List of The Blacklist characters

The Blacklist is an American crime drama television series that premiered on NBC on September 23, 2013. Raymond "Red" Reddington (James Spader), a former government agent turned high-profile criminal, who had eluded capture for decades, voluntarily surrenders to the FBI, offering to cooperate on capturing a list of criminals who are virtually impossible to catch. He insists on working with a rookie profiler by the name of Elizabeth Keen (Megan Boone). The show also stars Diego Klattenhoff, Ryan Eggold and Harry Lennix. The pilot episode was written by Jon Bokenkamp and directed by Joe Carnahan. Executive producers for the series include Bokenkamp, John Eisendrath, and John Davis for Sony Pictures Television, Universal Television, and Davis Entertainment. In February 2015, The Blacklist was renewed for a third season,[1] with Hisham Tawfiq promoted to main cast.[2]

Cast overview

Actor Character Position Seasons
1 2 3 4
James Spader Raymond "Red" Reddington Confidential informant, FBI Main
Megan Boone Elizabeth "Liz" Keen/Masha Rostova Special consultant, FBI Main
Diego Klattenhoff Donald Ressler Special agent, FBI
Director of the Counterterrorism Division, FBI 		Main
Ryan Eggold Tom Keen/Jacob Phelps/Christopher Hargrave Covert operative Main
Parminder Nagra Meera Malik Field agent, CIA Main
Harry Lennix Harold Cooper Director of the Counterterrorism Division, FBI Main
Amir Arison Aram Mojtabai Computer specialist, FBI Recurring Main
Mozhan Marnò Samar Navabi Agent, Mossad Main
Hisham Tawfiq Dembe Zuma Reddington's bodyguard Recurring Main

Main characters featured in The Blacklist

Raymond Reddington

Raymond Reddington is portrayed by James Spader, since 2013.

Portrayed by James Spader

Raymond "Red" Reddington is a former government agent, presumed to be a member of the United States Navy; and number 4 on the FBI's Most Wanted List.[3] A U.S. Naval Academy graduate, he once worked in US counterintelligence and was being groomed for Admiral when something happened on his way home for the Christmas holidays. Nicknamed "the concierge of crime", Reddington is known for brokering deals between criminals. He willfully surrenders to the FBI and provides information on a roster of criminals that he refers to as The Blacklist: dangerous criminals who are so careful to avoid leaving any traces behind that the FBI has not even detected their existence. His ethics are somewhat murky, and he espouses the use of some crimes (such as extortion, counterfeiting, torture, and murder) in the service of "the greater good". He uses his arrangement with the FBI to pursue his own secret agenda; it was revealed that he needed their help to find Berlin, a mysterious nemesis who had been attacking his organization.

He has an unexplained interest in Elizabeth Keen and knows personal secrets about her that she has never made public. He will stop at nothing to protect her and even went as far as to block her memories of the fire she was trapped in. But she finally regains them and learns that when her father attacked her mother, she killed him while still a child. Red explains that he never wanted Liz to end up like him and was trying to prevent that. It is implied several times that Reddington may be Keen's biological father. No proof of this is ever shown, and Red himself denies it when directly confronted by Liz, although he does claim that he knew her father well. He also knew Liz's mother. Red is confirmed as Liz's father in "Dr. Adrian Shaw: Conclusion."

After the death of Alan Fitch, Reddington comes into conflict with the Director, the new head of the Cabal. The Director did not believe that Reddington had the Fulcrum, a blackmail file which Reddington had used as leverage to force a stalemate with the Cabal, and wanted to end the détente and kill Reddington. In response, Reddington urgently began seeking the Fulcrum, and managed to collect various items needed to decrypt it. Finally, after he confessed to Liz that he had initially hired Tom Keen to enter her life and watch over her, she gave him the Fulcrum, after which he was shot by the Director's agents. However, he survived. He continued to throw obstacles into Liz's path as she sought to find out more about her mother. When Liz was framed by the Cabal for the assassination of Senator Hawkins, Reddington countered by gathering 11 of the world's top investigative journalists and giving them the information contained in the Fulcrum. He later helped Liz go on the run after she assassinated Tom Connolly.

Accompanied by Liz, Reddington gathers various resources needed for his plan to bring down the Director and exonerate Liz. He eventually succeeds in forcing the Cabal to abandon the Director, and then kills him. He meets with Laurel Hitchin, who suggests he weakened the Cabal so that they would invite him to join it.

After watching Liz die in his arms Dembe convinces Red to leave the van containing her body and Ressler places his FBI windbreaker around Red's shoulders and leads him over to the car with Dembe. As Ressler lets go of Red's arm and Red goes to get into the car he collapses and Dembe catches him saying: "I got you." And preceding to help Red into the car. After being told to stay away from Agnes by Tom in "Cape May", Red goes on a self-imposed exile to get away from everything and find better means to cope with Liz's death. He rescues a woman who attempted suicide one time and take her back to the abandoned hotel. Only when a man talks to Red at the beach, that he realized the woman he rescued was a ghost and it was she who tells him that she did save her, through channeling his grief in losing Liz. In "The Artax Network", Red finally visits Dom, the father of Katarina, and while he still blames him for what he done, Dom reluctantly allows Red to stay. When Aram tracks him down to try and convince Red to help them again, he refuses to leave and sends Aram on his way. Dom later convinces Red to leave and honor his word to the FBI, saying that Red's got good people who count on him. As a token of gratitude, Red fixes a C♯ key on Dom's piano and leaves. Red later visits Aram and tells him they have work to do

In "Dr. Adrian Shaw: Conclusion", while Red is being held captive and threatened by Kirk, Red tells Kirk that he (Red) is Elizabeth Keene's father ("What do you want me to say? Yes. Yes, Elizabeth is my daughter.”).

Elizabeth Keen

Elizabeth Keen is portrayed by Megan Boone, since 2013.

Portrayed by Megan Boone

Elizabeth Scott Keen is a former FBI profiler. According to Reddington and the FBI, her birth name is Masha Rostova, and she was born in Moscow to Katarina Rostova, a Russian intelligence agent whom everyone regards as a "myth". Elizabeth has a mysterious and traumatic past: her wrist bears a large scar from a fire she was trapped in as a child, and her only memory of her biological father is of him rescuing her from the fire. Reddington admitted to blocking her memories of the fire. She eventually regains her memory of the event when she killed her father to protect her mother. Reddington had been trying to protect her from the knowledge when he blocked her memories.

She is the only person with whom Reddington is willing to work. She has yet to learn why, but he has told her that it has something to do with her missing father. While her adoptive father lay dying in the hospital, he insists to Red that Liz "deserves to know", but his death is hastened by Red to prevent Liz from "knowing". She develops a bond with Reddington as they continue to work together. The Director indicates there is a close personal connection between Liz and Red, but refuses to tell her what it is. Her once-idyllic marriage to Tom Keen unraveled as she discovered evidence that he was not the man he appeared to be. After she found out he was an agent hired by Berlin to keep her under surveillance, she had the marriage annulled. She kept Tom imprisoned on an abandoned ship for several months, interrogating him. Eventually, she was forced to let him go in exchange for Berlin's location after he murdered a harbormaster, Eugene Ames.

Local police investigated Ames' murder and had enough evidence to arrest Liz for her involvement; but she was saved by the intervention of Reddington, Cooper, then-assistant AG Connolly, and Tom himself. She also learned that she was the key to unlocking the mysteries of the Fulcrum, and that she had unknowingly had the Fulcrum itself in her possession since childhood. With the help of Leonard Caul, she deciphered the Fulcrum's contents and confronted the Director with them. She was then unknowingly infected with a customized biological weapon by the Cabal and tricked into infecting their target, Senator Hawkins. The Cabal then framed her for Hawkins's assassination and for being a Russian spy. After shooting Tom Connolly upon learning of his involvement with the faking of Cooper's cancer and the Cabal's sinister intentions for the other agents on the task force, Elizabeth is now a fugitive on the FBI's Most Wanted List. To evade capture by the FBI, she sought asylum at the Russian embassy, identifying herself as "Masha Rostova" and pretending to be a Russian spy.

In "Marvin Gerard", as Liz is being escorted to the airport, the convoy is attacked by Ressler and forcing Liz to run on foot. At a diner, she confronts Red for preventing her asylum until she learns he did this to save her life from being killed by the Cabal. While holding everyone in the diner hostage, Liz attacks an abusive boyfriend of one of the hostages' and nearly kills him until Red stops her. In "Eli Matchett", Liz comes to the realization that even if her name is cleared, it's impossible for her to go back to the life she once knew and must rely on Red to help her survive as a criminal. In "Arioch Cain", Liz and Red fake her death, after a bounty is put on Liz's head.

In "Kings of the Highway", Liz tracks down Reddington after he is kidnapped and ransoms him using a valuable object that Dembe claims is needed to clear her name. While Liz and Dembe are making the exchange for Reddington, the FBI arrives, and Ressler arrests Liz.

