Reports: 'Criminal' Standoff for Mandy Patinkin

Zap2It.com | July 13, 2007

Mandy Patinkin, 'Criminal Minds'

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Actor misses table read, may be written out of premiere

CBS' hit procedural "Criminal Minds" had its first table read of the season earlier this week, but star Mandy Patinkin was nowhere to be seen.

According to reports starting with E!Online and spreading through the media, Patinkin didn't show for the first table read and the show's staff has begun writing additional scenes so that the premiere, at the very least, could go forward without its star.

Patinkin's absence was sufficiently foreseeable that the actor's role in the premiere had already reportedly been reduced from the beginning.

There had been rumors of differences of opinion between Patinkin and "Criminal Minds" studios ABC Studios and CBS Paramount TV dating back to last summer. Since that time, "Criminal Minds" has gone from surprising first-season success to sophomore smash. The show averaged roughly 14 million viewers per week this past season.

Insiders close to the show are careful to emphasize that Patinkin's failure to report for the table read wasn't related to contractual or salary issues, without clarifying the exact cause for his absence. Earlier in the week, Patinkin pulled out of a scheduled panel appearance at a Television Critics Association press tour. At the time, critics were told that Patinkin missed that appearance because of illness.

While Patinkin's eccentric expert profiler Jason Gideon has always been the centerpiece for "Criminal Minds," the show's deep ensemble includes Thomas Gibson, Shemar Moore, Matthew Gray Gubler and Paget Brewster.