Will there be another season of The Blacklist?
In February 2020, NBC renewed The Blacklist for Season 8.
“The Blacklist continues to tell exciting and imaginative stories,” Chris Parnell, co-president of Sony Pictures Television said at the time. “It’s due to the brilliant cast, crew and our writing staff, led by Jon Bokenkamp and John Eisendrath, who commit to unparalleled creativity. Wait until you see what’s in store for Season e8.”
The contracts of the main cast of the show, including lead stars James Spader and Megan Boone, came to an end after Season 7, but they were renewed in anticipation of the show’s renewal. This means that all of the actors will be back for more.
What is less certain, however, is when the show will return for another season. IMDB currently has it that Season 8 will return in 2021, which seems likely if production in New York is shut until the summer.
Usually, seasons of The Blacklist begin in late September or early October. In order for that to happen, however, production would have to start in July or August. There is some precedent, however, for the show beginning in January. Season 6, for example, began on January 3, 2019, and Season 8 could follow suit so the show does not have to start filming so early.
The Blacklist’s current season had to end production in mid-March, three episodes earlier than planned. According to USA Today, Bokenkamp and Eisendrath are currently deciding whether to begin Season 8 with the plot lines from the three episodes that have not been filmed or to start anew.
Eisendrath told Variety: “Normally we start the season in the writers’ room, thinking, ‘Oh my God, we put all the great stuff at the end of the previous year.’ At least this year, moving forward, it’ll be the opposite… We have all this great stuff that we haven’t filmed, and hopefully it will allow us to start next season with a bang.” However, that same article also noted that the show has not yet opened its writers room for Season 8.
Blacklist star Diego Klattenhoff told TVLine, meanwhile, that despite not being planned as a season finale, the final episode of Season 7 is, “going to tee up everything for Season 8.” That finale will air on May 15 at 8 a.m. ET on NBC, after which the countdown begins to the start of Season 8.
The Blacklist Season 8 is coming soon to NBC.
