'Criminal Minds' season 12 release date, spoilers news: Can Reid make it without Morgan? Morgan's departure to cause more fallout?

The season 11 finale of "Criminal Minds" saw Derek Morgan (Shemar Moore) leaving FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU). Now, it looks like the most affected by his departure is teammate and friend Dr. Spencer Reid (Matthew Gray Gubler).

Morgan decided to leave BAU after a harrowing experience with a deadly kidnapper. The incident could have affected him tremendously, so much so that he decided to get out of the BAU so he could focus on his family.

The production has since tapped Adam Rodriguez to replace Moore.

However, according to showrunner Erica Messer, Reid would have a hard time accepting the fact that Morgan is gone from the team for good.

"We will touch on it again because it is real," the showrunner told TV Guide. "You just don't get over losing your best friend at work. That is something that changes your day. You adapt, you move on and life goes on. It is not like he's lost him from his life forever; he can always call Morgan. I don't know how much we'll play it actively, but it is one more layer that we can tap into in season 12."

Deadline noted that Rodriguez' character will come in specifically to fill in the hole that Morgan's departure left. Given Reid's closeness to Morgan, it would be interesting to see how he would accept the newcomer. There's a possibility that he would welcome his friend's replacement with outright hostility.

It looks like Rodriguez' character would have to work doubly hard to make friends with the rest of the team. The whole team is still reeling from Morgan's exit, seeing as how they've grown close as a family over time. As Carter Matt said, it would be interesting to see how Reid would finally accept reality and if he could find it in him to strike up a friendship with the new guy.

"Criminal Minds" season 12 premieres Wednesday, Sept. 28, at 8 p.m. on CBS.