet she is there for her family in every way and she’s just all about her husband and her children and yet manages to work her ass off long hours. Just has it together. She’s just really cool.

About what about your friend Matthew Gray Gubler ?

Matthew is a supreme asshole. No, I’m just kidding. Matthew’s an incredible talent. This guy is so talented at so many things. He’s just got a brilliant creative mind. I’m really curious to see what he does after the show is done because he’s got so many talents. He can draw, he’s a great visual artist. He’s got a great eye. He’s a super talented director. I think that’s probably his strong suit. I think he’s gonna be a tremendous filmmaker. He’s an original. He’s a really unique person and I think he’s got a lot to offer creatively.

I am sure you guys will have a farewell party in May as the show wraps up. What’s the plan?

I think there will be some bittersweet celebrations. I think we’ll all be very sad to see each other go but I think we’ll definitely make some time to get together. I think we’ll celebrate the fact that we got to have this time together. We’ll lament about the fact that it’s over but I think we will definitely celebrate the fact that we got to have this time together.