“We’ve put in nearly every character who’s ever been on the show, recurring in any way,” Messer says “We wanted them to have a presence. You’re going to see faces you haven’t seen since the Super Bowl. We wanted this to be a celebration of the seven years we’ve been running strong.”

Much more on the season finale at the link.

Via TV Guide’s Mega Buzz:

Can you tell me anything more about Tricia Helfer’s role on the Criminal Mindsfinale? —Dave
ADAM: Helfer’s character, Izzy Rogers, is the leader of a group of bank robbers who crosses paths with Hotch & Co. after she takes hostages during one of her jobs. “Ultimately, she is a serial killer masquerading as a bank robber,” executive producer Erica Messer says. “Our team comes in because the behavior suggests they do this every month — they kill somebody for the fun of it, not because they’re in the way. The woman’s off her rocker. She’s just a bad egg.” However, it’s one of the BAU team members who may be scrambled when he or she volunteers to go inside to talk Izzy down.

From the interview with EW:

• On replacing Prentiss: Messer says, “That’s going to be a conversation with so many people at some point. There’s no replacing her as far as I’m concerned. She just brought so much to this team. But are they going to want another female face at the table? Sure. Are we going to want that as storytellers? I’m sure we will,” she says. But “I’m not in any hurry to replace her.” 
• On ‘The Company’ - “Messer calls [it] the second part to an episode we saw last year called ‘Big Sea.’ As you’ll recall, in the episode, Morgan sought to give his aunt closure after she believed her missing daughter was among the victims in a murder investigation. In this episode, that gets turned on its head. ‘[We] had this idea for a story about what if the cousin Morgan had said died was alive and they had to find her,’ says Messer. ‘And I thought it was brilliant because then he lied about someone being dead, which is exactly what he’s been angry with Hotch and everybody about all season.’ The result of this common ground Morgan suddenly find himself having with Hotch? Closure, via some ‘beautifully written’ and ‘understated’ scenes, she says.”
• On Prentiss’ departure: Messer says, “What Paget and I both talked about was that we would love for her to exit the show in a way that felt it was believable. She can still have breakfast with them when she’s in town, you know? It’s not leaving things on any weird terms, with anyone upset with anyone. It’s what happens in real life.” 

Casting news for Criminal Minds 7.24, “Run” 

Below the cut for those who wish to avoid significant spoilers:

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via TVLine:

Battlestar Galactica alumna Tricia Helfer will guest-star in the Season 7 finale of CBS’ Criminal Minds, TVLine has learned exclusively.

Helfer shared the news with us on the red carpet Saturday night at the 26th annual Genesis Awards, adding only the tease that she will be playing “definitely a bad character.”

Via TVGuide:

I would love some Criminal Minds finale spoilers! — Terry
ADAM: I’m hearing the episode — which will include a wedding! — is actually a two-parter that deals with a bank robbery gone bad. (Really, has a robbery ever gone well on TV?) When the hot-headed thief’s brother is killed during the heist, his quest for revenge leads him to hold everyone in the bank hostage. Geez, man, there has to be an easier way to score an invite to the wedding!

Via Spoiler TV: 

Spoiler alert! Rather than stage a funeral to explain the upcoming exit of Paget Brewster’s Emily — just a year after she faked her death — CBS’ Criminal Minds has decided to end the season with a wedding. But who’s getting hitched at the end of the tense two-hour finale is a secret. “We decided not to kill her off,” explains executive producer Erica Messer. “We had already buried her, so that would have seemed repetitive.” Instead, Emily will “leave the BAU to pursue other things, which mimics what Paget’s pursuing in real life. If Paget ever wants to come back, this exit allows the door to be open.”

Emily’s last scene with her friends will be in one of their backyards, celebrating the intimate wedding of a longtime couple. “We wanted to balance out the darkness of the two hours and the bittersweetness of Paget leaving with the flip side of a really good thing,” says Erica, who confirms that the couple exchanging vows will either be J.J. and Will or Garcia and Kevin. “They’ll all have a really rough Saturday with a hostage situation and then a really lovely Sunday. To end a season on a happy note instead of blowing something up is very unusual for us.” 

From a lengthy chat with Criminal Minds Round Table:

On “Closing Time,” Dunkle says:

• Closing Time adds a tidbit to one of the extracurricular activities Jj was up to while away working for the State Department.
• The ending may leave some of you divided, but then, that’s why I like it so much!
• Rossi and Hotch have a great moment in the elevator that I was at first hesitant to write… but once I did, it was my favorite scene in the episode!
• … the episode isn’t a Jj-centered episode but I knew Aj had been jonesing for some action work and it seemed to fit with the theme of this episode to have her come to blows…
• The idea of emasculation is a theme in the episode and it got me thinking about how everyone always think the women need rescuing. We’ve got some bad ass babes on this show and I loved having the opportunity to show they can look out for themselves.

On the two-hour season finale:

• We’re working on the finale right now which I think is a testament to what a great season we’ve had… lots of cookies for the fans, and a fun, action-packed story to ride us to the finish line of season seven.
• We know, at this point, where we’re headed for the finale so we have kind of put tentpoles in different writers episodes to make sure we address the important bits before the end. All of the storylines of season seven sort of coalesce (sp) into a bit, 2-hour finale
• It’s something we’ve never done before… we’re treating it like a 2-hour movie and it starts out with a bang and doesn’t let up.
• It promises to be one of the most suspenseful, action-packed stories we’ve ever done.

From an interview with Mother Nature Network: 

As for his CBS procedural, Gibson hinted at an upcoming event that will replace the usual year-end “Criminal Minds” cliffhanger. “We’re going out on something very nice this year, something different from the usual grim and terrible,” he said.