Well-known actors often start their careers with minor roles before making it big. Many actors from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, for example, began acting as kids in various films and theater productions. But what fans may not know is that some of their favorite actors got their start playing dangerous criminals on the TV show Criminal Minds.

Andrew Jackson, known for his voice work in animated shows like Rusty Rivets, portrayed Tim Vogel, also known as "The Seattle Strangler," in the first episode of Criminal Minds. Michael Massee, who appeared in films like The Amazing Spider-Man 2, played Jacob Dawes, a sexual psychopath connected to at least 18 victims.

Other actors who had early roles on Criminal Minds include Lukas Haas as The Footpath Killer, Timothy Omundson as Phillip Dowd, Jason O'Mara as The Mill Creek Killer, DJ Qualls as Richard Slessman, Finn Wittrock as Harvey Morell, Adrianne Palicki as Sydney Manning, Cameron Monaghan as Jeffrey Charles, David Ramsey as Terrance Wakeland, Katheryn Winnick as Maggie Lowe, and Audrey Plaza as Cat Adams.

These early roles on Criminal Minds helped launch the careers of these talented actors who have since gone on to work on a variety of projects in the entertainment industry.