In "The Director", Liz is locked in the task force's cell as Ressler tries to protect her until she can testify. The Director and Laurel Hitchin attempt to prevent this by transferring Liz to an undisclosed location due to her supposedly having terrorist connections and then suffocating her when Aram changes the box's door code. Liz is nearly transferred, but the White House Counsel is able to prevent it and Ressler returns to transfer her to the courthouse. In "The Director: Conclusion," Liz spends the night in a cell protected by Ressler which keeps the Cabal from reaching her, but Laurel plots to have her assassinated as she's moved. Liz is later taken before a judge where she faces multiple charges that each come with a death sentence, including sixteen counts of murder. Laurel tries to have Liz assassinated, but is forced to call off her attempt by Red who captures the Director and threatens to turn him over to the World Court. With the help of Marvin Gerard, Red makes a deal with Laurel for her to publicly exonerate Liz on all but Tom Connolly's murder. In that case, Liz had to plead guilty to involuntary manslaughter and would get three years probation. Though she would be free, Liz could never return to the FBI. Liz reluctantly took the deal in the end as Red ensured she'd remain part of the task force as an asset like him. Liz was publicly exonerated by Laurel while Karakurt was taken into custody and exposed as the man who had committed the terrorist acts Liz had been framed for. That night, Liz emerges from the courthouse a free woman and hugs Red who is waiting for her.

Liz has difficulty adjusting to no longer being an FBI agent. After being beaten up by a man who thought she was a traitor, she is hospitalized and discovers she is pregnant. She accepts Tom's marriage proposal, hoping to start a family with him.

Liz and Tom's wedding ceremony is interrupted by Mr. Solomon, who pursues them relentlessly. Liz is injured during the chase, forcing Reddington's doctor to perform an emergency C-section to save her baby. Liz dies due to complications with the C-section and the inability to reach a hospital on time: Matias Solomon blocks the vehicle containing Liz from continuing on to the hospital and Liz dies with Reddington holding her hand. Red is shown to be completely devastated by her death, as is the rest of the task force, and Tom is left to raise their daughter, Agnes, alone. In "Cape May" Red tells of a time he had to make a Hobson's choice: to save a child and lose her mother or lose both, saying it was the hardest choice he made by far in his life. While it initially seems he is referring to Liz' recent death, a later conversation reveals that the allusion was toward saving Liz (née Masha) as a child and losing her mother, Katarina.

In "Alexander Kirk: Conclusion", Liz is revealed to be alive, her death having been faked by Kaplan to protect her and Agnes. Liz is reunited with Tom and Agnes in Cuba, but is captured by Alexander Kirk's men. Tied to a chair, Liz meets with Kirk who reveals he is in fact her father.

In "Esteban" Liz doesn't believe Kirk and demands to know what he's planning to do with her, Tom and Agnes. Kirk claims that her daughter will be fine and that he just needs to get rid of the rat. Kirk plans to take her back to the house she grew up in so she can see the truth for herself. In "Mato" Liz gets a clue from her past when she saw her mother, Katarina, putting a few toys and a ribbon bracelet in a coffee can used as a time machine. Liz digs the can up and discovers some truth in Kirk's words. When she is rescued by the FBI, Liz is reunited with Tom. In "Miles McGrath", Liz reads through her mother's journal and comes up to an important clue involving a rare cancer plaguing the males of the Rostov family. It was only then Red reveals the truth in Kirk's plans to use Liz for a blood transfusion as her blood contains vital blood cells needed to help him replenish his own and without her, he will keep Agnes hostage.

In "The Lindquist Concerns", Liz discovers a DNA test done by Kirk which claimed her to be his daughter and briefly mistrusted Red for it. In "The Thrushes", Liz helps Red talk Kirk out of committing suicide by begging him to give Agnes back to her. He does give her back to Liz that leads to his arrest.

In "Dr. Adrian Shaw", Kirk is taken to the hospital and believing she may be his only chance of rescuing him, goes through a DNA Test. If she is found to be a match, they will prepare her for surgery and do a blood transfusion. When Tom found out, he confronted Liz for the decision and admitted that he had met his mother, Susan, months earlier. Despite his warning not to get close to Kirk, Liz mentioned that she needs to help him as he may provide the answers to who she is. While being prepped for surgery, a doctor tells her that the DNA test results between her and Kirk came back and they're not a match. Believing Red had sent false transcripts of the DNA test, she calls him to confront him only to discover that Kirk had lied to her the whole time and the DNA transcript that Tom gave her was falsified. Angered by this, Liz confronts Kirk for lying to her and abandons him. In "Dr. Adrian Shaw: Conclusion", while Red is being held captive and threatened by Kirk, Red tells Kirk that he (Red) is Elizabeth Keene's father ("What do you want me to say? Yes. Yes, Elizabeth is my daughter.”).

Donald Ressler

Donald Ressler is portrayed by Diego Klattenhoff, since 2013.

Portrayed by Diego Klattenhoff

Donald Ressler is a senior FBI agent who is a stickler for procedure. His father was an honest policeman who was betrayed and killed by his corrupt partner after refusing to take bribes. He spent five years on an FBI task force obsessively pursuing Reddington, which resulted in his fiancee's breaking off their engagement. He despises having to work with a criminal like Reddington, but he acknowledges that Reddington does get results. Initially he distrusts Liz Keen and her connection to Reddington, but eventually comes to respect and work well with her. After he was shot by Anslo Garrick, he reignited his relationship with his former fiancée, Audrey Bidwell. Unfortunately in "Mako Tanida" she was killed by Mako Tanida, after which Ressler learned she was pregnant with his child. Before Tanida died, Ressler is betrayed by his former friend, Bobby Jonica, when he learns of his involvement and chased after him. While confronting him, Ressler blamed Jonica for his betrayal that lead to the deaths of their closest friends and Audrey. He gave Jonica a choice to kill himself with a knife or Ressler will shoot him. He later developed an addiction to pain medication, but managed to overcome it.

In "Tom Connolly", with Cooper removed from being the FBI Director of Counterterrorism, Wright names Ressler as acting director. When Liz goes on the run after killing Tom Connolly, Ressler urges her to come in, saying that otherwise he will have to lead the FBI manhunt against her.

In "The Troll Farmer", Ressler interrogates Cooper for his involvement in letting Liz escape and learns a little bit of the Cabal's plans for the FBI itself. He eventually decides to release Cooper, but warns that they will keep an eye on him. In "Marvin Gerard", Red informs Ressler that the Cabal had set a trap up for Liz at the airport and he rushes in to prevent the departure. Though he succeeds, Liz is shaken up by his reckless actions, believing he wanted to capture her, and flees the scene before Ressler could explain himself. He is later visited by Tom Keen, wishing to assist him knowing trouble is on the horizon for both Red and Liz. In "Eli Matchett", Ressler refuses his help and warns Tom to stay out of his way.

After arresting Liz, Ressler joins Red's efforts to protect her from the Cabal, aiding in protecting Karakurt in "the Director." He later tells Liz that he believes she was framed and he would not have arrested her if he believed he couldn't protect her. Ressler is able to protect Liz until Red forces the Cabal to exonerate her. He then returns control of the task force to the reinstated Cooper.

Tom Keen

Tom Keen is portrayed by Ryan Eggold, since 2013.

Portrayed by Ryan Eggold

Thomas Vincent Keen, born Christopher Hargrave (Blacklister N° 7), is Elizabeth's husband, an elementary school teacher who turns out to be a covert operative working for Berlin. When first confronted by Elizabeth, Tom asserts to her that he was assigned to protect her, and that Reddington "is not who [she] think[s] he is". Elizabeth shoots him and stages his death, but keeps him prisoner on a boat for several months in order to extract as much information as possible. When she is nearly discovered by the harbor master, Tom saves her by strangling him to death; as a token of gratitude, she lets Tom escape. Tom later meets with Reddington and their conversation reveals a previous working relationship. Apparently, Tom was recruited at the age of 14 (he was then known as Jacob Phelps) by a blacklister known as The Major (Lance Henriksen) due to the combination of sociopathy and extreme talent, to be groomed for covert operations. Reddington acquired him from The Major in order to insert him into Elizabeth's life, but when Berlin found out, he doubled Reddington's price. After his escape, Tom utilizes The Major for a new covert operation as a neo-Nazi drug and arms dealer in Dresden named Christof Mannheim, but not before calling Elizabeth; he appears to have developed genuine feelings for her during their "marriage", which seems to complicate matters for both The Major and Reddington, as it was the reason behind his killing the harbor master on Elizabeth's boat. When Elizabeth nearly gets subpoenaed for the harbor master's murder, Reddington and Ressler attempt to extradite Tom from Germany so he can clear her name; Tom initially refuses, but then appears in court and willfully surrenders. With the help of Assistant Attorney General, "Smiling Tommy" Connolly, Reddington helps Tom and Elizabeth sweep the whole event under the rug; Elizabeth is cleared while Tom "never existed". The Major, seeing Tom as a liability after this affair, tries to shoot Tom but the Germans intercept them; Tom bargains for their lives and they both manage to escape, but The Major is still set to have Tom killed. Desperate, Tom hides at Elizabeth's place and pleads her to give him his passports; in exchange, she convinces him to tell her the truth about his relationship with Reddington, then reveals that she had always known that on some level, Tom's love for her and their life together was genuine. He later tells Liz of his dream to become a fisherman and urges her to come with him to Japan to start a new life with each other, but she declines, telling him that she needs to finish what she's started. After Liz kills Tom Connolly and becomes one of the FBI's most wanted, Tom departs on his boat to Japan to begin his new life.

