It was a down to the wire decision but NBC has opted to renew The Blacklist for a sixth season.
The Blacklist was a massive hit when it debuted in 2013 behind The Voice on Monday. It took a hit when the network in Season 2 relocated it to head up Thursday night, using a post-Super Bowl airing to give it a pop. While The Blacklist never came close to the ratings heights of its first season on Monday, it has been a relatively consistent ratings performer, boosted by solid DVR gains.
Complicating the renewal a bit was ownership. The Blacklist comes from Sony TV. The network has a 50% ownership stake which has helped during renewal talks but NBC still has been pushing for license fee reduction, something Sony TV could stomach given the series’ big profits from international sales and the lucrative SVOD pact with Netflix.
The Blacklist stars James Spader as Raymond Reddington, who’s back and in the process of rebuilding his criminal empire, one that he’ll design with Elizabeth Keen (Megan Boone) by his side. Living with the reality that Red is her father, Liz finds herself torn between her role as an FBI agent and the temptation to act on her more criminal instincts. In a world where the search for Blacklisters has become a family trade, Red will undoubtedly reclaim his moniker as the “Concierge of Crime.” The series also stars Diego Klattenhoff, Harry Lennix, Amir Arison, Mozhan Marnò and Hisham Tawfiq.
