‘The Blacklist: Redemption’ Spoilers: Creators Dish On What Makes Spinoff Different From ‘The Blacklist’

“The Blacklist: Redemption” might be a spinoff of “The Blacklist,” but according to its creators, the new series will be different from the James Spader-starrer. This time the focus will be on Tom Keen (Ryan Eggold) and Susan “Scottie” Hargrave (Famke Janssen) instead of Red (Spader) and Tom’s wife, Elizabeth Keen (Megan Boone).

“The Blacklist” and “The Blacklist: Redemption” co-creators John Eisendrath and Jon Bokenkamp opened up about the upcoming series, which premieres this week, during an interview with Yahoo. Among the things they talked about are how the spinoff differs from “The Blacklist” and how Tom keeps eluding death despite having been placed in life-and-death situations time and time again. “It’s big. It’s crazy. This has a real flash and flair and musical sensibility and scope,”Eisendrath said of “The Blacklist: Redemption,” adding that the latter will be a little more lighthearted compared to the original series.

Eisendrath and Bokenkamp, who also worked on all four seasons of the original series, went old school for “Redemption” and took a “beloved character from the original show and take him or her to a new show.” The spinoff will focus on a mercenary team that comprises of some of the most dangerous criminals in the world and takes on impossible missions to make up for their long list of crimes. The team will be led by Scottie, who was revealed to be Tom’s mother in “The Blacklist” Season 3, and will include Tom’s nemesis, Matias Solomon (Edi Gathegi).

Bokemkamp said that they hope fans will pay close attention to the “twisted” relationship Tom shares with Scottie. “My hope and desire is that [the audience] really hooks into Tom and Scottie’s very peculiar, curious, twisted, uncertain relationship and go on the journey to find out what that’s going to look like,” he told the publication.

The pair also revealed that “The Blacklist: Redemption” almost didn’t happen. This is because they originally planned for Tom to die in “The Blacklist” Season 1 premiere. “In the pilot, Tom Keen died. Act 4, he’s dead,” Eisendrath said of the original script. Bokenkamp added that one executive they showed the script to suggested that they keep Tom for more episodes, which they did. However, Eisendrath once again tried to kill off Tom in Season 1, episode 17.

Fortunately, they found the character compelling enough to keep him in the story for more seasons. Part of this was because of how great Eggold was in playing the role. “[Eggold] had an undeniable energy and force and presence. It felt like he was ready to do more and we were ready to write more for him,” said Bokenkamp.

Eisendrath added that Tom was an interesting character to watch because he wasn’t just Liz’s husband, he was also a dangerous undercover specialist. “When we learned who he was, that he could go undercover, that he could transform and become anybody, that started to feel like a character you might want to watch a show about,” he explained.

In “Redemption,” Tom would have to leave his wife Liz and their daughter Agnes, but that doesn’t mean he’s not going to worry about his family. “For me, the fact that he’s a dad and not a single dad, the fact that he has a real commitment and a desire to be a father, is a very important dimension of who he is,” he continued.

Eisendrath also teased that Scottie will eventually figure out that Tom is her son. In contrast, the latter already knows she is his mother from the get-go.

Meanwhile, NBC has released a new promo for “The Blacklist: Redemption,” which teases the reason why Tom will leave the original series. In the clip, Tom’s father Howard Hargrave (Terry O’Quinn), who was previously presumed to have died in an airplane crash, approaches his son and asks him to infiltrate Scottie’s company and get close to her. Meanwhile, Scottie is also trying to track down Tom in order to recruit him. Check out the promo below:

“The Blacklist: Redemption” episode 1 will air on Thursday, Feb. 23 at 10 p.m. EST on NBC, right after “The Blacklist” Season 4 winter finale.