Zach Gilford Admits There's One Thing He Hates About His Criminal Minds Role
Zach Gilford shares that Elias Voit is not an easy character to play.
In Criminal Minds: Evolution, Zachary Gilford is not only playing the direct opposite of his role in Friday Night Lights but also does something not a single Criminal Minds actor did before him.
Evolution has changed the format of the show. Instead of tackling one case per episode, the BAU now has one season-long case and one main unsub to catch. This makes the role of Elias Voit unique for the procedural. Even though some serial killers were recurring characters in the past, not a single one of them was given that much attention and screen time to develop, show their inner self.
And Voit doesn't disappoint.
The aired episodes of Evolution already proved that the character is complex and well-built. Episode 3, for example, let the viewers look into his family life and non-killer side. The character surprisingly turned out to be a good dad and non-conflicting neighbor. Seeing Voit getting fired from his job and failing to stand up to his aggressive neighbor in fear to be uncovered almost makes one forget what a ruthless killer he is and empathize with him.
Zachary Gilford told Parade that this kind of immersion in the backstory of a serial killer may even confuse the audience, make them feel for someone who is committing heinous crimes. But this confusion is a fun part of the revival, Gilford believes.
It helps to show a serial killer closer to real life featuring both their sides, a monster in a basement and a person who has to live in society.
What bothered Gilford while playing the role of Elias Voit was the scenes where he had to pretend to kill someone or wave a gun. Turns out the actor is anti-gun.
"I hate guns. So anytime in any movie I've ever been in when I have to pretend to shoot a gun, I hate it," the actor revealed to Parade.
Fortunately, the actor added that he is used to dealing with all the "icky stuff" he has to do on set and rarely takes it home with him.
Playing a person obsessed with murder is definitely a challenging task. But Zachary Gilford did a brilliant job with his portrayal of the biggest-to-date BAU enemy, all critics and fans agree.