Television October 21, 2015
Joe Mantegna on the Real-Life Inspiration Behind His 'Criminal Minds' Character
“Crime Watch Daily” host Matt Doran caught up with Joe Mantegna on the set of “Criminal Minds,” where he talked about naming his character on the hit show.
Joe revealed that he named his character after a real-life police officer. "David Rossi — you know, I named him after the very first policeman, who testified in the O.J. Simpson trial. These defense attorneys beat this guy up for two days, and I just thought he conducted himself so politely and so professionally. I said, ‘Someday I'm gonna name a character after this guy.’"
A new episode of “Criminal Minds” airs tonight on CBS.
