The wildly successful series called “Criminal Minds” on CBS ran for an incredible 15 years, airing more than 300 episodes between 2005 and 2020. The show’s intriguing premise is centered on a team of profilers who study the most dangerous criminal brains in the country to predict their next crimes before they try to commit new ones. With such a long-running drama, it was to be expected that the cast would undergo some changes throughout the years.
Much to the fans’ dismay, these cast changes also featured some of the most beloved and greatly missed characters on the show. According to Cinema Blend’s analysis, Mandy Patinkin, Shemar Moore, and A.J. Cook are three of the most significant departures during the course of the show.
Another actor who chose to quit “Criminal Minds” before fans were even prepared for the heartbreaking news was Lola Glaudini, who played sex crimes specialist Elle Greenaway for the entirety of the show’s first and second seasons.
According to Fandom, Glaudini had previously played FBI Agent Deborah Ciccerone-Waldrup and Danielle Ciccellela, a pair of characters on the adored mob thriller “The Sopranos.” Therefore, this was not her first appearance in a crime drama. She also played a primary role in the 2003–2004 FBI drama “The Handler.”
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Why did she decide to leave the show?
Although she felt that “Criminal Minds” was perfectly up her alley, she ultimately made the decision to leave the television show after appearing in only 28 episodes, and you’re about to find out why she did so.
For the character of Elle Greenaway, Lola Glaudini was specifically chosen because of her experience in crime and police-related shows. However, things started to change for the Spanish-speaking FBI BAU Special Agent not long into the first episode of the series. Greenaway eventually met a horrible end after Glaudini decided “Criminal Minds” wasn’t the right fit for her.
She was shot at the very end of season one, and when she finally reappeared in the second season, she was mentally unstable. The agent finally left the FBI after a string of mistakes in season two brought on by the trauma that she had experienced.
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Even though Glaudini’s character didn’t always have it easy, the actor left “Criminal Minds” for a much less dramatic cause. According to Cinema Blend’s research, the New York City native apparently didn’t enjoy living in Los Angeles and missed being on the East Coast.
Glaudini didn’t specifically confirm or deny her reasons for leaving the program, but writer-producer Ed Bernero said that the performer was “unhappy living in Los Angeles” and needed a change of scenery in an interview he did with the Los Angeles Times.
The audience’s reception of Glaudini’s character
Given that many fans of “Criminal Minds” reportedly regarded Greenaway to be an unlikeable character, it may have been for the best that Glaudini voluntarily decided to leave the show and determined Los Angeles wasn’t the place for her. Many argue that Greenaway’s character development was unfinished and unrealistic, and most viewers seemed to agree with this opinion. Some also said that she didn’t portray the victim convincingly enough, which made the character even more unpopular among the show’s audience.
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Other ventures that Glaudini took up after leaving Criminal Minds
Glaudini had a brief part as Vince Papale’s first wife in the 2006 movie “Invincible,” when she is seen criticizing Papale’s professional failings and decides to divorce him. On the 2010 NBC miniseries “Persons Unknown,” she portrayed Kat Damatto.
She also starred alongside Mark Harmon in the 2011 USA original film “Certain Prey,” which was adapted from the best-selling John Sandford novel of the same name. It certainly seems like Glaudini has done well after leaving “Criminal Minds,” also making crucial appearances in critically acclaimed shows, including “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” and “Ray Donovan.”
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