Every Actor The Blacklist Almost Cast As Raymond Reddington Before James Spader

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Three days prior to the initial episode of The Blacklist, James Spader agreed to play the lead role of Raymond “Red” Reddington, a pivotal character in this groundbreaking crime series. Now, it’s challenging to envision any other actor embodying this role so perfectly, as it has significantly shaped Spader’s career throughout the 10 seasons of The Blacklist. Interestingly, four other actors were initially given the opportunity to portray the character of Reddington, a former criminal informant turned FBI informant, before James Spader eventually accepted.

Initially, Spader was the fifth option to play the lead in “The Blacklist,” with several major Hollywood stars initially being approached but ultimately turning down the role. According to showrunner and executive producer John Eisendrath, it seems that none of the actors who were initially preferred to Spader accepted his offers. Eisendrath stated, “I’m not sure if our offers even reached those actors, or if their agents simply said ‘No thanks.'” Looking back, some of these actors may be regretting not insisting their agents take the part.

4. Kiefer Sutherland

2 Years After Finishing His Stint As 24’s Jack Bauer

Two years following the conclusion of his nine-season stint as the lead character in 24, actor Kiefer Sutherland was presented with the opportunity to play Raymond Reddington on The Blacklist. Given that he was a prominent figure in TV action at the time, it would have been challenging for Sutherland to take on his next significant role by joining another action-packed series that didn’t offer a physical performance similar to the one required for his portrayal of Jack Bauer.

Instead, he returned to the world of movies, with the 2014 historical disaster film “Pompeii” being his most notable production. The fact that this movie is barely recalled today reflects how things have progressed for Sutherland since declining “The Blacklist.

Reframing it in simpler terms, we can say that the show was a lost chance for the actor to demonstrate his versatility as a performer, since the role was quite different from his iconic character Jack Bauer from 24. Having played Raymond Reddington alongside Jack Bauer would have significantly boosted his acting portfolio.

3. Richard Gere

With Questionable Credentials To Play This Kind Of Role

Looking back on it now, it’s quite surprising that Richard Gere was given a chance to play a character as complex and deceitful as Raymond Reddington from “The Blacklist,” considering he had recently portrayed a malicious financial tycoon in the critically acclaimed crime drama “Arbitration” and had starred in the relatively unmemorable spy thriller “The Double” the previous year.

Generally speaking, Richard Gere’s portrayals of manipulative villains often fall flat, and it appears that the character of Reddington in “The Blacklist” was not suitable for him. To fit well with the role, Gere would have needed to play a significantly different character instead.

2. Bryan Cranston

Just As His Time As Walter White In Breaking Bad Was Ending

It’s not surprising that Bryan Cranston got a call to play Raymond Reddington, given that in 2012, he was deeply involved in filming the last episode of the groundbreaking crime thriller series, Breaking Bad. In this show, he portrayed one of the most cunningly deceitful antiheroes of modern television, arguably even of all time.

It’s likely that his agent thought “once bitten, twice shy,” and he has since thrived in diverse roles following the Walter White era, extending his remarkable acting skills even more. Remarkably, fans of The Blacklist can’t help but imagine Bryan Cranston excelling as Raymond Reddington, a testament to his versatility.

1. Pierce Brosnan

A Decade On From Being James Bond

When Pierce Brosnan was asked to portray Raymond Reddington on The Blacklist, his acting path veered significantly from his time as the fifth James Bond in the Eon’s 007 franchise. Notably, he had primarily been appearing in mediocre romantic comedies, and it seems that his career has finally gained a significant boost, as evidenced over a decade later. This role, along with his part in Roman Polanski’s renowned neo-noir thriller The Ghost Writer, provided the necessary momentum for his resurgence.

In light of Pierce Brosnan’s esteemed career as a renowned on-screen secret agent, stepping into a similar yet more shadowy character on television could have been fitting. Regrettably, he declined the offer for “The Blacklist”, leading him to wait another 12 years before Steven Soderbergh’s projects, “Black Bag” and “The Thursday Murder Club”, offered him a late-career resurgence.

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2025-04-26 14:17