“Criminal Minds” Star Josh Stewart Exits Series: 'My Days of Playing Will LaMontagne Jr. Are Over'
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The first season of 'Criminal Minds: Evolution' saw Josh's character have a cancer scare — and the showrunner says he's "not out of the woods" yet
Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty
Josh Stewart at The Punisher premiere in 2019.Josh Stewart won’t be returning to Criminal Minds: Evolution.
In response to a fan who inquired on X (formerly Twitter) about his character’s fate, the actor said: “No sadly, my days of playing Will LaMontagne Jr. are over.”
“You guys have been the absolute best,” he added.
Related: 'Criminal Minds' Cast: Where Are They Now?
Stewart, 46, first stepped into Will’s shoes for season 2 of the original Criminal Minds series. He’s been a somewhat constant face on the show ever since, appearing seasonally until a romance blossomed between his and A.J. Cook’s character Special Agent JJ Jareau.
The pair got married during the show's seventh season.
Michael Yarish /Paramount+
(L-R) Allison Nordahl as Holly, Josh Stewart as William LaMontagne, Mia Coleman as Harlow and A.J. Cook as Jennifer on 'Criminal Minds: Evolution'.With Criminal Minds: Evolution now airing, Will and JJ’s marriage continues to be a highlight of the series. Season 1 of Evolution brought terrible news to the couple, though, when Will told his wife he had been diagnosed with cancer. The plot was inspired by Cook’s real-life marriage, written from a cancer scare her husband had.
“It’s based on a true-life illness that we wanted to honor,” Criminal Minds: Evolution showrunner Erica Messer told TVLine. “We wanted to plant that seed now.”
The conclusion of the cancer storyline saw Will treated for a thyroid problem, and Messer teased, “next [season], hopefully, he’s going to be OK.” She added, “he’s not necessarily out of the woods forever.”
It remains unclear if Stewart’s character was written out of season 2 intentionally, or if he decided to step away from the show. PEOPLE has reached out to Paramount+ for comment.
Criminal Minds: Evolution first debuted in 2022. Joe Mantegna (Dave), Paget Brewster (Emily Prentiss), Kirsten Vangsness (Garcia), Aisha Tyler (Tara) and Adam Rodriguez (Luke) all returned for the series.
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Criminal Minds: Evolution is now streaming on Paramount+, and episodes from the original Criminal Minds series can be found on Hulu.
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