In "Marvin Gerard", Tom appears before Ressler, wishing to help assist him in saving Liz, suspecting the tides are against Red's favor. In "Eli Matchett", he and Ressler get into a brief scuffle with each other. While waiting for Liz to call him, Tom meets with Cooper and is recruited to help investigate Karakurt. Posing as a hustler, he befriends a wealthy socialite and infiltrates an underground street-fighting ring, where he eventually locates Karakurt. He brings the assassin to Cooper, but the Cabal finds them, forcing all three men to go on the run. Eventually, with Ressler and Cooper's help, he evades the Cabal and delivers Karakurt into federal custody. After Liz is released, Tom proposes marriage to her, but she turns him down, saying that she is too uncertain about the future to accept. Tom is later confronted by Red who warns him to stay away from Liz, after the actions he pulled when he ignored his first warning that led to this. After Liz's death, he tells Red to stay away from Agnes and blames him for his failure to protect her.

In "The Artax Network", Samar visits Tom in the hospital who has been having a hard time raising Agnes alone and offers to help him. Tom is later recruited again by Cooper to keep an eye on Cynthia Panabaker and he discovers more that confirms Cooper's suspicion. Visiting Cooper in the post office, he is able to confirm the woman that Panabaker had a meeting looks like Liz's mother, Katarina.

In "Alexander Kirk", Tom is forced to work with Mattais Solomon and Susan Hargrave, the people responsible for Liz's death to get at Alexander Kirk, the man who ordered the attack. During the mission, Tom shoots Solomon in revenge, but Solomon seemingly gets away after Tom leaves. Tom later goes after Susan before Red calls him to stop Tom. Red reveals that Tom is in fact Christopher Hargrave, Susan's long-missing son. Moments later, Susan enters and tells him about her son, how he disappeared twenty-eight years earlier when he was three years old and she always hopes to see him again. On Red's advice, Tom doesn't let Susan know he's her son but doesn't kill her for Agnes' sake.

In "The Lindquist Concern" Tom suspects Kirk is manipulating Liz and seeks out Ressler's help for previous files from the FBI. Though still unable to trust him, Ressler agreed to help Tom out by giving him previous FBI files. Tom's spying on one of Kirk's men and confrontation leads him to where Kirk's true whereabouts are: Russia. He calls Liz to warn Red about Kirk's plans to kill him.

Meera Malik

Portrayed by Parminder Nagra

Meera Malik is a CIA field agent assigned to Reddington's security detail at the personal request of Diane Fowler. Not much has been revealed about her character other than that she is a CIA agent tasked with Reddington's file, and that she is the mother of two children. She was revealed to have unknowingly leaked information to the terrorist Anslo Garrick upon the orders of an unknown individual. Reddington discovers this and forces her to help him unmask the person responsible. In season 1's finale, "Berlin: Conclusion", she is killed in a nightclub by an escaped convict who slits her throat.

Harold Cooper

Harold Cooper is portrayed by Harry Lennix, since 2013.

Portrayed by Harry Lennix

Harold Cooper is the former Assistant Director of the FBI Counterterrorism Division and head of the covert FBI task force assigned to pursue the criminals on the Blacklist. He is on an upwardly mobile career path in the Bureau, something that his work with Reddington occasionally threatens to derail. He had a particular interest in Reddington's past, and is willing to oblige Reddington's unusual requests due to this understanding of him. He was attacked and put into a coma by Berlin's agents at the end of season 1.

By Season 2, Cooper regained consciousness, but is revealed to have an inoperable brain tumor in the episode "T. Earl King VI." With the help of his friend, Attorney General Connolly, he entered an experimental drug trial. However, he has had to compromise his ethics and perform various morally dubious tasks for Connolly in order to stay in his favor and remain in the trial. He confronts Connolly, who admits that he has been manipulating him on behalf of the Cabal. He blackmails Cooper into helping them, saying that they will destroy Cooper and his wife Charlene if he fails to cooperate. Cooper tells Reddington about the situation, and the two attempt to use Cooper's connection to Connolly against the Cabal. When Liz is framed for the assassination of Senator Hawkins, Cooper flatly refuses to cooperate with the Cabal and is placed on administrative leave by Connolly. After Liz finds evidence that Cooper's doctor is working for the Cabal, Cooper confronts the man and discovers that the Cabal faked his cancer and that he is not dying. After he witnesses Liz's murder of Connolly, he tells her to run, and later turns over his badge. Ressler interrogates him to determine his complicity in Connolly's murder, but eventually decides to release him.

In "Marvin Gerard", Cooper is told by Wright that in order for him to have the charges dropped against him, Cooper not only has to resign, but also take a desk job. Although he reluctantly does, Cooper is determined to help Liz clear her name and investigates Karakurt. In "Eli Matchett", Cooper meets with Tom in a Chinese Restaurant and although he can't be trusted, Cooper thinks he's perfect for the job. He recruits Tom to help investigate Karakurt. Later, Tom brings Karakurt to Cooper's house and they are forced to flee with Charlene when the Cabal sends a team to kill Karakurt. Charlene suggests they hide at their neighbor's cabin, admitting that she had cheated on Cooper with him.

In "The Director Conclusion," after Red forces the Cabal to exonerate Liz, a mission Copper aids in, Cooper is reinstated as head of the task force and congratulates Ressler for his work in Cooper's absence. Later, he separates from Charlene.

Aram Mojtabai

Portrayed by Amir Arison

Aram Mojtabai is a quirky and skilled technician who regularly assists the FBI. He formerly worked for the NSA. He is friends with Elizabeth Keen. It is shown that Aram likes Samar Navabi until they suffered a falling out in "Gaia".

In "The Djinn", Red appeals to Aram for help in locating Nasim Bakhash as part of his plans to exonerate Keen. In "Kings of the Highway", Aram reveals his knowledge of what he has learned from the laptop in exchange for Ressler telling him of the protocols. It's also there he begins to feel guilty for having to tell Ressler about Samar's plans to help Liz and Red. As she leaves, Aram realizes the extent of what could happen to Keen if the Cabal get their hands on her and has to decide where his loyalties lie.

When Liz is arrested and the Director comes to take her into custody, Aram changes the password to her cell to lock him out. The Director cuts off Liz's air in order to force Aram to give up the password. Aram then confronts the Director at gunpoint in a desperate attempt to stop him from taking Liz. She persuades Aram to stand down, but in the process he buys enough time for Cynthia Panabaker, the White House counsel, to arrive and transfer Liz to a federal courthouse under Ressler's direct supervision. Aram later joins Red's team to kidnap the Director and exonerate Liz by using his computer skills to hack an elevator's controls to make it go to the wrong floor. The mission is a success and Liz is exonerated of all but the murder of Tom Connolly, for which she agrees to a plea of involuntary manslaughter and is set free.

In "Miles McGrath", it's revealed that Aram has been seeing someone else and his relationship with Samar suffers a falling out when he finds out about her plans for a transfer. At the end of "Gaia", Aram coldly tells Samar that he's glad she's leaving the team when he found out that she blamed him for an action Cooper did on his behalf as it was against his morals to kill again. He also mentions he only congratulated her out of respect for both Ressler and Cooper. Aram tells Samar that he's very angry at her because he wished she had told him about her plans to transfer and slams the door in her face.

However, in "The Thrushes", it's revealed that Aram's girlfriend is an undercover operative hired by Alexander Kirk to gain access to the FBI's computer networks through Aram. She was suspected by Samar and Ressler the whole time and they present their evidence to him, finding that he has already figured out she is a mole. When Aram discovers this, he regrets how he treated Samar after learning she did love him. Using himself as bait, he is able to keep his supposed girlfriend occupied long enough for Ressler to arrest her. At the end of the episode, Aram is comforted by Samar and realizes his feelings for her. He is happy when she admits she rescinded her transfer papers and decided to stay.

Samar Navabi

Portrayed by Mozhan Marnò

Samar Navabi is a Mossad agent from Iran. She is a highly skilled interrogator. She first appears in the season 2 premiere, "Lord Baltimore," in which she briefly captures and interrogates Reddington. Later she joins the Blacklist task force on an indefinite basis. She appears to be colluding with Reddington for an unknown purpose.

