"Criminal Minds" Season 12 returns after a two-week hiatus on Wednesday, March 15 with a brand new episode 16 titled "Assistance is Futile". Showrunner Erica Messer shared some details on what to expect plus, the official plot description and promo trailer clip have been released.

"Criminal Minds" Season 12 is doing a serialized arc for the first time after its 2-week hiatus. That said, showrunner Erica Messer explained the reason behind choosing to put the BAU's finest profiler through the grinder.

Messer told TV Line, "It's such a fun thing for us to do on this show because as you know we've never done anything this big of an arc for this long. And to take our most vulnerable hero and put him in the last place you'd ever want him to be had I think got people talking, which is great. We want that."

The hope was that people will have to tune in, because it's something serialized, and it's with one of the fan favorites. So if anything, we're certainly hoping this sort of puts that [decline] to rest and gets people back watching."

As for the official plot synopsis of episode 16, Spoilers Guide notes, "A mother steps forward with valuable information for the Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) to aid in their investigation of an unsub known as the bone crusher. Also, Spencer Reid (Matthew Gray Gubler) must adapt to a new set of rules in prison life."

Furthermore, the promo of the upcoming episode shows a group of criminals entering Reid's cell. Before that, Shaw tells him that you're either predator or prey in jail.

"Criminal Minds" Season 12 episode 16 is titled as "Assistance is Futile". The upcoming episode is scheduled to premiere on Wednesday, March 15, 2017, at 10:00 p.m. EST first and exclusive on CBS Television Network.

"Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders" is an American police procedural series created by Erica Messer that airs on CBS. The show is produced by The Mark Gordon Company in association with CBS Television Studios and ABC Studios.

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