Joe Mantegna Fills Mandy Patinkin Gap on ‘Criminal Minds’

Actor Joe Mantegna has joined the cast of Criminal Minds, just weeks after Mandy Patinkin quit the TV drama.

Patinkin left Criminal Minds after not showing up for a script read-through when he realized his case-cracking character, Jason Gideon, was being written out of the show.

To fill the void left by Patinkin, producers have now hired veteran star Mantegna, who has appeared in movies including The Godfather: Part III and Boy Meets Girl, to play a new detective character.

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