Collider recently got the opportunity to chat one-on-one with Adam Rodriguez, who plays field agent Luke Alvez, about the emotional journey his character is on this season, having suffered a loss that\u2019s deeply gutting. During the interview, he discussed the huge challenge of working with his canine co-star, connecting with a troubled UnSub (guest star Richard Cabral), casting Heated Rivalry<\/a> star Connor Storrie for Episode 4, which he also directed, why Storrie\u2019s role expanded beyond the one episode it was originally set to be, and what\u2019s still to come for Alvez.<\/p>\n Collider: The storyline with Luke that carried over the first two episodes, where we didn\u2019t know what was going on with him, felt like something was happening directly to him, and then it felt like something happening with a person close to him, and then we learned about his dog, Roxy. Was it intentionally set up that way?<\/p>\n ADAM RODRIGUEZ: I would say it was just great storytelling. It was a way to get everybody invested and make it feel personal, although it was not. We just wanted to get fans really on the ride with us right out of the gate. And then, the turn that it takes is a heavy one. Hopefully, people enjoy going on the ride with us.<\/p>\n I was just glad you were not suddenly leaving the show. <\/p>\n RODRIGUEZ: Me too. Oh, my God! I would have been crushed. I don\u2019t want that news.<\/p>\n Adam Rodriguez Found It Challenging To Get Emotional With His Canine Co-Star in \u2018Criminal Minds: Evolution\u2019 Season 19<\/p>\n “I’m always intimidated by those scenes.”<\/p>\n When you bond with a dog, it\u2019s sad anytime you have to say goodbye. But the bond between soldiers and their canine partner is even more special. What was it like to figure out how to shoot those moments and to really tell story with them, with a scene partner that can\u2019t speak? <\/p>\n RODRIGUEZ: It\u2019s really a challenge, honestly. It\u2019s a huge challenge. Just as an actor, for me personally \u2013 other actors may have an easier time with it \u2013 the emotional scenes have always been challenging. I don\u2019t access that state very often. Not that I\u2019m not connected to my emotions. I am. It just takes a lot for me to get there. It has to be something deep. It\u2019s very hard to fake that for me. It\u2019s my job, of course, as an actor, but it\u2019s hard for me to get there. I\u2019m always intimidated by those scenes because I\u2019m like, \u201cShit, am I going to be able to get there? Am I going to be able to show up and deliver on that?\u201d And that\u2019s exciting because I personally love a challenge.<\/p>\n It\u2019s like, \u201cOkay, it\u2019s game time, man. Are you going to be able to put the ball in the end zone or what?\u201d That always triggers a bunch of preparation and a bunch of work that has to go on mentally, mostly, to get prepared for those things. And then, you step in on those days when you have to shoot those scenes, and you\u2019ve got cameras in your face, and other experts in their fields, whether it\u2019s a focus puller or a sound person, or just someone in the background that makes a noise that could blow a take, and you\u2019ve got to deliver on those things, again and again and again. You\u2019ve got to stay in a certain mental state while all these things arise.<\/p>\n And then, you\u2019ve got an emotional moment to play with a dog, and dogs, by trade, are not actors. As much as you can train an animal, it is really difficult to get a dog to stay still or to recreate a behavior that the trainer might be trying to get them to do. These trainers are wonderful, and they can get it right in rehearsal, but then once the cameras roll, sometimes the dog has a mind of its own. It\u2019s going to do what it wants to do in those moments, and it doesn\u2019t really care that there are 150 to 200 people depending on this dog. You\u2019ve got all of these obstacles to face, and that\u2019s what makes it fun and makes it a celebration when you finally get it right. Luckily, we had a great director on that episode, a guy named Anthony Viietro, who is normally our director of photography on the show. He\u2019s been directing for us now, for the last two seasons, and he\u2019s just done a tremendous job. I was so glad he was the director for that episode. I thought we all did something I\u2019m proud of, at the end of the day.<\/p>\n I will admit that I was mad at Penelope Garcia for a minute because I thought she didn\u2019t know what was going on with Luke. So, I was glad that she actually did know and could be there for him. <\/p>\n RODRIGUEZ: You know that\u2019s my girl! She knows.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n Related<\/p>\n \t\t After nearly two decades, the show still has the ability to surprise us.<\/p>\n Your character also connects with Richard Cabral\u2019s character in a way that other people in that episode don\u2019t. What was it like to find that final scene that you share with him?<\/p>\n RODRIGUEZ: Oh, man. First of all, Richard is a tremendous actor. He\u2019s a really soulful human being. He\u2019s got a deep soul, and he brings that to his performances in everything that I\u2019ve seen him in. He\u2019s a standout. I was really excited to get to work with him and happy that he was my scene partner in those scenes because. Connecting to each other happened very naturally, and it comes across in those scenes. We\u2019re two people that are both experiencing a tremendous amount of pain, and some of it through similar experiences, and yet we\u2019ve both chosen really different paths in how to squash that pain in some way to alleviate it. We end up in this moment together where we\u2019re complete strangers, and yet he\u2019s somebody that I feel close enough and connected enough to, to share something that I hadn\u2019t shared with any other friend or any other character.