218 Episodes Later, James Spader's Raymond Reddington Performance Still Hides A Surprising Truth

Published Aug 6, 2026, 11:45 AM EDT Cher Thompson is a Senior Staff Writer at Screen Rant, where she covers everything from explosive reality TV moments to cast interviews about the twists and turns of scripted dramas. With a background in creative writing, marketing, and teaching, Cher knows how to spot both the storytelling genius and the guilty pleasures in pop culture. Her work blends wit with insight, making readers feel like they’re chatting with a friend who just happens to know way too much about TV. NBC's The Blacklist, which starred James Spader as Raymond "Red" Reddington, spanned over the course of 10 years and 218 episodes, but Spader's performance still hides a truth that comes as a surprise to many viewers. The drama series, which sees Spader's Red as one of the FBI's most wanted international criminals who decides to cooperate with the bureau in hunting down other criminals on his personal blacklist, was one of NBC's most popular throughout the 2010s and early 2020s. While Spader wasn't the only lead on the series, he was the core foundation of the show's overall plot. Throughout his time on The Blacklist, Spader got the chance to show off his range, playing a fascinating character that was entirely different than what he'd done in the past. Often taking on eccentric roles with a specific cadence, Red was a completely different style of character, which allowed Spader to try new things and take big swings throughout the series' run. For the majority of his time on The Blacklist, Spader's Red played off Megan Boone's Elizabeth "Liz" Keen, an FBI profiler who was put on the taskforce to work specifically with Red as they moved through the list. While Spader's past roles showed off his talents, The Blacklist helped one of his specific skills as an actor shine through the role. With many believing that some portion of Spader's dialogue had to be improvised because of the ease of its delivery, The Blacklist's hidden truth may be surprising. James Spader's Presumed Improvisation Was Actually Just Excellent Acting Although there's a lot of assumptions surrounding Spader's performance in The Blacklist, particularly that he improvises or ad libs lines throughout the show's run, one of the show's writer's assistants, Dave Metzger, debunked that rumor in an interview with reporter Paula Courtney in 2017. While Metzger was clear that he couldn't speak for Spader, he shared that "ad libbing or improvisation is very rare on The Blacklist." Metzger explained that though there were "extensive" talks about dialogue on set and off, the discussions happened in advance of filming, and the dialogue spoken on the day of filming was typically written. Metzger was clear that the writing on the series was specific and intentional on The Blacklist, and while Spader and his fellow cast members were great at what they did in making the dialogue sound incredibly natural, they were working off of meticulously written scripts from the show's team of writers. Sharing the idea that Spader or anyone else ad libbing their lines was "a testament to their performance and ability as actors," Metzger made it known that Spader's interpretation of Red wasn't something that he was pulling together on his own. Instead, The Blacklist was a truly collaborative effort. The Blacklist's Intense Run Benefited From Its Stars Getting Deeply Into Their Characters Although Spader and the rest of the cast of The Blacklist are more than likely speaking written lines throughout their time on the show, the fact that they're able to make them feel authentic enough to trick viewers into thinking they're improvising is a feat. While the majority of actors strive to be able to make their characters feel lived in enough that their dialogue feels natural throughout their performance, it can be tough to take written work and transform it into verbal dialogue. Spader, who's been working consistently since the late 1970s, has a ton of practice at this. Throughout his time on The Blacklist, it became increasingly clear that Spader and his fellow castmates were doing their best to embody their characters whilst on screen. That ability to step into the world of The Blacklist and truly embody their characters rather than simply playing them lends an authenticity to the roles that affords the cast the time and space to try different things, taking some creative liberties as they developed their characters overall. Spader and the many talented actors who brought The Blacklist to life were able to jump into their characters with a much-needed sense of honesty. Release Date 2013 - 2023-00-00 Network NBC Showrunner Jon Bokenkamp Cast Diego Klattenhoff Donald Ressler The Blacklist follows Raymond "Red" Reddington, a notorious fugitive, who shocks the FBI by surrendering and offering to help capture dangerous criminals. With a mysterious agenda, Reddington insists on working exclusively with rookie FBI profiler Elizabeth Keen, using his deep knowledge of an elusive criminal network.