NBC turns to animation for Blacklist finale

James Spader in The Blacklist

NBC will conclude the seventh season of drama series The Blacklist with the help of animation, after filming on its final episode had to be halted because of Covid-19.

The season’s 19th episode, titled The Kazanjian Brothers, will feature a mix of live action and graphic novel-style animation when it airs on May 15.

The episode was midway into filming in New York when TV productions across the industry were halted because of the virus. Producers came up with an idea to add graphic novel-style animation that would be incorporated with the already filmed live-action scenes.

Cast members recorded dialogue from their homes for the animated scenes to ensure a seamless transition between the two styles as editors and animators completed their work remotely.

NBC renewed The Blacklist for an eighth season earlier this year. The crime thriller series stars James Spader as a fugitive turned FBI cooperator.

Spader, John Eisendrath, Jon Bokenkamp, John Davis, John Fox, Lukas Reiter, JR Orci and Laura A Benson serve as executive producers on the show, which is a Davis Entertainment production in association with Sony Pictures Television and Universal Television.

The move comes after ViacomCBS-owned US cablenet Pop TV last week ordered an animated special of Norman Lear’s sitcom One Day at a Time after Covid-19 forced the show to suspend production.

While the majority of live-action production remains on hold around the world – with the exception of countries such as Australia, Iceland and South Korea – animation production is still able to be completed remotely.