<\/p>\n I just didn\u2019t think anybody else would be able to understand, other than this guy that I\u2019m trying to convince to stand down and not hurt somebody else. Again, that\u2019s a testament to Anthony Viietro for letting those scenes play the way that he did and not forcing them or rushing them. He allowed us to really get there and find that connection that made that meaningful. Aside from the moment when you find out what I\u2019m dealing with, in terms of loss, that scene is the moment that matters the most in that episode. That connection reveals the most about Luke and about a lot of other soldiers, more than anything else. I loved that scene. I really enjoyed working with Richard.<\/p>\n Adam Rodriguez Is Responsible for Casting \u2018Heated Rivalry\u2019 Star Connor Storrie in \u2018Criminal Minds: Evolution\u2019 Season 19<\/p>\n “I was like, ‘This guy’s my first choice.’ I needed something that was dangerous in appearance but could also be vulnerable.”<\/p>\n Much is also being made of the fact that Connor Storrie is guest starring this season because, all of a sudden, he\u2019s a big deal. Apparently, we\u2019ll meet him in Episode 4, which you also directed.<\/p>\n RODRIGUEZ: Yeah, that is true. I cast Connor from my episode. April Webster is our casting director. She\u2019s incredible. Anytime I\u2019ve directed, there\u2019s always great talent to look at, and I love that part. I love the casting process, almost as much as I love directing actors. I love watching people\u2019s tapes. April had sent some tapes and Connor, for me, popped out immediately. I was like, \u201cThis guy\u2019s my first choice.” I needed somebody that was dangerous in appearance but could also be vulnerable. I really felt like he embodied what I was looking for, not just physically, but in his performance. He gave a great performance. Not everybody saw it that way, but fortunately, myself and (showrunner) Erica Messer both did, and Erica supported that in a way that we were able to push it through. And so, we cast Connor, and gladly. He came in and turned out to be a really nice guy. He was just a pleasure to be around. He was very well liked by everybody \u2013 make-up, hair, and everybody. He has a great personality. And then, his career exploded like it did, in what seemed overnight. We shot his stuff last summer, and by the fall, his show had come out, and he was just off to the races. It was unbelievable. I\u2019m really happy for the guy. I hope he\u2019s enjoying himself and I hope he is able to sustain that for a long time.<\/p>\n You were probably like, \u201cSee, I know what I\u2019m doing when it comes to casting.\u201d<\/p>\n RODRIGUEZ: Listen, I do have confidence in my taste. I can spot talent, for sure.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n Related<\/p>\n \t\t ‘Heated Rivalry’ has surged in popularity, and it’s easy to see why.\n<\/p>\n Since this show has come back, you\u2019ve had a few characters that started as one-off appearances and then expanded in ways that weren\u2019t expected, whether that\u2019s with Connor Storrie this season or Elias Voit in your first season back. Is that because your showrunner, Erica Messer just gives the characters room to breathe and grow?<\/p>\n RODRIGUEZ: I think it\u2019s the luxury of being on the streamer, as well. I think what\u2019s so cool is that we had this format for the longest time on CBS for 15 seasons, we had to wrap the episodes up in 42 to 45 minutes. You only have so much time to hit all the beats you need to get to the end of the episode. But now, on the streamer, we\u2019ve got another 15 or 20 extra minutes of screen time that we can actually use to develop these characters further. We can see more of our BAU regulars and get to know them personally in a deeper way, and then we actually get to explore the minds of these killers in a way that we didn\u2019t quite have time for before. That really is what\u2019s always been so fascinating to me about the show. What makes these people tick? Why are they the way they are? I want to know more about that. And now, all of a sudden, we have the time to do that, and to extend characters that come along and pop, which happened for Connor. Connor came in, did a great job, and it was like, \u201cThis character has more life. Let\u2019s spread this out a little bit and see more from this person.\u201d<\/p>\n Luke Alvez Will Continue To Process Loss in Season 19 of \u2018Criminal Minds: Evolution\u2019<\/p>\n “As hard as that is, you see him grow.”<\/p>\n What would you say to tease what\u2019s coming for Luke after these first two episodes? What are we going to continue to see from him this season?<\/p>\n RODRIGUEZ: You\u2019ll continue to see Luke process loss. Like it is for everybody that is processing loss and not letting it bury them, as hard as that is, you see him grow. You do start to see that with the help of Garcia and the rest of the team. That\u2019s what friends and family do for you. They help lift you up and keep you going, and I think you\u2019ll see that\u2026 It\u2019s a great season. There are so many layers to it. We never want to let the fans down. After 19 seasons, you\u2019ve actually got to work harder to make things right for the fans<\/a>, and I can tell you, we are in there every day, doing our very best, because we really appreciate the fans showing up and keeping the show going. That\u2019s the feedback we wait for, and we\u2019re hoping you love it. We think you will, and we\u2019re hoping that you do.<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t‘Criminal Minds: Evolution’ Is Finally Going Back to Its Psychological Thriller Roots With Season 4 | Review
\n\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Connor](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/heated-rivalry-1.jpg\"\/)
\n Connor Storrie as Ilya sitting on the couch and looking at his phone in Episode 5 of Heated RivalryImage via Crave\/HBO<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\tConnor Storrie Is Officially the Next Great Leading Man Thanks to This 2-Minute ‘Heated Rivalry’ Scene
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\n Adam Rodriguez as Luke Alvez holding up a gun and a flashlight in Criminal Minds: EvolutionImage via Paramount+<\/p>\n
![\"A.J.](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/criminal-minds-evolution-season-19-1.jpg\"\/)
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