The Blacklist With James Spader Renewed for Season 2

James Spader's NBC drama was one of the first freshman shows to get a full season pickup

By Jenna Mullins Dec 03, 2013 10:09 PMTags
The Blacklist, James SpaderDavid Giesbrecht/NBC

Fans of The Blacklist can cross a season two off their Christmas wish list.

NBC has renewed the James Spader-led drama for a second season, making it one of the first (and few) freshman series to be bestowed with such a gift.

"The success of The Blacklist demonstrates that inspired storytelling is alive and well in broadcast television, and I'm impressed on a daily basis by this creative team's imagination and the extent to which they will go to capture this grand vision on film," NBC Chairman Rob Greenblatt said in a statement. "With gratitude to both our partners at Sony Pictures Television and our NBC development executives who took a great script and shepherded it into a great series, I hope that Red Reddington never runs out of names to bring down on his list!"

The Blacklist, which got an early 22-episode pickup, has been a huge hit for the peacock network. It is the No. 1 drama for total viewers in the coveted 18-49 demo, and averages a 4.9 rating.

"We are very proud of the creative achievements of The Blacklist, starting with creator Jon Bokenkamp and his incredible producing partners John Eisendrath, John Davis, John Fox and Michael Watkins," Jennifer Salke, NBC President added. "Our hats are off to them and to everyone in our dream cast—starting with the incomparable James Spader and Megan Boone—and our maverick pilot director, Joe Carnahan, and all of the gifted writers, producers, and directors who bring this cinematic show to life each week."

The Blacklist just wrapped up the first half of its season with an explosive midseason finale on Monday night. Of course, we saw promise in the show early on, picking it as one of our favorite new shows of the fall.

The Blacklist returns on Monday, Jan. 13.

(E! and NBC are both part of the NBCUniversal family.)