Looking for awesome TV shows like The Blacklist?
Don’t just stand there, check out our list of 11 powerful shows that will keep you on the edge of your seat!
We’ll also tell you all about The Blacklist cast so you can keep track of who’s who!
Plus, don’t miss our Blacklist Season 5 episode guide!
Let’s get started!
Related: 80+ TV Shows Like the One You Just Finished Binging!
Table of Contents
THE BLACKLIST OVERVIEW
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The Blacklist combines action, crime, drama, mystery and thriller.
The series focuses on Raymond “Red” Reddington, a former U.S. Naval Intelligence Officer- turned master criminal, who has eluded the FBI for more than 2 decades.
However, he is now ready to turn himself in.
But there’s one catch- well, actually there are two.
He will share his list and help capture some of the world’s most dangerous criminals, in exchange for legal immunity. And he will only work with Elizabeth Keen– a rookie FBI Criminal Profiler.
Each episode of The Blacklist is named after a person or group on Reddington’s list- known as “The Blacklist,” and also the target of that particular episode.
“The Blacklist” features the names of hardened criminals, including hackers, mobsters, spies and politicians, that Reddington has collected for more than 20 years.
These global criminals are not found on the FBI’s list of Most Wanted Fugitives and most aren’t even known to the FBI.
A show is nothing without its cast, and The Blacklist has some stellar actors driving it!
Let’s learn a bit about them!
THE BLACKLIST CAST
SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t finished watching season 5 yet, you may want to skip down to the section on shows like the Blacklist right now.
James Spader as Raymond “Red” Reddington
- Raymond is a criminal mastermind who evaded the FBI for over 20 years, landing himself on their list of Ten Most Wanted Fugitives.
- Currently, he is an FBI Criminal Informant. In season 4, episode 22, it is discovered that Reddington is Elizabeth’s biological father.
- In season 5, episode 22, it is learned that the real Raymond Reddington is actually deceased.
Megan Boone as Elizabeth Keen
- Elizabeth is an FBI Special Agent, whose birth name is Masha Rostova.
- She is the former FBI Head of the Mobile Psychiatric Emergency Response Team. Elizabeth has a degree in Forensic Psychology.
- She is the wife of Tom Keen- a Covert Operative- who was killed by Ian Garvey, in season 5, episode 8.
Diego Klattenhoff as Donald Ressler
- Donald is a Senior FBI Special Agent.
- He spent five years of his career tracking Raymond, resulting in his fiancée- Audrey Bidwell- calling off their engagement.
Harry Lennix as Harold Cooper
- Harold is the Head of the FBI Covert Task Force and the former Assistant Director of the FBI Counter-Terrorism Division.
- In addition, Harold is also a former U.S. Naval Officer and in Afghanistan, was the Senior FBI Agent.
Amir Arison as Aram Mojitabai
- Aram is an FBI Computer Specialist, who formerly worked for 14 with the National Security Agency (NSA).
- Aram is the godfather to Agnes Keen- Elizabeth and Tom’s daughter.
Mozhan Marno as Samar Navabi
- Samar is an FBI Special Agent, who is a Mossad- Israel’s National Intelligence Agency- Operative and skilled interrogator.
Hisham Tawfiq as Dembe Zuma
- Dembe is Raymond’s bodyguard, confidante, driver and handyman. He is a former Muslim Freedom Fighter.
- Dembe was enslaved by the Eberhardt Cartel, until he was 14 years old, when he was rescued by Raymond.
- Now that we know a bit more about the cast, let’s check out the season 5 episode guide!
