Criminal Minds: Emily Prentiss’ Fake Season 6 Death Explained

Here’s why Agent Emily Prentiss faked her death during Criminal Minds season 6 – and how she returned. Criminal Minds quickly became one of CBS’ most popular thrillers when it arrived in 2005. Criminal Minds – initially fronted by Mandy Patinkin – follows the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit, who are tasked with tracking down serial killers and other offenders. The show could often be intensely dark and disturbing, but its likable cast of characters – including Matthew Gray Gubler’s fan-favorite Reid – prevented it from becoming too overbearing.

Criminal Minds ran for 15 seasons in total, though a Paramount+ revival is currently in development. Unlike other hit procedurals like CBS’ own CSI, Criminal Minds didn’t manage to spawn hit spin-offs of its own. Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior only ran for a season despite a cast that included Janeane Garofalo and Forest Whitaker, while Beyond Borders lasted for two series before being axed.

One of the longest-serving characters on Criminal Minds was Emily Prentiss, played by Paget Brewster. Prentiss appeared in many seasons of Criminal Minds, though Brewster and co-star A.J. Cook were infamously almost dropped following network “budget cuts,” but after a robust fan campaign they both remained – though both performers took breaks in later seasons before returning as regulars. Prentiss also experienced one of her most dramatic storylines in season 6, where her old relationship with former terrorist Ian Doyle came back to haunt her. During her time with Interpol, she went undercover and entered into a relationship with Doyle, which included getting him imprisoned in North Korea and faking his son’s death. Doyle escapes and targets both Emily Prentiss and her former colleagues, and he later kidnaps and tortures her.

Why Criminal Minds’ Prentiss Faked Her Death

During Criminal Minds season 6 episode “Lauren,” Prentiss and Doyle engage in a vicious fight that ends with the latter stabbing her. She’s later taken to the hospital and declared dead, devastating her teammates. However, the ending of the episode heavily implies she’s still alive, which is later confirmed in season 7. Prentiss faked her demise to pursue Doyle and take him down for good. Criminal Minds season 7 episode “It Takes a Village” wraps up this storyline, though it took some of her unit – especially Reid – time to adjust to her “betrayal” by making them all believe she had been killed.

While Emily Prentiss’ fake death story might be seen as a tad extreme, she did it with the intent of keeping her team safe from Doyle. Criminal Minds – where Reid may not return for the revival – at least explored the implication such a deception would have in Reid’s response, though the two later made up and become friends again.