In "Zal Bin Hassan", Samar's past is revealed and how she witnessed the death of her parents. Red then scolds her knowing that she almost had her family's killer back in Cairo, but missed one key element that lead to both her partner being killed and Samar being hospitalized. She has an emotional reunion with her brother, Shahin, who was believed to have died years earlier in a bombing. However, Samar soon discovers that her brother is not who she believes him to be, and is in fact the very terrorist she had spent years hunting. She helps her former partner destroy important documents, but she is captured by her brother and taken to the harbor, where Reddington intercepts them, freeing Samar and capturing Shahin. Reddington asks Samar to let him take Shahin for his own purposes, and she sadly agrees, saying her brother died long ago. Afterwards, Samar and Ressler become intimate.

Samar secretly helps Liz locate Reddington after he is kidnapped. When Ressler finds out and confronts her, she admits to it and to previously tipping Liz and Tom off to help them evade the FBI, arguing that if Liz is arrested, she will inevitably be killed by the Cabal. In response, Ressler promptly fires Samar from the task force. She then joins Reddington and helps him carry out his plan to exonerate Liz. After Liz is released, Samar rejoins the task force.

In "Gaia", she and Aram fought over her plans to transfer, with the latter admitting that he only congratulated her out of respect for both Ressler and Cooper. When he tells her off how he truly felt and leaves, only then Samar begins to feel guilty for hurting Aram.

In "The Lindquist Concerns", Samar is comforted by Ressler and she trusts him enough to tell him of her suspicions on Aram's girlfriend being up to no good. In "The Thrushes", she and Ressler confirm their suspicions to Cooper about Aram's girlfriend before confronting him about it. When Samar revealed the knowledge that she and Ressler her being an operative working for Kirk to gain FBI files, Aram regretted how he treated her. After the operative is arrested, Samar comforts Aram and pleases him by admitting she rescinded on her transfer papers. In Dr. Adrian Shaw, Samar and Ressler attempt to find Sonia Bloom, only to learn that Red beaten them for it. She confronts him on the phone with the belief he has plans to kill Bloom. Red evades Samar's question, but only mentions he will expose the truth soon.

Dembe Zuma

Portrayed by Hisham Tawfiq

Reddington's trusted and loyal bodyguard, driver, factotum, and confidante, Dembe is introduced as a Muslim former freedom fighter from South Sudan. It was assumed that he was Raymond Reddington's bodyguard. The episode "The Mombasa Cartel" revealed that he was born the youngest son of a farmer named Samwel Zuma. When he reported a number of low-ranking operatives of a poaching organization, the Mombasa Cartel, to the authorities, the cartel killed Dembe's father, mother and siblings and sold him to human traffickers. At some point, he was being held by the Eberhardt Cartel. He spent eight years in the world of human trafficking and was enslaved until the age of 14, when Reddington found him half-dead and chained to a pipe in the basement of a brothel in Nairobi. Reddington took care of him, nursed him back to health and made sure he got an education. Dembe eventually got a bachelor's degree in English Literature, learned to speak four languages fluently and learned six others well enough to get by. Dembe rarely speaks, and does not converse without being close to Reddington.

In "The Troll Farmer," it is revealed that Dembe has a daughter and a granddaughter whom Matthias Solomon uses as leverage to force him to surrender to him. In "Eli Matchett" Dembe is further tortured by Solomon's associates for refusing to disclose Red's whereabouts. He later finds Mr. Vargas in the same situation, and the two team up to escape. However, Vargas betrays Dembe and shoots him. Dembe rescues Red and Liz from Solomon before collapsing from his injuries.

Main characters featured in The Blacklist: Redemption

Susan Hargrave

Portrayed by Famke Janssen

Susan 'Scottie' Hargrave (Blacklister Nº 18) is the co-head of Halcyon Aegis, a secretive military intelligence firm. She has an estranged husband, Howard, who is an old friend of Reddington. She is also Tom Keen's mother though to her he's been missing for twenty-eight years and she doesn't know what happened to him.

Tom Keen photographed her meeting with Cynthia Panabaker. After learning she was involved with Elizabeth Keen's death, Reddington attacks Hargrave's operations in order to force her to meet with him. She agrees, setting a trap for him. Reddington is alerted to the trap by Tom, and turns the tables, capturing Hargrave instead. She denies any responsibility in Liz's death, but reveals that she was contracted to capture Liz by a man named Alexander Kirk. Reddington then proposes a temporary alliance with her.

Hargrave, Solomon, and Nez Rowan team up with Reddington, Tom, and the task force to steal $300 million from Senator Diaz, a presidential candidate who is being bankrolled by Kirk, in an attempt to draw Kirk out. Impressed by Tom's skills, she offers to hire him as an employee of Halcyon.

Nez Rowan

Portrayed by Tawny Cypress

A mercenary who works for Susan Hargrave.

Matias Solomon

Matias Solomon is portrayed by Edi Gathegi, since 2015.

Portrayed by Edi Gathegi

Matias Solomon (Blacklister Nº 32) is a high-ranking Cabal operative. He was formerly a CIA asset in Ethiopia, working with Laurel Hitchin, but the agency ended its relationship with him when he proved to be too brutal even for them. He is soft-spoken and courteous but highly sadistic, with a predilection for torturing his victims.

In "The Troll Farmer," he takes Dembe's granddaughter hostage and uses her to capture Dembe. He visits Peter Kotsiopulos' office as a representative of the Cabal, reprimanding the Director for his inability to prevent Reddington from releasing the Fulcrum and threatening that continued failure would mean his life. He viciously tortures Dembe for information on Reddington's location, but fails to break him. Through a deception involving Mr. Vargas, Solomon finally tricks Dembe into revealing the information and captures Reddington and Liz. However, Dembe rescues them and drives Solomon off. In "Sir Crispin Crandall", while trying to fire at Red and Liz, he finds himself trapped with all of the most intelligent people in cryogenics. Solomon visits Peter again and warns him of his position in the Cabal. Peter then reprimands him for trying to revolt and forces Solomon's cooperation. In "Zal Bin Hassan" Solomon traces Tom down to Wing Yee in the hopes of ambushing Liz and Tom, but instead is caught by the FBI. During interrogation, the Director tortures Solomon by forcing him to swallow fishhooks, a ruse intended to convince the FBI that the Director is not in league with him. Solomon is then released.

Later, Solomon leads an assault team to kill Karakurt, who is being held by Tom Keen, Cooper, and Ressler. He captures Tom at gunpoint and demands that Ressler hand Karakurt over. However, Cooper knocks him out from behind, and Ressler arrests him.

While being transported by federal agents, Solomon is rescued by an unknown person driving an Rolls Royce. Then, working for Susan Hargrave, he plots to steal a nuclear weapon. This plot turns out to be a decoy to divert the FBI's attention from his real mission: capturing Liz Keen. He and his men surround the church where Liz and Tom are about to be married and demand that Liz come with them or they will kill everyone else and take her by force. However, Reddington, Tom, and the task force members are able to fend off Solomon's men long enough for Ressler to come to the rescue, allowing Liz and Tom to escape. He chases Liz again after her escape and hunts her ambulance as Red tries to take her to the hospital to save her life. Solomon is able to disable Red's vehicle and pins him and his men down. Eventually FBI backup arrives and Solomon flees as his men are killed. However, the delay in getting to the hospital caused by Solomon's attack causes Liz to die.

In "Alexander Kirk", Solomon and Tom are forced to work together in an operation to take down Blacklister Alexander Kirk who had orchestrated the attack on Liz. During the mission, Tom and Solomon rob a pharmacy together and Tom shoots Solomon in the gut in revenge for Liz's death. Minutes later the police enter to find a pool of blood but no sign of Solomon himself.

The Blacklist

The Blacklist is a list of criminals that Raymond Reddington has compiled in his illegal business dealings. Names on the list are criminals that the FBI does not have overwhelming evidence against, hence why they have never been caught. Some criminals are unknown to the FBI, or have avoided leaving behind the needed evidence for conviction, or live a high profile public life whilst concealing their criminal behaviour.

The list is truly international with at least several members from Serbia, China, Russia, Germany, United Kingdom, Japan, Iran, Uzbekistan, Mexico, etc., in addition to those from the United States.

It is unknown how many members the list contains, but the highest number revealed on the list so far is 161.

It is unknown what criteria Red is using to determine each member's position on the Blacklist, but the lowest numbers revealed so far (e. g. Tom Keen, No. 7, Berlin, No. 8, Tom Connolly, No. 11 and The Decembrist, No. 12) have all been the subject of multi-episode story arcs, suggesting that lower numbers are more significant figures in the show's mythology. The identities of many of the lowest numbers on the Blacklist remain unrevealed to date.

Various Blacklisters are also (or used to be) members of the Cabal.

Pavlovich brothers

Portrayed by Goran Ivanovski, Renne Gjoni, James Biberi and Stivi Paskoski

The Pavlovich brothers (Blacklisters N° 119-122) were four Serbian relatives who specialized in snatch and grab operations. They first got a taste for blood working for Milošević's protective detail during the ethnic cleansing campaigns of the Yugoslav Wars, but went on to operate independently with no political affiliation. Working together as a team, they used high firepower and ruthless tactics to achieve their goals.

In the series' pilot, they kidnapped Beth Ryker, the daughter of General Daniel Ryker, by killing six FBI Agents during the ambush.

