Who Is Elias Voit On Criminal Minds: Evolution (& How Do Fans Really Feel About Him)?

Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3 is now streaming on Paramount+, which means the terrifying Elias Voit (Zach Gilford) is back on viewers’ screens. The season 3 premiere had a shocking ending that sets up the next nine episodes, and the Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) of the FBI, once again, has their work cut out for them. Premiering on CBS in 2005, Criminal Minds ran for 15 seasons before being rebooted as Evolution in 2022. While the new show focuses on a single case for longer than the original did, it shares the same dark and disturbing tone.

Criminal Minds has always delved into violent and dangerous characters while sharing the intelligent team members who try to take them down and stop them from causing more harm. Elias Voit is a particularly complicated and interesting character, but who is he, and what do fans think about him?

Who Is Zach Gilford’s Criminal Minds Character Elias Voit?

Elias Voit, whose real name is Lee Duval, is a serial killer introduced in Criminal Minds: Evolution season 1 (or Criminal Minds season 16). Fans first see him in season 1, episode 1, “Just Getting Started,” and learn he has a wife and two daughters. Voit has a terrifying network of killers, called unsubs, and the season focuses on the BAU trying to pin the murders on him. At the end of Criminal Minds: Evolution season 1, Voit has been arrested, and in the season 2 finale, someone attacks him in prison. As the BAU looks into Voit, they prove they’re still as intelligent, determined, and quick-thinking as ever. It’s also compelling seeing David Rossi (Joe Mantegna) interact with Voit since it’s clear that Rossi will feel personally responsible if he can’t take Voit down. Like a horror villain with a long and disturbing backstory, viewers learn Voit was abused by his uncle, who was also a serial killer.

The BAU figures out that Voit is Sicarius, and even though he’s in a coma for most of the Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3 premiere and has been for six months, he’s still horrifying. Adam Rodriguez, who plays Luke Alvez, called the season premiere “dark and completely diabolical evil,” and that’s the perfect description for Voit. He’s a particularly layered character since, unlike beloved star Matthew Gray Gubler who played smart and awkward Spencer Reid, he has no redeemable qualities. But Voit is captivating and impossible to look away from.

Zach Gilford is known for playing teenage football star Matt Saracen on the NBC drama Friday Night Lights, and playing a serial killer is definitely a change from his usual parts. He shared in an interview with Us Weekly that his “goal” is to “make the audience like me” when he’s playing a role. He said he’s “lucky” to be part of the show and explained the nuance of Voit’s character, which is what makes him so compelling. The actor explained that viewers see Voit with his family and all his murders happen offscreen, it almost makes it hard to remember that he’s a violent criminal. Gilford said:

How Do Fans Feel About Criminal Minds Character Elias Voit?

Some fans are happy to watch Elias Voit for as long as he stays on Criminal Minds, and several discussed the memorable villain in a Reddit thread. Redditor @emmamason2324 wrote:

Others aren’t so sure that Voit should continue to be the main focus. One of the biggest changes the Criminal Minds reboot made was featuring a major case for an entire season instead of the weekly procedural formula seen in many other shows. In Voit’s case, the BAU has been trying to take him down for several seasons. Some fans aren’t sure that they like the changes. Redditor @OOkami89 wrote:

Redditor @Valenstein77 is uncertain that Voit should have been a regular focus in Criminal Minds: Evolution season 2. They wrote: