1. Background and characterization

2. Character arc
    In Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders  In Criminal Minds 

3. Character development and casting

4. References

5. External links

Matthew Simmons is a fictional character on the CBS crime drama Beyond Borders and Criminal Minds,^[1] portrayed by Daniel Henney.

Background and characterization

Simmons is of mixed Caucasian and Korean parentage (like actor Daniel Henney) and it is implied that he was ostracized by his paternal grandparents as they were against his parents' union. His late mother was born in Korea before the Korean War. According to Simmons, she had spent much of her adulthood trying to assimilate and "forget" her past, although she did teach him Korean.^[2] He is a native of Carson City, Michigan and worked in Detroit for some time before joining the FBI.^[4] He was formerly a member of the FBI's International Response Team (IRT) and has some prior history with Derek Morgan and Jennifer "JJ" Jareau of the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit.

Simmons and his wife Kristy (Kelly Frye) have four young children: sons Jake and David and twin daughters, Chloe and Lily.^[3][4] In the season 14 finale of Criminal Minds, Kristy revealed to him that she was pregnant with their fifth child.^[5] It was stated in Season 13 of Criminal Minds that the couple have been married for almost ten years.^[3] Like Jack Garrett, Simmons' full and fulfilling family life was a deliberate choice.^[6] Daniel Henney said of his character, "His big struggle is, when can I get home to see my kids and how much is my wife working?".^[6]

A United States Army veteran, little is known about Simmons' military service.^[11][12] Simmons is known for his resourcefulness and "always [has] a guy" to turn to for help whenever the team hits a dead end.^[7][8] Like most of the IRT he knows several languages and is shown to be fluent in Arabic,^[9] Spanish^[10] and Korean.^[2] Highly resourceful and adaptable, he thinks quickly on his feet and is often tasked with coordinating search and rescue efforts or navigating unfamiliar terrain.

Simmons has an eclectic variety of interests, ranging from sports to vintage cars. In the episode "Harvested", in which the team investigates a case in Mumbai, India, his knowledge of cricket, India's unofficial national sport, proves useful in building a rapport with the local police officers.^[11]

Character arc

In Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders

In the episode "Love Interrupted", Simmons was forced to shoot the UnSub to prevent the latter from killing his own young daughter in a fit of desperate rage. The UnSub had suffered a breakdown after losing his wife. He then kidnapped newlywed couples, killing and cannibalizing the groom and taking the brides as his "wives", even impregnating them. Simmons later admitted to Garrett that the case affected him more than he would like as the girl reminded him of his own daughters.^[7]

Simmons and Clara Seger made an appearance in the Criminal Minds season 12 episode "Spencer" to help out their colleagues at the BAU. Dr. Spencer Reid was imprisoned in Mexico after being found in possession of drugs. Simmons and the IRT had been in Costa Rica working a case when they received the call for help.

In the season 2 episode "Pretty Like Me", Simmons took some time off to fulfill his late mother's dying wish to find her biological mother in her birth country of South Korea. She had been left at an orphanage around the time of the Korean War and moved to the United States at some point with Simmons' father. Because of the disruption and loss of records caused by the war, she was never able to fulfill her wish before her death. Matt, however, was finally able to track down and meet his grandmother.^[2]

In Criminal Minds

Simmons was introduced to Criminal Minds in the season 13 premiere. He was brought in by Penelope Garcia to help the team after they were ambushed in the field and Emily Prentiss was kidnapped by notorious serial killer Peter Lewis ("Mr. Scratch"). When asked what he was doing at the BAU headquarters, he vaguely mentioned that he was awaiting a new assignment as the IRT had been dissolved as a result of events in the Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders episode "Blowback" – in which the IRT was targeted by Assistant Director Linda Barnes, who herself would have the BAU shut down temporarily – and is offered a position on the BAU team by Prentiss by the end of the episode. As he and JJ are the only two members of the team who are married with children they often exchange jokes about the mishaps of parenting. In the episode "Ex Parte", Simmons' wife Kristy is caught up in a hostage situation at her workplace. The usually calm and collected Simmons nearly strangles the hostage taker to death in a fit of rage but stops when Kristy tells him "It's not you", prompting her husband to let go of the criminal and arrest him instead.^[12]

In the season 14 episode "Rule 34", it is revealed that Kristy had been going for therapy due to trauma from the hostage incident. Their son David is suspended from school after physically lashing out at a friend over a comment regarding cop shows. He admits to his parents that his classmate losing her mother brought about fears for his own parents' safety, especially his father's, given the dangerous nature of his job.^[13]

Character development and casting

Henney stated that he had accepted the role as it was a departure from Asian stereotypes perpetuated by Hollywood and the American entertainment industry.^[14] In an interview with August Man, he described his character as "a really interesting character for an Asian-American actor to play because it's never been done before."^[15]

In both shows, Simmons is one of two main characters on the show who is happily married with children, the other being his supervisor Jack Garrett (Gary Sinise) on Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders and Jennifer "JJ" Jareau on Criminal Minds. Showrunner Erica Messer noted that both Matt Simmons and Jack Garrett share similarities and, in conceiving Simmons as a younger agent with both a successful career and family life, hoped "to show that this kind of lifestyle can work".^[6]

References

External links

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20170225220841/http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0508218/ Matt Simmons] on IMDb

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