The Blacklist hasn’t run out of names yet: NBC has renewed the James Spader crime drama for a tenth season, TVLine has learned.
Spader confirmed the news himself on Tuesday’s episode of The Tonight Show. He stars as master criminal Red Reddington, who works with the FBI to track down the world’s most dangerous fugitives.
Season-to-date, The Blacklist is averaging 5.1 million total viewers and a 0.6 demo rating in Live+7 numbers — down just a tick from its Season 8 averages (5.5 mil/0.7). Out of the 10 drama series that NBC has aired so far this TV season, it ranks ninth in both measures, besting only the freshman Ordinary Joe.
Season 9 has looked very different, both in front of and behind the camera. Just days before the show’s Season 8 finale in June, news broke that leading lady Megan Boone planned to exit the show, with the finale serving as her last episode. During that installment, Boone’s Liz was fatally shot by one of Neville Townsend’s henchmen, and Boone called her eight-season run on the show “an entire life inside of my own life… What a dream. Thank you all.”
One day after the finale aired, series creator Jon Bokenkamp — who had served as a writer and executive producer on Seasons 1 through 8 — announced he was also departing the drama ahead of Season 9 to “step out of my comfort zone, try something new, and explore a few of the other characters and stories that have been crawling around in my head.”
“I genuinely believe the series remains full of life, creatively strong, and that bright days lie ahead,” Bokenkamp said at the time. “So now I join you — as a fan — to see where The Blacklist takes us next.”
The official synopsis for Season 9 says that “in the two years following the death of Elizabeth Keen, Raymond Reddington and the members of the FBI Task Force have disbanded — their lives now changed in unexpected ways and with Reddington’s whereabouts unknown. Finding themselves each at a crossroads, a common purpose compels them to renew their original mission: to take down dangerous, vicious and eccentric Blacklisters. In the process, they begin to uncover lethal adversaries, unimaginable conspiracies and surprising betrayals that will threaten alliances and spur vengeance for the past, led by the most devious criminal of them all — Raymond Reddington.”
The Blacklist‘s ninth season resumes in a new time slot beginning this Friday, Feb. 25 at 8/7c.
TVLine’s Renewal Scorecard has been updated to reflect the news. Are you excited to hear that The Blacklist is returning for Season 10? Drop a comment below with all of your thoughts.