NBC has renewed The Blacklist for season 10. James Spader stars in and produces the critically-acclaimed crime drama, which has been enjoying a successful run since its debut in 2013. In The Blacklist, Spader's Raymond "Red" Reddington is a high-profile criminal who secures immunity from prosecution by exchanging information about other master criminals with the FBI. Red works with the FBI profiler Elizabeth "Liz" Keen (Megan Boone) to track down nefarious "blacklisters," and as the story progresses, more details surrounding Red's real identity and connection to Liz come to the fore.
As of late, The Blacklist has witnessed quite a few changes both on and off-screen. Last year Boone announced her exit from the show ahead of season 9, with the original showrunner Jon Bokenkamp also leaving shortly afterward. Considering the major departures, the fate of the show seemed to be in jeopardy, but The Blacklist nevertheless managed to thrive, with series regulars Diego Klattenhoff, Amir Arison, Hisham Tawfiq, Laura Sohn, and Harry Lennix taking more responsibility, and EP John Eisendrath stepping in as the new sole showrunner in place of Bokenkamp. A substantially revamped season 9 then premiered last October and it's currently ongoing at NBC with its mid-season break due to end on February 25.
But before The Blacklist can return to complete the back half of its ninth season, Spader has already confirmed that there will also be a season 10. Spader made the announcement during his appearance on Jimmy Fallon's The Tonight Show on Tuesday. He remarked that he had just gotten the confirmation that afternoon, and was excited to share the news with his loyal fans. Watch the interview below.
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Although details on season 10 are slim, it can be expected that the latter half of season 9 will set the tone for the show's now-confirmed future episodes. Right now, The Blacklist is focused on getting the core team members back together after they had separated in the two years following Liz's death. While each character was at a crossroads when season 9 began, everyone eventually realized that nothing takes priority over their mission, which is to hunt down and defeat the criminals who are a threat to the world's peace. Season 9 has introduced a handful of new vicious foes, sinister conspiracies, and astonishing betrayals, and it will likely continue to build upon that in the coming episodes, hopefully setting up a seamless and thrilling transition into season 1o.
Although The Blacklist has been a strong ratings contender over the years, an early season 1o renewal comes as a bit of a surprise considering season 9's falling numbers. The series' viewership has been in decline since season 6, and with this current season, the show ranks ninth among all ten NBC dramas, outperforming only Ordinary Joe in terms of numbers. An early renewal can therefore mean two things. Either NBC is confident, given the show's track record, that The Blacklist will win back its audiences just as they get used to Boone's absence from the show. Or, that it's time to say goodbye, meaning that the network is offering its award-winning mainstay a chance to return to complete the story with a satisfying swan song. Whichever is the case, it will become apparent in the coming months.
Source: The Tonight Show