They then kidnapped a Chinese scientist who had been rescued by the CIA. Later, Raymond Reddington hired them to kidnap Tom Keen. They delivered Tom to Elizabeth Keen. While attempting to smuggle Xiaoping Li back to China, they were killed at McKendrick Pier.

Stanley Kornish, "The Stewmaker"

Portrayed by Tom Noonan (season 1, episode 4; season 2, episode 8)

Stanley R. Kornish (Blacklister N° 161), a dentist by trade, had a separate career as a professional body disposal expert. Working for whoever could afford his services, he used his expert knowledge of chemicals to dissolve corpses until there was almost nothing left. He kept a photo of and a tooth from each victim as a souvenir. His dog accompanied him on his disposals.

In "The Decembrist", Raymond Reddington tells Milos Kirchoff how he interrogated Kornish about a photograph of Zoe D'Antonio found on the body of one of his associates. He explains that Zoe was brought to Kornish, for him to make her disappear.

Gina Zanetakos

Gina Zanetakos is portrayed by Margarita Levieva, in 2013 and since 2016.

Portrayed by Margarita Levieva

Gina Zanetakos (Blacklister Nº 152) was a corporate terrorist who committed terrorist acts that resulted in corporations losing or gaining an advantage over the competition. Raymond Reddington said she once contacted him for help in assassinating a Supreme Court judge. He also claimed that she was a former lover of Tom Keen. She worked for the Major.

Using the alias Shubie Hartwell, she entered the United States. She was hired by the Hanar Group to detonate a dirty bomb in the Port of Houston. The explosion would have allowed the Hanar investors to profit from the re-routing of sea shipping to New Orleans. After being captured, she was allowed a plea bargain since the bomb had not devastated the port. A search of her apartment produced a photograph of Tom Keen who she claims not to know. When questioned about the murder of Victor Fokin, she claims to have committed the crime on the orders of Raymond Reddington.

Gina is eventually released from prison. Tom contacts her, looking for work to provide for Liz and his unborn baby. Gina reluctantly brings him in to work on a jewelry heist. After they pull off the heist, she asks him to run away with her, and he refuses. She then double-crosses him and has him shot, but he survives. He then confronts her at gunpoint and demands that she persuade the Major to let him walk away from their organization, and she agrees. Later she is seen on the phone with an unknown person, talking about Tom.

Gina and the Major ambush Tom in Liz's apartment. The Major is about to kill Tom when Gina decides to kill the Major instead and leaves Tom to bury the body.

Anslo Garrick

Portrayed by Ritchie Coster

Anslo Garrick (Blacklister N° 16) was a mercenary who specialized in raiding secret and well defended prison facilities and extracting high level prisoners, always using extreme levels of violence. He worked almost exclusively with a unit of highly armed, countryless mercenaries known as "the Wild Bunch". At some point, he raided a CIA blacksite in the Bering Sea to exfiltrate a man named Mahmoud al-Azok. His employer paid him to plant evidence that blamed the raid on Peruvian insurgent organization Shining Path (Sendero Luminoso, Communist Party of Peru, Partido Comunista del Perú). At some point he and Raymond Reddington worked together, though the alliance ended in 2008 when Garrick gave the FBI his train number and itenerary for a stop at Waterloo station in Brussels. Once Red arrived, a hit squad led by Donald Ressler made an attempt on his life, but failed. Red realized that Garrick had betrayed him and shot him in the face, damaging the right side of his face and apparently blinding his right eye. However, Garrick survived and spent 5 years in a prison described as a "black hole". To remind himself of the incident, Garrick never had the facial scarring repaired by surgery.

He was hired by Alan Fitch to kidnap Reddington. He succeeded in extracting Reddington from the FBI's custody, and tortured him. Reddington ultimately killed him in "Anslo Garrick Conclusion."

Madeline Pratt

Portrayed by Jennifer Ehle

Madeline Pratt (Blacklister N° 73), outwardly, is a well-known and politically active socialite. Behind the facade, she forms relationships and affiliations with powerful, influential people and then uses those connections to commit million dollar heists. Reddington credits her with the theft of 6 million dollars' worth of diamonds from a De Beers outpost in Congo and a heist on a mint in Prague in which the security fibers used to print the Czech koruna were stolen and then used to print counterfeit banknotes. She had a previous romantic connection with Reddington, which he broke off.

In the first season, she poses as Red's widow to steal documents belonging to him worth 10 million dollars from a bank in Istanbul to gain his attention regarding the proposed theft of the Effigy of Atargatis (leaving the first note). She met with Elizabeth Keen, whom Red had said was a career thief. After using Red and Liz as a diversion to allow her to steal the Effigy of Atargatis, she sold it to the Russian mafia after removing the Kungar 6 list. Red tricked her into revealing the location of the nuclear warheads and allowed her to escape. Later she stole a painting from Red as revenge (leaving the second note).

In the second season episode "T. Earl King VI", Pratt was "kidnapped" by the Kings to bait Red into infiltrating "The Palace" so he could be sold at their auction.

Milos Kirchoff, "Berlin"

Milos Kirchoff is portrayed by Peter Stormare, in 2014.

Portrayed by Peter Stormare

Milos Kirchoff (Blacklister N° 8) is one of Reddington's nemeses between the first and second seasons.

Prior to the series, Kirchoff started out in the Red Army, rose to the rank of Colonel and later became a member of the KGB. Notorious for sending his enemies to the gulags in Siberia, he was a loyal servant of the Soviet Union. In 1991, near the end of the Cold War, Kirchoff took part in a meeting in Kursk with other Soviet officials on how to combat their more progressive countrymen who wanted the Soviet Union dissolved. The meeting was interrupted when a bomb went off, killing 15 attendants and the last of the old Soviet resistance. The act was done by a man named Kiryl Morozov on the orders of Alan Fitch, known as "The Decembrist", but Reddington was blamed. Shortly after that, Kirchoff's daughter was suspected of falling in love with a dissident and imprisoned. He used his connections to help her escape, but the Kremlin found out and decided to use him as an example to the Motherland.

He was put in a Siberian gulag where a lot of people he had put away were imprisoned. One day, he was sent a pocket watch he had given his daughter. Over several months, he was sent several body parts and was led to believe that they were hers and that Reddington was behind it. In reality, Fitch sent body parts belonging to someone else and helped Kirchoff's daughter escape to the United States, but not before convincing her that her father was responsible for the bombing. Eventually, Kirchoff sharpened one of the bones he had been sent into a weapon, killed the people holding him captive and escaped and formed his criminal syndicate under the alias "Berlin".

During the first eight episodes of the second season, Red meets with Milos Kirchoff again, who once more blames him for his daughter's death and intends to hurt Red by going after Zoe, whom he assumes is Red's daughter. Red reveals that Milos Kirchoff's daughter Zoe is actually alive and someone else in Milos Kirchoff's faction had lied to him about her being killed. He is soon reunited with his daughter, who had been living under an assumed name as Zoe D'Antonio.

In the episode "The Decembrist", after being reunited with Zoe, Milos learned the truth of Red's innocence. He kills Kiryl Morozov after learning of Fitch's orders to frame Red and use Milos as a pawn. He was furious with Alan Fitch for lying to him about her death and takes action. Milos orders his agents to ab Fitch and strap a pipe bomb on him, intending to kill him. Using Zoe to gain the access numbers to free Fitch, Red holds Milos at gunpoint. Red returns to the warehouse where he is holding Milos prisoner with a bottle of vodka and places 2 shot glasses in front of Milos. After they reminisce about the Cold War and finish the bottle, Red kills Milos.

Luther Braxton

Luther Braxton is portrayed by Ron Perlman, in 2015.

Portrayed by Ron Perlman

Luther Todd Braxton (Blacklister N° 21) is a professional thief known for stealing money and information from China, Iran, and the United States. He typically organizes his operations to take place during wars, natural disasters or other upheavals and take advantage of the surrounding chaos to cover them up. He is credited with stealing 282 million dollars from Baghdad during Operation Shock and Awe and the abduction of a CIA asset from Tehran during the 2009–10 Iranian election protests. Braxton has a past with Reddington, including an incident in Belgrade where Braxton bested him, killing Red's local point man, Henkel, and hanging him by the neck with one of Reddington's own neckties. While serving in the Gulf War, Braxton was involved in a traumatic friendly fire incident in Khafji. He was successfully given therapy to have the memories of it removed.

He was hired by the Director to get the Fulcrum, and captured and interrogated Liz in order to find it, subjecting her to therapy to help recover blocked memories from her past that related to the Fulcrum. He was killed by Reddington in episode 10 of season 2.

"The Major"

Portrayed by Lance Henriksen

"The Major" (Blacklister N° 75) recruits social exiles who have a specific psychopathy personality profile. The persons are trained to act as spies for various clients. Once an agent has been assigned, they are to only contact the Major if the situation is "mission critical." One of his star operatives was Jacob Phelps, who posed as "Tom Keen," Elizabeth Keen's husband, for several years. The terrorist Gina Zanetakos also works for him.

