Profiler

Profiler
Premiere	September 21, 1996
Finale	July 1, 2000
Creator	Cynthia Saunders
Network/Provider	NBC
Style	60-minute crime drama
Company	Three Putt Productions (seasons 3-4), Sander/Moses Productions, NBC Studios
Distributor	Carsey-Werner Distribution (1999- )
Seasons	4
Episodes	83
Origin	USA

Profiler is a crime drama that aired on NBC.

Dr. Samantha "Sam" Waters (Ally Walker) is a forensic psychologist working for the FBI's Violent Crimes Task Force based in Atlanta, Georgia. She is a "profiler"; she has a unique gift to "see" through the eyes of others which gives Sam a special insight into the workings of the criminal mind. While she performs all of her duties diligently, her real motive lies in a both professional and personal tragedy years earlier in which her husband was murdered by a serial killer known only as Jack of All Trades (played by Dennis Christopher, who was never fully seen until the middle of the third season, when he first appeared posing as a buffoonish sheriff of a small California town). Sam is part of an elite team of pros led by her mentor, Bailey Malone (Robert Davi), and that also includes Detective John Grant (Julian McMahon), computer hacker George Fraley (Peter Frechette), and forensic pathologist Grace Alvarez (Roma Maffia). Together, they solve the toughest of cases. She lives in a former firefighter station, guarded 24/7, with her seven-year-old daughter Chloe Waters (Caitlin Wachs), and her best friend Angel Brown (Erica Gimpel), an artist.

Other characters included Michael Whaley playing Nathan Brubaker who appeared throughout season one; a detective who was a former defense attorney. Shiek Mahmoud-Bey played Marcus Payton in season two who was an FBI agent skeptical of Sam's methods. A Martinez, who had previously worked with Ally Walker on the NBC daytime serial Santa Barbara, appeared occasionally in the first and second seasons playing Nick Cooper, an ATF bomb disposal expert who was Sam Waters love interest, who was later murdered by Jack. Heather McComb appeared frequently in the first and second seasons as Frances Malone, the wayward and rebellious teenage daughter of Bailey Malone. Traci Lords appeared throughout the second season playing a violent, ex-convict named Sharon Lesher, who became the serial killer Jill of All Trades after she was recruited by Jack.

In season three, the VCTF finally closed in on Jack, whose name was revealed to be Donald Lucas (played by Mark Rolston). With Jack finally in custody (so it seemed), Sam and her daughter Chloe (now played by Evan Rachel Wood) moved out of the fortress-like firehouse where they had lived for the past two years and into a fancy house in the Atlanta suburbs. Sam had a brief romance with Paul Sterling (John Mese), a district attorney prosecuting Donald Lucas, while Sam also dealt with her estranged father Walter Anderson (Lawrence Pressman) who had some kind of connection to the imprisoned Donald Lucas. But as it turned out, the arrest of Donald Lucas was a ploy by the real Jack of All Trades (whose real name was revealed in one episode in season two to be Albert Newquay) who had in fact escaped yet again and was revealed to be in hiding in a small California town playing a sheriff, named Ed Boast.

In season four, after finally stopping Jack, Sam retired from the VCTF, being replaced by a new forensic psychologist, Rachel Burke (Jamie Luner). Rachel was a former FBI instructor at Quantico who also had Sam Waters' skill of profiling. But unlike Sam, Rachel had a very brusque take-charge manner that alienated some of the team members. Rachel had her own life problems of being single and dealing with her self-destructive younger brother, Danny, who died from a drug overdose near the end of the season. Late in the season, the show established a new overarching villain, a shadowy urban legend named Damian Kennasas. Gregory Itzin also had a recurring role as Joel Marks, an unstable FBI agent who stalked Rachel. As the series came to an end, it appeared that the elite VCTF team might be shut down by the U.S. Congress for the high funds it took to operate.

Cast

Actor	Character	Duration
Main Cast		1	2	3	4
Ally Walker	Dr. Sam Waters	*	*	*	*
Robert Davi	Bailey Malone	*	*	*	*
Julian McMahon	John Grant	*	*	*	*
Roma Maffia	Grace Alvarez	*	*	*	*
Michael Whaley	Nathan Brubaker	*
Peter Frechette	George Findley	*	*	*	*
Erica Gimpel	Angel Brown	*	*	o	o
Caitlin Wachs	Chloe Waters	*	*
Evan Rachel Wood				o	o
Dennis Christopher	Jack of All Trades	o	*	*	o
Heather McComb	Frances Malone		*
Sheik Mahmud-Bey	Marcus Payton		*
Traci Lords	Sharon Lesher		*
Jamie Luner	Rachel Burke				*
Orange/Red/o indicates a recurring or guest role during that season. Dark Green indicates top billing during that season.
Supporting/Recurring Cast		1	2	3	4
A Martinez	Nick "Coop" Cooper	*

Seasons

Season	Premiere	Finale				#
NBC
Season One	September 21, 1996	May 10, 1997				22
Season Two	November 1, 1997	May 9, 1998				20
Season Three	October 17, 1998	June 5, 1999				21
Season Four	September 25, 1999	July 1, 2000				20

In-Depth

• At a Glance: Additional information about the series

DVD Releases

Title			Release			Discs
Season Sets  (Region 1)
Season 1			July 29, 2003	purchase		6
Season 2			November 25, 2003	purchase		6
Season 3			April 27, 2004	purchase		6
Season 4			October 26, 2004	purchase		5

External Links

• opening credits for season 1on YouTube