The Blacklist Cast and Character Guide

The Blacklist has remained an engrossing TV shows for over a decade now. Meet the cast and characters that make it such a special show.

It's remained one of the most enduring TV series of recent decades and defied expectations to go on an epic ten season run. While The Blacklist is finally coming to an end, it leaves behind a legacy that will likely not end with the show itself. Back in 2013, when it first aired on NBC, it probably wasn't immediately clear how well it would go on to do. After all, the show does subvert expectations and revolves around a world where the bad guys are cooler and more interesting than most characters on the other side. It centers around an ex-officer for the Navy who becomes a career criminal that lands him on the FBI's Most Wanted List.

While he manages to evade capture for decades, he stuns his pursuers when he voluntarily hands himself over. However, his act of apparent contrition comes with a hefty catch. He has a list of the world's most wanted criminals and details of their operations. Aside from immunity from prosecution, his most ardent condition to give up the list is that the FBI allow him to work with them to track down and capture the people on this "blacklist." An intriguing premise to say the least.

With the show set to complete its final season soon, it's not too late to catch up on it and find out why it's endured all these years. Here's a cast and character guide for The Blacklist to get you started.

The best way to describe Raymond "Red" Reddington is that he's an antagonistic protagonist. As an ex-US Naval Officer, he once held high promise as he worked for the Navy's counterintelligence division. Despite this, something mysterious happens to him one day and causes him to embark on a career as a high-profile criminal, becoming so successful that he winds up being number four on the FBI's Most Wanted List. After handing himself over and being granted his conditions, he hands over the list and sets up the brilliant show to follow. While the FBI obviously doesn't trust him, the fact that he used to broker deals with high-profile criminals and his intelligence background makes his offer too tempting to turn down.

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This clever plot allows each episode to largely be self-contained and ensures there are always original angles to them. Red is played by the brilliant James Spader. Spader has appeared in many popular and acclaimed movies such as Pretty in Pink, Mannequin, Wall Street, Star Gate, and Crash. His career seemed to be slowing a little at the turn of the century until he put himself back on the map by playing Alan Shore in The Practice and Boston Legal, for which he was nominated for a Golden Globes and won three Primetime Emmy Awards. Spader also notably voiced and performed motion capture scenes for Ultron in Avengers: Age of Ultron.

Elizabeth Scott Keen makes for one layered character. She's an FBI profiler and the only person Red will agree to work with. She also comes with a dark past since she was born Masha Rostova and was the child of a Russian spy that no one believes existed. There are dark aspects of her past that she cannot remember and has a scar from a fire that she barely remembers being, aside from being rescued from it by her father.

As the show goes on, she develops an uneasy bond with Red, but it's also pretty apparent that Red knows a lot more about her past than he initially lets on. Elizabeth is played by Megan Boone who's been in films like Sex and the City 2 and Step Up Revolution. She's also had a recurring role on Law & Order: LA.

Donald Ressler is a character that can be a pain on a show where the bad guys are generally more favored. He's a senior FBI agent but often becomes pedantic about procedure which can be a tricky situation to navigate when you have a criminal working for you. Despite seeming unnecessarily difficult at times, Donald has a sincere reason for it. As the son of a good cop, his father was murdered by a corrupt police officer for refusing to take bribes.

This fact adds a dimension of purity to Donald's behavior that makes him far more endearing. He's portrayed by Canadian actor Diego Klattenhoff. Diego has appearances in films like Mean Girls and big-budget films like Pacific Rim. He also had a long-running main role in Homeland before joining the cast of The Blacklist.

A former NSA technician, Aram Mojtabai now assists the FBI with his formidable skills. He can be funny in a quirky way and initially nurses feelings for another character named Samar. He proves extremely helpful due to his vast expertise as a tech geek in computers but struggles with anxiety when he's around Red.

Aram is played by Amir Arison, a prolific TV actor who was born to Israeli parents that are both doctors. He's appeared in multiple episodes across many of the Law & Order shows, and has also made guest appearances in popular and acclaimed shows like Billions, American Horror Story, and Gossip Girl.

Now one of the most recognizable faces on TV, Ryan Eggold plays Tom Keen in The Blacklist. Tom Keen is initially an innocuous character and Elizabeth Keen's husband. He's an elementary school teacher on the surface. However, it soon becomes apparent that he also has a dark past with connections to Red and is living a double life. If you think he looks familiar, that's because the actor who plays him is well known for his stints on 90210 and for playing the lead character on the hit medical show, New Amsterdam.

Meera Malik is a character that trades in deceit since she's a CIA field officer. We learn that she has daughters, however, there isn't much information about her beyond that. Her main role is to watch over Raymond Reddington. However, as the show progresses, her character takes a darker turn and ultimately suffers a tragic fate.

Meera is portrayed by actress Parminder Nagra, a British actress with an Indian Punjabi and Sikh heritage. She's best known for a recurring role on E.R., guest appearances on season four of Agents of S.H.E.I.L.D, and for playing the lead role in the hit British soccer film, Bend It Like Beckham.

