The Blacklist: Set Visit - Entertainment - MSN CA

9/29/2014 The Blacklist: Set visit - Entertainment - MSN CA

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September 15, 2014 6:15 PM | By Emma Jones The Blacklist: Set visit On set with the Concierge of Crime

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On a sweaty set in August, somewhere in the middle of Yonkers, New York, was where I found myself face to face with James Spader in his Raymond “Red” Reddington skin. He’s filming an episode for the Rihanna is in LA After Chris Brown... second season of The Blacklist, undoubtedly the most accomplished freshman series of 2013, whose 4 hours ago renewal came with little surprise. Exactly how successful is this show? Let’s just say the words “ratings juggernaut” and “flagship” are often tossed around when mentioning the crime drama. Mick Fleetwood photography bound For Spader, the series came at a conjuncture in his career when – having amassed awards and critical for... praise for his Boston Legal heavyweight, Alan Shore – he was looking for a new, equally weighty vehicle 4 hours ago to satisfy his penchant for the perverse. Snoop Dogg vows to perform in “You know, when I was looking for another television show, I was looking for someone who was very Alaska if... complex in his dichotomy. That his personality was surprising and at times startling, funny and frightening, 2L3ik heoursS hagaore 4 at time compassionate and at other times ruthless,” says Spader. “Polar opposites in personalities are very interesting and, when I read the first episode of this, I saw the possibility for all of that and more. It’s Cher postpones tour again since been a process of building on that.” Katie Price Calls Her Daughter 23 hours ago Bunny Given the blistering temperature outside, we sit in a 17th century historic house, Philipse Manor Hall, commandeered by his publicists to keep the actor cool and comfortable. People rally around, checking if Bono: 'U2 are not advoTchea Htionugr free there’s anything he needs and worrying about the three-piece woolen suit and fedora – Spader and Red Dateline NBC both share a love for fine hats -- he wears in plus thirty heat. Everyone bends to the consummate lead as music' I’m steered into one of the museum’s carefully curated spaces for the interview. I realize it’s an ominous 23 hours ago sign being shut in a room, alone with Red. No MSN videos were found. http://entertainment.ca.msn.com/tv/the-blacklist-set-visit 1/3 9/29/2014 The Blacklist: Set visit - Entertainment - MSN CA “It’s really great when you find a character like him that, you know, encapsulates both sides,” he adds. “When you’re not so sure whether he’s a good guy who’s capable of bad things or a bad guy who’s tv news capable of good things. I think that that’s tremendously fun and satisfying to play. 'Sleepy Hollow' hopes to engage “I love those moments when Reddington is showing himself to be something that flies in the face of your fans in season 2 presumptions about him. Just when you think you have a real understanding of how he might behave or respond in a certain set of circumstances, you’re wrong about it. You find something else, you see something else. I like that.”

In contrast to the menacing characters we’re used to seeing Spader play, in real life, his co-stars can’t TV Blog Buzz: More body bags on 'Blacklist'? speak highly enough of him. Megan Boone, who plays his unwitting sidekick FBI Special Agent Lizzie Keen, describes him as “generous, collaborative and intuitive.” Meanwhile, Canadian actor Diego Big numbers for ABC's night of Klattenhoff, known for his role as Keen’s partner, FBI Special Agent Donald Ressler, sees him as Rhimes “somebody from whom you can learn a lot, as an actor. You just want to watch him do his job, he’s very gracious and professional, but you should still fear him!”

I keep that in mind, but soon realize there are two things you come to learn, quickly, when talking to Spader. The first is that he talks at an incredibly measured pace, so mindful of every word that you’re not quite sure when he’s finished his sentence. He cocks his head when listening to questions, a trait he’s Oliver adds journalism to his passed on to Red, as he concentrates on every word. comedy

The second is that he never talks in “absolutes” and believes “inherently in inclusion, one excludes” when asked about choice season one moments. He does however dish, in his own cryptic way, on what’s to come in season two after that cliff-hanger ending when Red peels off his shirt to reveal the burn scars.

“Season one ended with a real upheaval, not only within the sort of task force, but also within [Red’s] life,” 'Epic Meal Empire': From YouTube he says. “More than sort of teasing into what the second season would bring, it just sort of kicked the door to TV open and we have walked right through it. We’re on episode three right now and we are rolling. A lot of things were turned upside down -- relationships, who characters were and who they weren’t -- and so season two really picks right up and runs.”

On the day of my set visit, while the cast film an open-air café scene, the evidence of season two’s upheaval is no more visible than in Megan Boone’s wardrobe. Throughout the freshman season we were tv features used to seeing her character in strictly buttoned-up, professional uniforms – pant suits and white collared shirts – but now, in the midst of shooting episode three, she wears leggings, a distressed oversized tee Big Brother 16 exit interviews and heeled-ankle booties. Lizzie looks downright cool. Big Brother 16 exit interviews “She went shopping!” says Boone when I comment on the makeover. “I think she’s trying to be more Big Brother 16 exit interviews incognito. She’s more paranoid about who might be watching or following her, so she’s dressing in street Psycho Ward! clothes more often. She’s still an FBI agent, but you find that she pushes the limits a little bit here and there.” The Blacklist: Set visit

Also to come in season two is a selection of exiting guest stars. Mary Louise Parker, Krysten Ritter and Big Brother 16 exit interviews Peter Stormare (back as Berlin) will all share screen time in the first episode, while later in the season, Great Scots! Paul “Pee-Wee Herman” Reubens will get Blacklisted as an episodic baddie. “He made quite an impression,” says Boone. “I really look forward to seeing it.” Big Brother 16 exit interviews

Of course, we can’t dish on future bad guys, Blacklisted or otherwise, without mentioning James Spader’s advertisement role in the upcoming Marvel movie, Avenger: Age of Ultron. For director Joss Whedon, the hypnotic actor was the only person suited to the titular villain, owing to his eerily calm and compelling presence. I ask Spader whether he had any hesitations about signing on to such a project, particularly given the level of control exercised by Marvel over its characters. Four years after Iron Man 2 premiered, Mickey Rourke is still stoking a burning hatred for the studio after cutting so many of his Ivan Vanko scenes.

“Great filmmakers take advantage of what other people can bring to the process,” says Spader in praise of Whedon’s work ethic. “Only bad film makers don’t take advantage of the people that they’re hiring. They’re hiring people with an expertise and a point of view. Every great film maker I’ve ever worked with has always been incredibly inclusive of ideas, and imagination, and creation. I mean, they’d be foolish not to.”

Coming from Red, that almost sounds like a threat…

The Blacklist season two premieres Monday, September 22 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Global.

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