The Major tried to kill Tom, but was killed by Gina instead.

Die Entrechteten

Die Entrechteten (German: "The Disenfranchised") are a neo-nazi movement that smuggle drugs and weapons around Europe. Tom had a contract to infiltrate inside, until Reddington lied to them about Tom being an informant working for the FBI in an effort to bring him back to USA and confess the murder of harbormaster Eugene Ames to free Liz from being imprisoned.

in the episode "The Longevity Initiative", the Germans track down both Tom and the Major and torture them for their leader's death. After they threatened him to kill Elizabeth if he didn't talk his motives for his infiltration, Tom and makes a deal: in exchange for Liz would not be their target, he reveals his assignment: he's going to help them solve the murder of a woman named Sarah Hastings, who was affiliated to the Germans, which is the main reason they want revenge for her death. After accepting the truce, they let Tom and the Major go.

These are some of the members of the movement:

Marvin Gerard

Marvin Gerard is portrayed by Fisher Stevens, in 2015.

Portrayed by Fisher Stevens

Marvin Gerard (Blacklister Nº 80) was a Harvard alum and magna cum laude graduate, Gerard became the college's third youngest professor at the age of 31. He went on to serve as prosecutor for the state of New York for 3 years, after which he made partner at his father-in-law's criminal defense firm. While Gerard was being considered for a seat on the federal bench, his teenage son, Timothy, fell in with a bad crowd and, suffering emotional abuse from his mother, abused prescription drugs he got from her supply. Gerard separated from his wife and filed for custody, but since his wife came from an influential family, he wasn't able to. He eventually went so far as to kidnap Timothy to keep him away from his mother, for which he was disbarred and sentenced to 7–10 years at Federal Correctional Institution, Cumberland. Timothy hung himself a year later. Gerard continued doing legal work behind bars, serving as shadow counsel to politicians, CEOs, and high-profile criminals, including Reddington, who apparently consulted with Gerard before he turned himself in to the FBI against Gerard's strong objections.

In "Sir Crispin Crandall", Gerard locates the vault where Peter Kotsiopulos is keeping his embezzled money.

In "The Director, Conclusion", when Red puts together a team to exonerate Liz, he calls in Gerard as part of that team. Gerard helps them plan on how to kidnap Peter Kotsiopulos. Once they have the Director, Red demands Laurel Hitchin exonerate Liz in exchange for Red not taking the Director to the Hague and sends in Gerard to discuss the terms of the deal with Laurel. Eventually Gerard manages to negotiate a deal where Liz is exonerated publicly for all but the Tom Connolly murder as Liz killed him in front of witnesses and it wasn't in self-defense. Instead, Laurel offers a plea of involuntary manslaughter with 3 years probation. Gerard privately talks to Red and convinces him to take the deal as it will keep Liz safe and out of prison and is better than Gerard expected them to get. Gerard later presents the deal to Liz who reluctantly signs it as she will no longer able to be an FBI agent though she can remain on the task force in a similar capacity to Red. Thanks to Gerard's deal, Liz is later able to walk free.

Zal Bin Hasaan

Zal Bin Hasaan is portrayed by Sammy Sheik, in 2015.

Portrayed by Sammy Sheik

Zal Bin Hasaan (Blacklister Nº 31), born Shahin Navabi, is the younger brother of Mossad agent Samar Navabi. He witnessed his parents' murder at a very young age. He faked his own death after carrying out his very first bomb attack, adopted the pseudonym "Zal Bin Hasaan", and began a career as a feared and vicious terrorist. He evaded capture for many years, despite the best efforts of an elite Mossad task force dedicated to hunting him down. He resurfaced in America, where he abducted six technicians working on Israel's Iron Dome defense system. Posing as a hostage, he was reunited with his sister, claiming he had gone into hiding to avoid persecution. He and his men infiltrated a Mossad compound, seeking a list that contained the names of the members of the task force. However, Samar and her ex-partner destroyed it when she found out his actions as a terrorist. He was captured by Red and Samar disowns Shahin, believing that he died with their parents. Red turned him over to unnamed associates in exchange for a favor.

Artax Network

The Artax Network (Blacklister Nº 41) is a defunct network of communications satellites that was intended to provide data coverage throughout the globe. Matias Solomon and his employers used it to track all of Liz Keen's movements and actions. Aram discovered this and the FBI forced Solomon's group to abandon the network.

Katarina Rostova

Portrayed by Lotte Verbeek

Katarina Rostova was a Russian spy and the biological mother of Masha Rostova/Elizabeth Keen. Her father was named Dom.

Reddington believed that she had committed suicide by drowning in order to protect Liz from unknown individuals who were pursuing her. He continued to tell Liz that her mother was dead, despite receiving a painting commissioned by someone who claimed to be Rostova. However, Liz and Tom suspected she was alive. Katarina had left a journal in the house that Kirk claimed Liz grew up in and while reading it, she learns more about Katarina's affair with Red along with the Rostov family's long history with a rare cancer.

Alexander Kirk

Portrayed by Ulrich Thomsen

Alexander Kirk (Blacklister Nº 14), born Constantin Rostov, is a powerful billionaire businessman who made his fortune buying up Russian companies after the fall of the Soviet Union. He claims to be Elizabeth Keen's father, and is suffering from an unrevealed medical condition (possibly a low blood cell count).

Kirk was revealed to be the mysterious client who had hired Susan Hargrave to capture Liz. After Liz faked her death, he hires an assassin to kill Tom Keen and take Agnes. Reddington and Hargrave steal $300 million from Senator Diaz, a presidential candidate Kirk was backing, in an attempt to lure Kirk to the United States, but Kirk does not take the bait. After Reddington frames him for selling oil to radical jihaddists, Kirk is forced to appear before a congressional committee to testify. He changes his mind at the last minute when his men discover Liz is alive. He has Liz kidnapped and brought to him, and tells her that he is her father.

Liz is in disbelief at Kirk's claims and doesn't trust him. So Kirk takes her to the house he claimed she grew up in, near Nova Scotia. When the FBI rescued her, Kirk decides to continue his revenge on Red by keeping Agnes from him. Red reveals why Kirk had kidnapped both Liz and Agnes in the first place. As the Rostov males suffered a rare form of cancer, Kirk intended to use Liz to go through the blood transfusion and hoping that in doing so, he could replenish his already low blood cells. In "Dr. Adrian Shaw", Liz attempts to save Kirk through the transfusion he needs from her but the DNA test performed by the hospital reveals that Kirk is not her father. Angered by the fact that he lied to her and sent her falsified DNA transcripts, Liz abandons Kirk. In "Dr. Adrian Shaw: Conclusion", Kirk escapes the hospital with Liz and is upset to learn he really isn't her father. Kirk trades Liz for Red though the person he sends to release Liz safely tries to kill her, saying that Kirk used to be a good man until he saw her on TV on the run from the Cabal and became obsessed with her. Liz is rescued by Ressler and Samar and with Aram's help, tracks down Kirk's location. Kirk tortures Red who confesses to being Liz's father and brings Kirk a cure. Kirk decides to kill Red rather than release him in exchange for the cure and the two men reminisce over Katarina Rostov. As Kirk goes to kill Red, Red whispers something in his ear that causes Kirk to stop. Both men disappear from Kirk's lab afterwards and later that night, Red tells Liz that Kirk is "gone." When Liz asks if Kirk is dead, all Red will say is that Kirk is gone with no further explanation.

The Cabal

The Cabal is a powerful clandestine organization, a shadow government orchestrating assassinations and international conflicts, that is responsible for many key events in the series, from the arson at Elizabeth Keen's former house to the bombing in Kurzk which Milos Kirchoff (Berlin) was framed. The core members of this group are greatly concerned with retrieving the Fulcrum, a blackmail file that can bring down many of the most influential men and women in the world.

The organization has something planned for the year 2017.

