The writer-producer involved in an altercation with Thomas Gibson that led to his suspension in "Criminal Minds" season 12 has opened up about the incident.
Virgil Williams spoke to People about what led to the actor's departure from the show, and it all started with a line that Gibson wanted to change.
"He came to me with a line change that he wanted. Because of this particular episode, the change that he wanted hurt the story," Williams explained.
"I offered him a fix. He didn't accept the fix. He said, 'Fix it so I'm happy' and then walked off," he went on to say, adding that another tense conversation with the former "Criminal Minds" star followed.
Williams then decided to take the issue to the showrunner to resolve it, but Gibson kicked him in the shin as he walked by him. This, as fans know it, led to "Criminal Minds" season 12 being the actor's final run as Aaron Hotchner.
Interestingly, this is not how it happened according to Gibson, who explained that after Williams rejected the line change and he returned to the set, the writer "started coming towards" him.
"As he brushed past me, my foot came up and tapped him on the leg. If I hadn't moved, he would have run into me. We had some choice words, for which I apologized the next day, and that was it. It was over. We shot the scene, I went home—and I never got to go back," the actor went on to say.
Gibson only appeared in the first two episodes of "Criminal Minds" season 12 and was written off by having his character take on a separate mission that will require his focus and time.
Fans have threatened to boycott the show following Gibson's exit, which gave birth to the #NoHotchNoWatch Twitter campaign. Williams, on the other hand, has no plans to work with the actor again but hopes for the best for him.
Meanwhile, Gibson's absence in "Criminal Minds" season 12 is filled in by Paget Brewster, who returns as a series regular for her role as Emily Prentiss. She was originally going to appear in several episodes only.
"Criminal Minds" season 12 will be back with a new episode, "Elliot's Pond," tomorrow, Nov. 16 at 9 p.m. ET on CBS.
