Thomas Gibson is no longer a cast member on Criminal Minds.
But that doesn’t mean we’re done talking about Thomas Gibson and/or what led to his departure from Criminal Minds.
In news that loyal fans of this CBS drama still are having difficulty processing, Gibson was fired from his role as Aaron Hotchner this summer after allegedly attacking a writer on set.
He appeared in the first two episodes of Criminal Minds Season 12, but will not be seen on the hit series again.
Over the weekend, Virgil Williams, the writer with whom Gibson clashed, hosted an interactive workshop for students aspiring to work in the entertainment industry.
As part of an interview with People Magazine at the event, he addressed what went down with Gibson.
“He came to me with a line change that he wanted,” Williams said, explaining:
“I felt that change would have hurt the story, but I offered him [an alternative] fix. He didn’t accept the fix and walked off.”
Shortly this exchange, an heated more heated conversation took place between Williams and Gibson, according to the former, who added that Gibson kicked him in the shin as he walked by.
It was the elevation of a verbal argument into a physical confrontation that led to Gibson’s departure.
Previously, however, Gibson had told People a different story.
“He came into that room and started coming towards me,” Gibson said in September of Williams.
“As he brushed past me, my foot came up and tapped him on the leg. If I hadn’t moved, he would have run into me.
“We had some choice words, for which I apologized the next day, and that was it. It was over. We shot the scene, I went home – and I never got to go back.”
Gibson says he was then informed of a two-week suspension, which turned into a firing just a couple days after news of the suspension went viral.
Since his departure, Criminal Minds has seen a decrease in ratings, while a Twitter campaign (#NoHotchNoWatch) has been launched in attempt to get his character, special agent Aaron Hotchner, back on the drama.
Don’t expect that to happen any time soon, though, if at all.
At the aforementioned gathering in Los Angeles, Williams admitted that he misses Hotchner because he “got to write” him as a character.
Moreover, because the alleged kick and subsequent firing took place while filming had begun on new episodes, everything happened very quickly.
Williams also told People that writing off Gibson “hasn’t been smooth, adding:
“It was very abrupt. But we tried to do it seamlessly and move on. We’re going to keep moving forward and we’re going to keep telling great stories.”
To all those people who are demanding the return of Gibson, perhaps you ought to step back and acknowledge that happened.
This isn’t some conspiracy. No show wants to lose its lead actor.
But if he was truly violent on set? If he truly created a hostile work environment? If he truly harassed and abused writers for not giving in to his demands?
Well… how are you protesting this or complaining about it? How is there any argument over whether or not he had to be let go?