Kirsten Vangsness

Kirsten Vangsness is an American actress known for playing the cheerful, tech-savvy Penelope Garcia on Criminal Minds (CBS, 2005–2023) and its spinoff Criminal Minds: Evolution. She has identified as queer and bisexual in interviews, and has been openly LGBTQ+ throughout her run on one of the longest-running crime procedurals in US television history. Vangsness has also written and performed in theatre and spoken about representation for queer women in mainstream network drama.