THE BLACKLIST SEASON 5 EPISODE GUIDE
We’ve kept our Blacklist season 5 episode guide relatively vague, so there aren’t any major spoilers here.
| Episode 1- Smokey Putnum | Joe Putnum is #30 on Reddington’s list and is a thief. | Watch Now |
| Episode 2- Greyson Blaise | Greyson Blaise is #37 on Reddington’s list and is an art thief and billionaire. | Watch Now |
| Episode 3- Miss Rebecca Thrall | Rebecca Thrall is #76 on Reddington’s list and is an assassin and insurance policy fraudster. | Watch Now |
| Episode 4- The Ending | Nirah Ahmad is #44 on Reddington’s list and was a murder and member of the Syrian Free Army. | Watch Now |
| Episode 5- Ilyas Surkov | Brian Osterman, AKA Tobias Reuther is #54 on Reddington’s list and is a former CIA Agent. | Watch Now |
| Episode 6- The Travel Agency- | Calvin Dawson is #90 on Reddington’s list and was an assassin and member of the Travel Agency. | Watch Now |
| Episode 7- The Kilgannon Corporation | Arthur Kilgannon is #48 on Reddington’s list and was a human smuggler. | Watch Now |
| Episode 8- Ian Garvey | Ian Garvey is #13 on Reddington’s list and was a U.S. Marshall. | Watch Now |
| Episode 9- Ruin | Ruin is one of 3 episodes in the series that doesn’t focus on a member of “The Blacklist.” The other 2 episodes are- Cape May- season 3, episode 19 and Requiem- season 4, episode 17. | Watch Now |
| Episode 10- The Informant | Howard Ray Bishop is #118 on Reddington’s list and is an informant and political aide. | Watch Now |
| Episode 11- Abraham Stern | Abraham Stern is #100 on Reddington’s list and is a thief and loan officer. | Watch Now |
| Episode 12- The Cook | Thomas Owen Wattles is #56 on Reddington’s list and was a former priest, arsonist and serial killer. | Watch Now |
| Episode 13- The Invisible Hand | The Invisible Hand is #63 on Reddington’s list and is a vigilante organization | Watch Now |
| Episode 14- Mr. Raleigh Sinclair III | Raleigh Sinclair is #51 on Reddington’s list and is an alibi agent. | Watch Now |
| Episode 15- Pattie Sue Edwards | Pattie Sue Edwards is #68 on Reddington’s list and is a U.S. Army Captain Biochemist and biological terrorist. | Watch Now |
| Episode 16- The Capricorn Killer | Sharon Fulton is #19 on Reddington’s list and is an FBI Psychiatrist and serial killer. | Watch Now |
| Episode 17- Anna-Gracia Duerte- | Anna-Gracia Duerte is #25 on Reddington’s list and is an assassin and child bride. | Watch Now |
| Episode 18- Zarak Mosadek | Zarak Mosadek is #23 on Reddington’s list and is a heroin supplier and Deputy Minister of Narcotics of Afghanistan. | Watch Now |
| Episode 19- Ian Garvey: Conclusion | As the name implies, brings closure (Blackist style) to the events of Episode 8. | Watch Now |
| Episode 20- Nicholas T. Moore | Nicholas Tyler Moore is #110 on Reddington’s list and was a cult leader. | Watch Now |
| Episode 21- Lawrence Dane Devlin | Lawrence Dane Devlin is #26 on Reddington’s list and was an abductor, serial killer and Thanatologist. | Watch Now |
| Episode 22- Sutton Ross | Sutton Ross is #17 on Reddington’s list and was a thief and corporate spy. | Watch Now |
11 TV Shows Like The Blacklist That Will Leave You Speechless
The Blacklist is a darn good thriller, and fans of the show have come to us several times looking for more shows like it.
If you like watching this kind of show, you have several other options to choose from.
Here are more great TV shows like The Blacklist to get you started.
1. Madam Secretary
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNEu36NUWj4
- Madam Secretary follows the action-packed life of Secretary of State Elizabeth McCord. Elizabeth, a former CIA analyst, left that position for ethical reasons.
- Now, determined to do what’s best for her country, she spends most of her day battling office politics and working to resolve global issues.