As an Assistant Director of the FBI's Counterterrorism Unit, Harold Cooper's high-profile, high-stakes position made him a perfect choice to head the task force assembled to investigate Red's blacklist. He's not always happy about this assignment since Red's antics and the slippery slope the task force has to navigate regularly jeopardize his once-promising career trajectory.

He's played by Harry Lennix, a veteran actor whose long list of acting credits includes appearances in two Matrix films, a recurring role on Billions, and a role in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice as Colonel Swanwick, who was revealed in Zack Snyder's Justice League to actually be the DC Universe superhero, Martian Manhunter.

Samar Navabi is a Mossad agent who hails from Iran. Like many others on the show, she's had past brushes with Red. When a task force member is killed, Director Cooper recruits Samar as an agent and its Mossad liaison. She is very skilled as an interrogator and is initially fancied by Aram. Samar is played by the highly talented Iranian-American actress, Mozhan Marnò. Moshan has appeared in the hard-hitting tragic film, The Stoning of Soraya M., and is best known for her stellar role as Ayla Sayyad on House of Cards.

Alina Park is an FBI Special Agent who previously worked in Alaska. Like Donald Ressler, she can be a by-the-book agent and a stickler for the rules. This leads Red to want a different person for the role. However, he later changes his mind when he witnesses characteristics in her that he comes to respect. She's played by the up-and-coming young actress Laura Sohn who's also made appearances in shows like NCIS: New Orleans and God Friended Me.

A recurring character from the latest season of the show, Siya Malik is an intelligence agent with MI6. More notably, she's also the daughter of Meera Malik and later replaces her mother and another agent when she joins the task team. Her inclusion in the team throws up some complex dynamics because of her mother's past with it. Siya's played by Anya Banerjee. Banerjee is another up-and-coming actress known for short films like Skin and Balloons.

Dembe Zuma is a bodyguard, driver, and friend of Red. More importantly, he's one of the few people that Red truly trusts and opens up to unreservedly. We learn that he has African roots as the son of a farmer whose family was killed by a Kenyan poaching syndicate as retaliation for him reporting them to authorities. His character arc traverses themes of tragedy and survival since he was also sold into human trafficking but was later rescued by Red.

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Dembe is played by Hisham Tawfiq who has made minor appearances in films like Notorious and shows like 30 Rock. That wraps up the main cast across all seasons of the show. However, over the years, there's also been some notable stars who've appeared on The Blacklist as guest or recurring characters, and as the intriguing criminals on Red's blacklist. These are some of our favorites.

Susan "Scottie" heads up a very mysterious military intelligence contracting firm. Her estranged husband is an old friend of Red, and she's also Tom Keen's mother. However, Tom's own secretive life leads her to believe he's been missing for decades. She's played by Famke Jannsen, a well known actress who's best known for playing Jean Grey in the first three X-men films.

Madeline Pratt was one of the notable people on Red's blacklist. While she maintains a respectable appearance as a politically active socialite, Madeline actually uses her station to befriend powerful people, so she can set up massive heists. Her schemes have netted her millions over the years, and she proves to be one clever and tricky customer to deal with.

Madeline was played by Jennifer Ehle who is a Bafta and Tony Award-Winning actress who has appearances in films like 2014's Robocop and The Fifty Shades films.

A wily and pretty unconscionable thief in ways, Luther Braxton's modus was to find ways to siphon money and information from states. Worse yet, he generally waits for turbulent periods such as wars or natural disasters, so he can use them as cover to get away with it. His crimes also get worse as he's also been known to abduct government agents and is willing to even commit murder if it benefits him.

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Luther is played by the very popular veteran actor, Ron Perlman. Perlman is popular for his intimidating size and distinctive voice. He's best known for playing the title character in the first two Hellboy films. He's also the voice of the iconic character, Optimus Prime, in the highly anticipated Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.

One of the most interesting characters on Red's blacklist, "The Major" was a tricky customer. He's known for recruiting literal psychopaths and training them to work as spies for private clients. Ensuring his anonymity, once a recruit is released into the field, The Major can only be contacted by them if there is a situation that threatens to completely derail a mission. He also has links to Tom Keen and a host of other operatives to do his bidding for him.

He's played by the astute actor Lance Henriksen. Lance has an unbelievable filmography that dates back to the early '60s. In that time, he's appeared close to 80 films and has had too many appearances in TV shows to even mention. Among his many roles, he's well known for appearing in various films from the Alien trilogy.

So, there it is. If you haven't seen The Blacklist yet, it's a highly recommended show that has certainly earned its ten seasons. Slated to finally conclude in July 2023, Season 10 will be its last run. Over the years, its cast and characters have grown on audiences everywhere, keeping them engrossed season after season. The show can be streamed on Peacock, while new episodes first air on NBC.

Neville Naidoo is a freelance writer for MovieWeb. He has worked as a ghostwriter and content writer, and has a background in legal practice.