Member Country Career Status Actor Appearance(s)
Diane Fowler United States
  • United States Assistant Attorney General
  • Head of Criminal Division of the Department of Justice
  • Alan Fitch's follower
 Deceased Jane Alexander
  • "The Freelancer"
  • "Anslo Garrick: Conclusion"
  • "The Good Samaritan"
  • "The Cyprus Agency"
The Man with the Apple
  • Spy
  • Stalker in the former Keen residence
 Deceased Graeme Malcolm
  • "Wujing"
  • "The Courier"
  • "Gina Zanetakos"
  • "General Ludd"
  • "Anslo Garrick: Conclusion"
Alan Fitch
The Decembrist		 United States
  • Assistant Director of National Intelligence
 Deceased Alan Alda
  • "Anslo Garrick: Conclusion"
  • "The Good Samaritan"
  • "The Kingmaker"
  • "Berlin: Conclusion"
  • "The Decembrist"
Walter Gary Martin United States
  • Alan Fitch's right-hand man
  • FBI agent initially in charge of investigating the disappearance of Diane Fowler
 Active Jason Butler Harner
  • "Madeline Pratt"
  • "Berlin"
  • "Berlin: Conclusion"
  • "Lord Baltimore"
Thomas Connolly
Smiling Tommy		 United States
  • United States Assistant Attorney General
  • United States Attorney General
 Deceased Reed Birney
  • "The Judge"
  • "The Kenyon Family"
  • "T. Earl King IV"
  • "Tom Keen"
  • "Leonard Caul"
  • "Quon Zhang"
  • "Karakurt"
  • "Tom Connolly"
Kiryl Morozov Russia
  • Alan Fitch's follower
  • Responsible for the 1991 Kursk bombing for which Reddington and Berlin were both framed
 Deceased Alon Moni Aboutboul
Kat Goodson United States
  • Liaison between the NCS and FBI.
  • Peter Kotsiopulos's assistant
 Active Janel Moloney
Peter Kotsiopulos
The Director		 United States
  • Director of the CIA's National Clandestine Service (NCS)
  • One of the Cabal's leaders
 Deceased David Strathairn
  • "Luther Braxton"
  • "Luther Braxton: Conclusion"
  • "Vanessa Cruz"
  • "Leonard Caul"
  • "Quon Zhang"
  • "The Troll Farmer"
  • "Arioch Cain"
  • "Sir Crispin Crandall"
  • "Zal Bin Hasaan"
  • "The Director"
  • "The Director: Conclusion"
Roger Hobbs United States
  • Owner of the Longevity Initiative
  • Owner of Sadovo Solutions
 Deceased Ralph Brown
  • "The Longevity Initiative"
  • "Vanessa Cruz"
Kenneth Jasper
  • The Director's follower
 Unknown James A. Stephens
  • "Vanessa Cruz"
  • "Quon Zhang"
Leonard Caul
(born Joseph McCray)		 United States
  • A key figure from Reddington's past
  • Former CIA spy
  • Creator of the Fulcrum
 Active Ned Van Zandt
  • "The Kenyon Family"
  • "The Deer Hunter"
  • "Leonard Caul"
  • "Quon Zhang"
  • "Karakurt"
  • "Tom Connolly"
  • "The Djinn"
Karakurt Russia Captured
  • "Quon Zhang"
  • "Karakurt"
  • "Tom Connolly"
  • "Sir Crispin Crandall"
  • "Zal Bin Hasaan"
  • "Kings of the Highway"
  • "The Director"
  • "The Director: Conclusion"
Matias Solomon Ethiopia
  • Senior Cabal operative
 Active Edi Gathegi
  • "The Troll Farmer"
  • "Marvin Gerard"
  • "Eli Matchett"
  • "Arioch Cain"
  • "Sir Crispin Crandall"
  • "Zal Bin Hasaan"
  • "Kings of the Highway"
  • "The Director"
  • "Mr. Solomon"
  • "Mr. Solomon: Conclusion"
  • "Alexander Kirk"
Susan Hanover United States
  • CTO of Verdiant Industries
 Captured Cindy Katz
  • "Eli Matchett"
Laurel Hitchin United States
  • National security advisor to the President
  • Former Assistant Secretary of State
 Active Christine Lahti
  • "Arioch Cain"
  • "Zal Bin Hasaan"
  • "Kings of the Highway"
  • "The Director"
  • "The Director: Conclusion"
  • "Susan Hargrave"
  • "The Lindquist Concern"

Diane Fowler

Diane Fowler is portrayed by Jane Alexander, from 2013 to 2014.

Portrayed by Jane Alexander

The Head of Criminal Division of the Department of Justice in season 1. She is revealed in episode 13 of season 1, "The Cyprus Agency (No. 64)", to have ordered a leak that resulted in Reddington's location being given up to Anslo Garrick and the coordinators of the attack. She worked for the Cabal. She is killed by Red at the end of that episode, and is now officially listed as "missing". Director Cooper later attempts to investigate her death, but his efforts are stonewalled by the DC Bureau.

"The Man with the Apple"

Portrayed by Graeme Malcolm

A man who was spying on Elizabeth and Tom Keen, who worked for the Cabal. He was killed by Liz in episode 10 of season 1.

Alan Fitch, "The Decembrist"

Alan Fitch is portrayed by Alan Alda, from 2013 to 2014.

Portrayed by Alan Alda

Alan Fitch (Blacklister N° 12) is the Deputy Director of National Intelligence, and may have been part of the Cabal, the mysterious global alliance on which Reddington has damaging information; Red has arranged for those secrets to be divulged in the event of his death in order to make sure the Cabal stays away from him. He was the one responsible for Berlin's daughter's disappearance, having helped her escape from a gulag and faking her death.

Fitch also had been married to a woman named Margaret for 51 years. Walter Gary Martin is his right-hand man inside the faction.

During season one, Fitch worked with a terrorist named Anslo Garrick on the siege at The Post Office, but forced him to keep Reddington alive so he could talk to him about this damaging information. He, along with other unknown officials, is later seen confronting Diane Fowler about the attempt on Reddington's life. Reddington meets with Fitch in "The Kingmaker", explaining that his businesses are under attack and suggesting that it is a mutual problem. He ended up aiding Red in the hunt for Berlin, stating that he was risking his position. However, Walter Gary Martin gave Harold Cooper an indirect reference to Fitch in retaliation for Red's staged escape.

In episode 8 of season 2, it is revealed that Fitch was the one who manipulated Berlin into going to war with Reddington. He is then killed by a bomb planted by Berlin. Before it goes off, he warns Reddington that the Cabal will react badly to his death and several members doubt that Red still has the "Fulcrum". Fitch tells Red of 2 members who could be persuaded to align with Red's agenda. The other members will lose control and move forward without planning for any type of failure. He gives Red the combination to a safe somewhere in St. Petersburg that contains files, but is killed before he can say exactly where. The conversation also suggests that the organization has something planned for 2017.

Thomas Connolly, "Smiling Tommy"

Portrayed by Reed Birney

Thomas Connolly (Blacklister N° 11) is the US Attorney General, who is a good friend and colleague of Harold Cooper. Connolly was captured alongside Cooper by men working for Ruth Kipling/The Judge(Blacklister N° 57) and taken to a makeshift prison to be put on trial. He tried to reason with her that Alan Ray Rifkin broke the law by committing mass murders in Afghanistan and their forced confession on him was necessary to avoid similar situations. Kipling wasn't convinced and she was about ready to make both Connolly and Cooper suffer the same fate, until Red shows up to prove Rifkin's guilt and coerced her to do the right thing. He becomes a member of the Cabal in Episode 20 of season 2, "Leonard Caul," and manipulated Cooper on the Cabal's behalf. Connolly is later shot and killed by Liz Keen when it became clear that he had coerced Cooper's doctor to fake Cooper's cancer and planned to destroy the other Task Force members. Liz then spends months on the run for the crimes she was framed for, including Connolly's murder. Red eventually forces Laurel Hitchins, another Cabal member to publicly exonerate Liz. However, she demands that Liz plead guilty to involuntary manslaughter in Connolly's murder since there had been witnesses and he was well-liked. Liz took the deal and got three years probation, but could not regain her position amongst the FBI as a result. When Laurel exonerated Liz, she was forced to admit that Connolly was part of the Cabal.

Walter Gary Martin

Portrayed by Jason Butler Harner

An FBI agent who initially investigated the disappearance of Diane Fowler. He was temporarily put in charge of the Task Force at the beginning of Season 2.

Peter Kotsiopulos, "The Director"

Peter Kotsiopulos is portrayed by David Strathairn, from 2015 to 2016.

Portrayed by David Strathairn

Peter Kotsiopulos, otherwise known as "The Director" of the CIA's National Clandestine Service (Blacklister N° 24) became leader of the Cabal after Alan Fitch's demise. He is skeptical of Reddington and does not believe that he has the Fulcrum. He hired Luther Braxton in a failed attempt to obtain the Fulcrum, which leads him to become Reddington's foe.[4] The Director would later be confronted by Elizabeth Keen to show proof that Red did have the Fulcrum and that he made one of his biggest mistakes in calling Red's bluff. He would later call off the assassination, but warns Keen she made her biggest mistake for assisting Red by stopping him. The Director mentions that she looks like her mother, implying he does know her but it's unclear how for the moment.

In "The Troll Farmer", Mr. Solomon, an associate of Peter's, reprimands him for his actions and warns that the Cabal is growing dissatisfied with his leadership. He informs Peter that he needs to deal with both Red and Liz soon or the Cabal will come for him. In "Arioch Cain", Peter is assigned to the Task Force, much to Ressler's dismay. In "Sir Crispin Crandall", Solomon pays Peter a visit in another location to remind him that his position in the Cabal is on shaky grounds and the members have become more dissatisfied with his performance. It is also revealed that Peter had planned to embezzle from the Cabal himself and Red took evidence from a safe box to try to force his compliance in exonerating Keen. When he refused, Red warned Peter that continued resistance would eventually turn the Cabal against him and when they learned of his embezzlement from them, he would be assassinated.

