Jamison Jones Talks About Bringing Tom Milliken to Life on Criminal Minds: Evolution

Joining a show like Criminal Minds: Evolution, where the characters have been established for a long time, and the fans have their favorites, must not be an easy task for an actor. Jamison Jones took on the challenge and stepped into the shoes of Tom Milliken to play around with the BAU for a few episodes.

Truth be told, Jones isn’t a stranger to joining shows that have been on the air for a while. On the contrary, as soon as he steps into the BAU, you might recognize him from his guest star roles on shows like CSI: NY, NCIS, Crossing Jordan, Alias, General Hospital, and 9-1-1.

I recently spoke with Jamison Jones about his role on Criminal Minds: Evolution and what that’s been like for him as an actor.

Joining the BAU and Creating a Character

As a viewer and a critic, I’ve always wondered what it’s like for actors to join a show that, like Criminal Minds: Evolution, has been on the air for over a decade. Lucky for me, Jones solved the mystery by sharing that he always tries to integrate himself as well as possible by watching previous seasons, getting to know the work of the actors involved, and bringing something unique and individual.

While he believes it’s important for guest actors to bring something to the character that will make them stand out, he recognized the show is about the series regulars, and that’s why people watch it.

“[The] guest-starring cast always serves to somehow give that series regular a problem. What does Tom Milliken offer Luke Alvez in this particular situation that mirrors what’s going on in his life or gives him a problem that he has to solve?” Jones said.

“So I think the best you can do is create a real, believable, three-dimensional character that can serve a purpose in the story.”

Considering that viewers only get glimpses of these guest stars and the characters they bring to life, one can’t help but wonder whether the actors portraying them have a backstory in their minds.

Jones confirmed that in his case, he always creates something bigger than what’s given to him in the script. He is a strong believer that whether you’re doing a TV show or Shakespeare, you should always elevate the material.

When it comes to the script, Jones knows it’s very limited because they have to bring everything down to the dialogue without digging too much into what the characters might be feeling or how they will react. However, Jones mentioned that it was helpful to speak with Breen Frazier, who wrote the episode he is part of.

“He [Frazier] offered me some insights about Tom Milliken that may or may not have been clearly articulated in the script, so it gave me some opportunities to hear what his thoughts were beyond what was in the script. I always go in and build outside of that. Take the cues from the script and build as much as I can outside of what’s been put on the page.”

What Should We Expect of Tom Milliken?

While we know that Jones returns for Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 3 Episode 5, “Friendly Fire,” I had to ask him if Tom Milliken is the kind of character he would like to revisit as an actor and see more of. His answer had a lot to do with Milliken’s relationship with Luke Alvez and what he could bring to this character’s storyline.

“I think it’s exciting to think about where else this could potentially go outside of this particular thing. Tom comes to the BAU with a very specific issue he’s dealing with, and we try to solve it. And then he comes back, and there’s something else going on in the next episode that we don’t quite expect,” he teased.

“I think there are endless possibilities as to where things like this could go, whether you’re flashing back or flashing forward, or you’re living in the present moment.”

My conversation with Jones happened before the episode aired, and he mentioned he was very excited about the next one and the way his character would bring a turn of events for the show and the characters we love.

He hinted that there would be an exciting twist that not even he expected when reading the first script. After “Friendly Fire” aired, it became clear that the twist was Milliken’s behavior and his murder.

Jones saw Milliken as a straightforward man who was coming to the BAU to ask for help because something horrible was happening to men he knew or could relate to. But now, “We come to this particular episode, and it’s something we don’t expect,” Jones reiterated.

“So that was thrilling for me as the actor playing the part. You don’t really know where it’s going until you get that next script, and you say, ‘Oh, well, this is unexpected,’ and actually pretty exciting.”

Is He the Bad Guy, or is He Dying?

Over the years, Criminal Minds: Evolution has made it very clear that if a guest star joins the show for more than one episode, they will either be the bad guy or die. So, of course, we couldn’t help but wonder if that was the future Jones’s character was destined for. When I mentioned this to Jones, he laughed as if I had hit the target.

But because our conversation happened before Thursday, June 18, Jones didn’t want to give too much away. All he told me was that the episode allowed both him and the audience to explore this character and realize he might not be as straightforward as we thought at the beginning.

While many times guest stars serve the purpose of expanding the storyline or helping a specific character grow, there was something more exciting about coming back to play Milliken again.

“To have something come back that was really sort of Tom’s own thing is kind of cool,” Jones said. “It does serve as a problem for the main cast of characters to deal with, but it’s very different than what I expected.”

Before our conversation ended, I had to ask Jones about his experience joining different shows and how the Criminal Minds: Evolution experience compared. The first thing he mentioned was that this is the longest-running show he’s been part of, and, to honor the show’s journey, he tried to watch as much of it as possible.

However, he quickly realized there was a world beyond the show. 

“What was more important was really to kind of focus in on what’s happening in this particular situation, what’s happening with this particular group of people, and how can I serve that story,” Jones remarked.

“And also give this Luke Alvez character a friend. He seems like a bit of a loner in the show. He’s got a dog as a friend, so it’s great that we see into the past of his life and say, ‘Oh, look, he did have a friend, he does have a friend.'”

But after everything Jones shared before we had a chance to watch the episode, we can’t help but wonder how that friendship will truly affect Luke.

Criminal Minds: Evolution airs Thursdays at 3/2 am on Paramount+.

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