‘Criminal Minds: Evolution’ Season 1 Ending, Explained: What Does ‘Gold Star’ Mean?
The finale of Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 1, also known as Criminal Minds Season 16, introduces a mysterious phrase that puts the FBI on edge: “Gold Star.” As the case surrounding serial killer Elias Voit (Zach Gilford) continues, it seems Gold Star will be significant in Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 2. But what, exactly, does it mean? We don’t have all the answers yet, but here’s what we know about Gold Star so far.
[Spoiler alert: The following story contains spoilers for Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 1 Episode 10, “Dead End.”]
‘Gold Star’ comes into play in the ‘Criminal Minds: Evolution’ Season 1 finale
In the season 1 finale, the BAU finally catches up to Voit, a.k.a. Sicarius. However, before they can take him down, they must ensure the safety of David Rossi (Joe Mantegna), whom Voit kidnapped in episode 9. Emily Prentiss (Paget Brewster) also has to deal with some limitations set by the Attorney General, Louise Davis (Monnae Michaell). The BAU slowly realizes that Voit has more leverage with the FBI than they ever imagined.
The first mention of “Gold Star” comes when Voit insists on speaking to FBI Deputy Director Bailey (Nicholas D’Agosto). He says that Bailey is the type of man who likes gold stars, which puts Bailey on alert.
Bailey then speaks privately to the AG and Rebecca (Nicole Pacent) about his conversation with Voit. He tells them that Voit knows about Gold Star. The three of them immediately discuss ways to keep Gold Star under wraps, including letting Voit go, even if it means Rossi and Voit’s family would die. (Thankfully, none of them do. Voit is captured and brought into FBI custody.)
What is ‘Gold Star’ in ‘Criminal Minds: Evolution’?
Gold Star must be something the government sees as more important than putting away a serial killer. It’s not clear how Voit knows about whatever it is, but he says that he and Bailey are the only two people that know about it. Bailey even directly confronts Voit about it and gets killed in the process. At the end of the episode, Voit is taken into an interrogation room by special forces, where an unseen person comes to speak with him. The AG, perhaps? Whoever it is, they’ll probably speak to him about Gold Star.
It’s possible that Gold Star is the code name for a highly-classified government case or project. One connection Voit already has to the government is Benjamin Reeves (Luke Benward) and his mother, the late Senator Martha Reeves (Beth Broderick). Perhaps Voit found out about Gold Star through his work with Benjamin.
Fans already have theories on Gold Star
Many Criminal Minds: Evolution fans are already hard at work trying to figure out what Gold Star is and how Voit knows about it. One fan on Reddit suggested that he worked for the government on a project when he was going by his birth name, Lee Duval.
“Lee did something with encryption for a living and had government contacts/jobs(?). So it has to obviously do with encryption and it’s something the government doesn’t want out and doesn’t want to put Lee into a regular prison,” the Redditor wrote. “But the government also seems like they don’t want to get rid of Lee as it got him a meeting with someone very, very important (last scene).”
In another discussion thread, one fan said Voit’s knowledge of Gold Star could be how he managed to get away with killing people for so long. Another person suggested Voit could be a “CIA spook” — an assassin.
‘Criminal Minds: Evolution’ Season 2 will explore the mystery of Gold Star
Thankfully, all our questions about Gold Star should be answered in Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 2, which was renewed in early January. Showrunner Erica Messer confirmed the writers are working on the Gold Star story right now.
“I can say that Voit clearly thinks knowing that phrase is going to be helpful for him in some kind of negotiating,” she told TVLine. “And then the bigger mystery is, why does he know that? What is it that got our dear beloved deputy director killed? There’s not a whole lot of clues you could look for from previous seasons, but there will be some things that we introduced in season 16 that will come into play regarding Gold Star for later.”
Messer also confirmed that Gold Star will be a focus in the first half of Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 2, and then things will … “evolve” from there.
All episodes of Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 1 are now streaming on Paramount+. Stay tuned to Showbiz Cheat Sheet for updates on season 2.
