40 Criminal Minds Most Evil Unsubs Cbr

Leo Migdal

-Nov 21, 2025, 12:09 PM

This article discusses sensitive and disturbing topics, including torture, sexual assault, murder, suicide, kidnapping, and exploiting children. Criminal Minds follows the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit, or BAU, which works on some of the most disturbing and prolific serial killers. The team uses behavioral analysis and profiling to investigate crimes and capture criminals. The show stood out from other police procedurals at the time by examining the psychology of the criminals and the more horrific aspects of police work. Criminal Minds is best known for its standout villains. The BAU team calls them unknown subjects, or "unsubs," a catchy name for some dangerous people.

The unsubs are all uniquely terrifying, with a variety of backstories and motivations for their crimes. While there are many unsubs from the show's fifteen seasons and its revival, titled Criminal Minds: Evolution, certain villains stand out as particularly dark. Updated on June 26, 2025, by Michael Colwander: Criminal Minds continues to produce frightening, dark, and at times tragic unsubs across its now 18-season run, with three of those seasons being Criminal Minds: Evolution. Throughout that run, the show's writers continue to impress with their creativity in finding new ways to horrify viewers with each unsub. This list was updated to include more of the darkest Criminal Minds unsubs. Jon McHale (Frankie Muniz) was unsub in one of the saddest Criminal Minds episodes to date.

It may be a bit ironic to call McHale a villain, as he was unknowingly a comic book-like vigilante "hero." However, he was the unsub the BAU was hunting down in "True Night" after... This article mentions horrific subjects such as murder, torture, cannibalism, sexual assault, and harm against children. Crime procedurals are a beloved part of TV, with several notable examples popping up over the years. One of the most beloved crime procedural shows is Criminal Minds. Having aired for over a decade, by the time it ended, Criminal Minds amassed a large fanbase with its relatively unique take on the classic cop show. Instead of spotlighting the crime, the show focuses on the victims and the twisted minds who made them such.

Criminal Minds' central characters are a part of the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit or BAU, who solve crimes by profiling the perpetrators, blending psychology and behavioral sciences. The suspects are called the Unknown Subject, or unsub for short, and they often have the spotlight. Some are memorable, while others fade into the show’s hundreds of cases, and the most memorable are also the scariest. Updated on January 8, 2025, by Florencia Aberastury: Criminal Minds features some of the most disturbing and scary villains, or unsubs, in any police procedural series. Some of the worst and scariest Criminal Minds unsubs defined the series and became some of the most memorable unsubs in the entire show. This article has been updated to include more scary Criminal Minds unsubs, as well as to bring the article up to current CBR standards.

The Criminal Minds episode "Legacy" from Season 2 is eerily reminiscent of horror films like Saw. Charles Holcombe would capture his victims, torture them both physically and psychologically, and even taunt them as his victims tried to escape. Holcombe is also one of the most prolific serial killers, as he's killed at least over 60 victims. Charles Holcombe would also target some of the most vulnerable victims, like homeless people, prostitutes, and people suffering from addiction. Florencia is a Movies & TV writer at CBR who brings her love of pop culture and storytelling to every piece she writes. Whether diving into the humor of sitcoms, the creativity of adult animation, or the thrills of horror, she enjoys exploring what makes great entertainment resonate with audiences.

Since joining CBR, Florencia has combined sharp analysis with a genuine enthusiasm for fan culture, always ready to discuss the stories, characters, and twists that keep viewers hooked. Criminal Minds has introduced many scary and disturbing serial killers throughout its eighteen seasons. The police procedural drama that follows the Behavioral Analysis Unit of the FBI deals with some of the most prolific and terrifying criminals, some of whom have even threatened the lives of the BAU... Ever since the first season of Criminal Minds introduced The Fisher King, an unsub who directly targeted Hotch, Gideon, and the rest of the BAU team, every season of Criminal Minds has introduced a... And while many of these villains are memorable for different reasons, there's one Criminal Minds villain who is still one of the most disturbing, even twenty years later: Frank Breitkopf. Frank Breitkopf was introduced in the second season of Criminal Minds, in an episode filled with tension and shocking twists.

He then returned for the Season 2 finale, bringing his storyline to a close in a dark and unsettling manner, targeting the BAU members directly and specifically Jason Gideon. Frank's story arc set the tone for future Criminal Minds villains, such as George Foyet and Mr. Scratch, who targeted different agents in revenge for being caught by the BAU. But while these later villains also left a mark on the series and were disturbing and scary in their own right, Frank Breitkopf was still the most dangerous and disturbing. Frank first appeared in Criminal Minds Season 2, episode 13, "No Way Out." This episode follows a different pattern as it already starts with Gideon facing the unsub, Frank Breitkopf, before the storyline goes... Gideon explains how the BAU got involved in the investigation and how it led them to Frank, but Frank is sure that he will be able to walk free because he has a secret...

This article mentions potentially sensitive subjects such as murder, sexual assault, torture, harm against children, and police brutality. Criminal Minds is one of the most beloved police-centered shows of the modern era. It ran for 15 seasons before being canceled and almost immediately revived as Criminal Minds: Evolution. Nearly 20 years after the first episode, the show's fanbase is still going strong, with audiences generally knowing what to expect out of each episode. It's a police procedural series at its core, but unlike typical procedurals, Criminal Minds focuses solely on the perpetrators of violent crime. From kidnappings to serial killers, the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit uses a blend of psychology, sociology, criminology, and behavioral sciences called criminal profiling to catch their Unknown Subjects or unsubs.

Just about every episode features a new unsub, and they generally fit squarely into the villain category. But, occasionally, there are unsubs featured that aren't villains at all, whether they're strictly victims or could be justified. Whenever those unsubs show up, it's nearly impossible for fans not to feel at least a little bad for them. Vincent Rowlings was featured as an antagonist in Criminal Minds Season 4, though he was never really an Unknown Subject. He is introduced early into the episode as the audience sees him from the start. His modus operandi was initially simple, as during the spring months only, he chose mostly blonde white women in their thirties.

He'd approach his targets in their homes or workplaces, stab them, and record the crime using cameras retrofitted to his glasses. His murders seem opportunistic, but they're all planned meticulously due to his OCD and severe compulsions. The BAU's invitation to investigate even came from Vincent himself, as he sent one of the videotapes of a murder where he wrote "help me" on a wall. The Criminal Minds team investigated some of the most gruesome fictional crimes on TV, but several of their cases were inspired by real crimes. This article contains mentions of sensitive topics such as sexual assault, molestation, mass shootings, suicide, and the loss of a child. Female unsubs are rare to come by in Criminal Minds.

While they are often painted as sympathetic figures, their crimes are just as horrifying as their male counterparts. Some are even worse. From masterminds who target the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit to sadistic, torturous killers, female unsubs can be brutal. Female unsubs are responsible for some of the worst kills in Criminal Minds. Female killers on the show are arguably better at carrying out their schemes. With their attention to detail and less impulse-driven motives, they are less likely to snap or make mistakes.

The worst ones have incredibly shocking crimes. Updated on August 14, 2025, by Michael Colwander: Criminal Minds is full of memorable and diabolical unsubs. Many of the most notorious unsubs have been women. Some of these unsubs have come from tragic backgrounds, but their kill count, motives, and M.O. still make them frightening killers. More female unsubs have been added.

Many love to believe their story is that of a fairy tale. That they can be the hero that triumphs over evil, love is found, and happily ever after is achieved. In reality, and especially in Criminal Minds, that isn’t always the case. In the Criminal Minds episode “If the Shoe Fits,” the unsub is a very dark take on a fairy tale classic. This article contains mentions of sexual assault. Criminal Minds has aired over 300 episodes in 15+ years.

In that time, only a handful of unknown subjects, dubbed UNSUBs, avoided capture by the elite Behavioral Analysis Unit. Criminal Minds regularly depicts some of the most heinous crimes on television, easily topping even the most brutal episodes of other similar series with the same genre and format. The brutality of its UNSUBs makes the capture of them that much more satisfying. On the rare occasions where the UNSUBs are not captured, fans are left with a lingering sense of dread. However, the nature of an unsolved case is a grim reality for criminal investigators. These 5 UNSUBs are still left lurking in the shadows of Criminal Minds.

"Into the Woods" follows the BAU as they take on the case of a pedophile and serial killer who uses the sprawling Appalachian Trail as his hunting ground. This UNSUB has claimed 12 victims by the time the BAU is brought onto the case, making him a major threat. The sheer length and breadth of his hunting ground make catching him a monumental task, but he has kidnapped two children, so the motivations are high. The UNSUB is revealed to be a sadistic pedophile named Shane Wyland, and he hides brother and sister Robert and Ana Brooks in an old mine shaft he has turned into a makeshift camp. Fans are heartbroken as he molests Robert, and the scared siblings make a plan of escape that Ana uses next time they're mobile. The police later recover Robert when Wyland trades him temporarily to an old friend for drugs and cash.

Horror and thrillers on television have offered many great stories and even greater villains that remain in the minds of viewers. The BAU doesn’t always get the job done (right away, at least). Over 15 seasons of the original run of Criminal Minds, the same UnSub did occasionally appear more than once. And in some cases, those offenders left a lasting impression on at least one member of the team. When better to take a look back at those than on the 20th anniversary of the series premiere (September 22, 2005)? Since then, the series has returned for a continuation, Criminal Minds: Evolution, on Paramount+, and some of those UnSubs have certainly been memorable.

But there’s nothing like going back to where it all started. And so, TV Insider has ranked the major UnSubs — some are Big Bads, while others will always be remembered by fans for the heinous acts they committed in their episodes — of the... Scroll down to see where killers like Mr. Scratch, Foyet, and Frank land. Criminal Minds, Streaming Now, Hulu and Paramount+ Shealyn Scott is a Senior Writer at Screen Rant.

40 Criminal Minds Most Evil Unsubs Cbr

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