The Director appears on national television, publicly revealing his identity as head of the NCS in an attempt to contain the damage from Reddington's release of the Fulcrum. He persuades Laurel Hitchin to force Ressler to share all of the FBI's information on Liz Keen with the CIA. After Peter secretly taps Tom Keen's phone without informing Ressler, the national security advisor tells him he has violated her order to share all information with the FBI and demands that he and his team vacate the task force building immediately.

In "The Director" and "The Director Conclusion", the Director attempts to assassinate Liz before she can testify about the Cabal but is thwarted due to the efforts of Aram. The Director then plots with Laurel Hitchins to kill Liz in the courthouse before being called to his wife's psychiatrist after she has a panic attack. However, it is a trap and the Director is captured by Red and his team. He is taken aboard a Venezuelan aircraft where Red reveals that he plans to have the Director turned over to the World Court to be tried for American war crimes. Red calls Laurel and demands she exonerate Liz in exchange for him not doing so and as the President wouldn't like her avoiding the Director, as the head of the NCS being tried for crimes, reluctantly agrees. Laurel agrees to exonerate Liz on the terrorism charges, but demands that she pleads guilty to involuntary manslaughter in Connolly's murder. After Red and Liz agree in exchange for Liz being able to remain on the task force as an asset, Laurel asks Red to deal with the Director as he had become a liability. As she exonerates Liz, Laurel publicly implicates the Director in the Cabal to his horror. Red then tells him that the plane is descending and they are going to "drop him off somewhere." A few minutes later, the Director is thrown from the plane and crashes through a house's roof, killing him. The family inside is surprised, recognizing his body from a TV report on his actions.

Kat Goodson

Portrayed by Janel Moloney

Peter Kotsiopulos' assistant. She is a liaison between the NCS and FBI.[4]

Leonard Caul

Portrayed by Ned Van Zandt

Leonard Caul, born Joseph McCray (Blacklister N° 62), is a former CIA agent and specialist in technology who is another member of Alan Fitch's faction, and the creator of the Fulcrum. Caul met with Keen with revelations that he and Red were supposed to meet concerning the contents of the Fulcrum when Red was shot by an assassin sent by the Cabal. He later joins Red in his fight against the Cabal.

In "The Djinn", Caul assists Red in tracing down the place where Solomon was holding Dembe before his escape. He also reveals knowledge on Solomon's past in the CIA before he was terminated for the brutal tortures he committed.

Roger Hobbs

Portrayed by Ralph Brown

Roger Hobbs (Blacklister Nº 97) was the CEO of the Longevity Initiative, who asks Reddington to hunt down a fellow scientist who conducts experiments behind his back. He is revealed to be a member of the Cabal, and assists Reddington in his war with them. He is killed under orders of the Director in the episode "Vanessa Cruz".

Kenneth Jasper

Portrayed by James A. Stephens

Jasper was introduced as an assistant to The Director (Peter Kotsiopulos) whom Red sought out to join his cause with the promise that he would lead the Cabal himself. He instead maintains his loyalty to Kotsiopulos by helping him kill both Roger Hobbs and Mitchum. Insulted by the betrayal, Red had one of his members in his syndicate pose as Jasper and blow his yacht up to make it look like he had committed suicide that would lead to instability to his investments. After publicly revealing himself in "Quon Zhang", Jasper is taken hostage by Red who used Samar to interrogate him with the belief that she is an agent of the Cabal. Red later sends Jasper's tongue to Kotsiopulos as a message to him.

"Karakurt"

Portrayed by Michael Massee (season 2) and Andrew Divoff (season 3)

"Karakurt" (Blacklister Nº 55), known in the intelligence community as "the Left Hand of the SVR" (the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service), is an assassin employed to silence Russian dissidents and known high-profile critics of the Russian regime. He specializes in either making his murders look like non-criminal causes, such as accidents, suicides or natural causes, or like the work of other criminals. He has at least two hits to his name. The first is Stanislav Markelov, a human rights lawyer who was shot dead in Moscow in January 2009. The act was blamed on a Neo-Nazi Youth group. The second is Boris Berezovsky, another critic of the Russian regime, who died in a staged suicide in 2001

The Cabal smuggled him into the US to complete a high-priority mission. He blew up the CIA's Office of Russian and European Analysis, killing the agents inside. Cooper's task force found evidence that indicated Karakurt was planning to infect US Senator Hawkins with a customized biological weapon at a memorial service for the agents killed in the bombing. Elizabeth Keen managed to get Hawkins to safety before Karakurt could carry out his attack, but the senator mysteriously collapsed and died. It turned out that Karakurt had merely been a decoy, and that the Cabal had secretly infected Liz with the weapon and used the threat of Karakurt to get her to unwittingly infect Hawkins, then framed her as a Russian spy and as the assassin of Hawkins. Tom Keen later tracked down and captured the real Karakurt in hopes of using him to exonerate Liz. When Mattais Solomon and an assault team attack their location, Ressler and Tom reluctantly allow Karakurt to aid them in stopping the killers. Karakurt saves Tom's life during the battle and is then promptly restrained once more. While Solomon tries to force them to turn Karakurt over to him, Cooper knocks him out from behind and he is arrested. Karakurt later reluctantly agrees to testify about the Cabal and Ressler has him led into the courthouse in front of the press and exposes him as the true terrorist and not Elizabeth Keene. This, along with Red's efforts, exonerate Liz.

Note: "Karakurt" is a Russian name for the Mediterranean black widow spider.

Laurel Hitchin

Laurel Hitchin is portrayed by Christine Lahti, since 2015.

Portrayed by Christine Lahti

Laurel Hitchin is the national security advisor to the President of the United States. She was formerly Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs. During this time, she worked with Matthias Solomon, who was at the time a CIA asset. She was friendly with Reven Wright, whom she had known for many years.

She chaired the government commission which investigated the OREA bombing, and, in that role, publicly questioned Donald Ressler about his beliefs regarding Liz Keen's innocence and the existence of the Cabal. She later ordered Ressler and Peter Kotsioupulos to cooperate and share all information regarding the Liz Keen case between the FBI and the CIA. After Kotsioupulos had his team secretly tap Tom Keen's phone without informing Ressler, she told him he had violated her orders to cooperate with the FBI and told him and his team to vacate the Task Force building.

Reven Wright later came to her, explaining that she had discovered Laurel's history with Matthias Solomon and wanted to know if Laurel had any information to share about him. After Laurel determined that Ressler knew nothing about Wright's investigation, she shot Wright to cover up her connection to him. She asked if Wright had any last words; Wright replied "Tommy Markham," the name of Ressler's father's killer.

When Liz Keen is arrested by the Task Force, Laurel orders the Director to eliminate Liz before she can testify about the Cabal. When Ressler informs her of Karakurt's location, she sends an assault team to kill him. However, she also tells Ressler that Wright mentioned Tommy Markham, unwittingly alerting Ressler to her involvement with the Cabal.

After Aram's efforts buy time for Laurel and the Director's efforts to be thwarted, Laurel plots to have Liz assassinated. However, Red captures the Director and threatens to have the Venezuelans turn him over to the World Court to be tried for American war crimes. Red demands Liz's exoneration in exchange for not doing so, knowing that the President would force her to make a deal. Laurel reluctantly meets with Marvin Gerard and as Karakurt was turned over and exposed by Ressler on TV as the true terrorist, Laurel agreed to publicly exonerate Liz but she will have to plead to involuntary manslaughter in Connolly's murder as there were witnesses and he was well liked. Red agrees on the condition that Liz remain on the task force as an asset as he is as she cannot be restored to being an FBI agent and she agrees. Laurel publicly exonerates Liz as promised and is also forced to expose the Cabal's existence. She later meets with Red in her office, suggesting that he set everything up to become part of the Cabal.

Supporting characters

Introduced in season one

Introduced in season two

Introduced in season three

Introduced in season 4

Episode links

^Ep 1-9 "Anslo Garrick". The Blacklist. November 25, 2013. NBC. 
^Ep 1-10 "Anslo Garrick Conclusion". The Blacklist. December 2, 2013. NBC. 
^Ep 1-11 "The Good Samaritan". The Blacklist. 13 January 2014. NBC. 
^Ep 1-16 "Mako Tanida". The Blacklist. March 17, 2014. NBC. 

References

  1. ↑ Bibel, Sara (February 5, 2015). "'The Blacklist', 'Chicago Fire', 'Chicago P.D.', 'Grimm' & 'Law & Order: SVU' Renewed by NBC". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved February 5, 2015.
  2. ↑ Andreeva, Nellie. "'The Blacklist' Promotes Hisham Tawfiq To Series Regular For Season 3". Deadline. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
  3. ↑ Hinckley, David (October 1, 2013). "'The Blacklist's' James Spader unsure how series' key relationship will develop". Daily News. New York. Retrieved October 5, 2013.
  4. 1 2 Abrams, Natalie (January 13, 2015). "'The Blacklist' enlists David Strathairn, Janel Moloney, Gloria Reuben for Super Bowl two-parter". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 16, 2015.

External links

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