- It doesn’t take long to realize, she’s a woman who knows what it means to think out of the box!
- So far, there are more than 50 episodes in the series.
- This show debuted in 2014.
- The third season premiered earlier this month.
2. State of Affairs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2ZnwmH9iMM
If you like shows that feature espionage in the storyline, State of Affairs is probably right up your TV-watching alley.
- Meet CIA analyst Charleston Tucker, played by Katherine Heigl.
- Her job is putting together the president’s briefing, every day of the week.
- This briefing contains vital security issues, which have the potential to wreak havoc on the United States.
- Alfre Woodard is the president in all 13 episodes, which aired in 2014.
3. Crisis
- Crisis follows the ambush and eventual rescue of a group of high school students in Washington D.C., which unfortunately includes the President’s son.
- As luck doesn’t have it, this ambush takes place on Secret Service agent Marcus Finley’s first day on the job.
- Assisting him is Susie Dunn. She is an FBI agent who discovers one of her family members is also one of the kidnap victims
- The series lasted one season, before getting canceled by NBC.
4. Intelligence
- Gabriel Vaughn isn’t the average high-tech, intelligence operative next-door. He happens to have a computer chip in his brain that gives him a direct connection to the worldwide information grid.
- It’s no trouble at all for him to access any file in any database, in an effort to keep enemies away from the United States.
- When he has down time, Vaughn takes it upon himself to search for his wife who went missing years before.
- Her last known location was somewhere in India.
- Thirteen episodes make up the series.
5. Scorpion
- One of my all-time favorite TV shows like The Blacklist, Scorpion is loosely based on the life of Walter O’Brien.
- O’Brien is a computer expert who is the founder of Scorpion Computer Services, Inc.
- He’ll be the first to tell you that he hacked into NASA when he was just 13.
- In the series, Walter and his team of almost equally smart people do their best to solve a variety of problems around the globe.
- And, of course, they save scads of lives in the process.
- Sadly, Scorpion was canceled with no warning at the end of Season 4.
- It ended on a cliffhanger, so don’t expect closure!
6. Alias
- Alias is probably one of the closest shows like The Blacklist that you can find.
- It focuses on Sydney Bristow, a CIA double agent moonlighting as an operative for a criminal/espionage organization.
- The series debuted in 2001 and aired for 5 seasons before getting cancelled in 2006.
- It’s a JJ Abrams show (he also did Lost and Fringe), so expect a lot of twists, turns, and “OMG” moments.
7. Blindspot
- Blindspot focuses on Jane Doe, AKA Remi Briggs, who was found nude, by the FBI, in the center of Times Square.
- She originally has no memory of who she is, but her tattoos contain clues to her identity and a treasure map for the FBI.
- To date, 67 episodes have aired.
8. Burn Notice
- Burn Notice follows Michael Westen, who was classified as an unreliable agent by the U.S. Army Special Forces, who now works as an operative with the CIA.
- The series debuted in 2007 and aired for 7 seasons before getting cancelled in 2013.
9. Covert Affairs
- Covert Affairs follows Annie Walker, a CIA trainee, under the guidance of Auggie Anderson, a CIA Special Ops Officer, when she is suddenly and mysteriously promoted to Field Operative.
- The series debuted in 2010 and aired for 5 seasons before getting cancelled in 2014.
10. The Americans
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4D96fPl_hI
- The Americans follows the lives of 2 Soviet KGB Officers, Philip and Elizabeth Jennings, who pose as a married couple, with 2 children, living in the suburbs of Washington, D.C.
- The series debuted in 2013 and aired for 6 seasons before getting cancelled in March of 2018.
11. White Collar
- White Collar showcases Neal Caffrey, a con artist and white-collar criminal, who becomes an FBI criminal informant.
- The series debuted in 2009 and aired for 6 seasons before getting cancelled in 2014.
- If you love this one, check out more shows like White Collar!
Expect to spend a lot of time with your jaw dropped!