She comes in because we show the viewers how Liz got to this secluded place through flashbacks, so thatвЂ™s where we see her come into LizвЂ™s world. I really enjoyed working with Famke, sheвЂ™s a lovely woman. We do go into flashbacks, but I canвЂ™t say any specifics about them because theyвЂ™re pretty important story points.ДЇamke Janssen returns for this episode, what was it like to have her back on set? SheвЂ™s asked Red to continue his work with the task force in her absence because she doesnвЂ™t want to see the good work of the task force stop just because sheвЂ™s on her own quest right now, but that means a real distance.Дo audiences see what they went through during this year or does the show stick to present day for the most part now? Liz is much less accountable for the task force.

How do things alter between Liz and the rest of the team? TheyвЂ™re bonded, especially now that she knows heвЂ™s her father. Ultimately Red really understands Elizabeth, maybe even more and more now that he sees her grappling with some of the same challenges that he has also had in his past. How will TomвЂ™s death affect Liz and RedвЂ™s relationship? She goes back to the task force eventually and back to Red but I tried to carry her experience and have it resonate throughout the rest of the season. So youвЂ™re going to see Liz approach the next phase of her life exploring questions like will she lean on this genetically darker impulse that she has and behave like Red, or forge her own path? Ultimately itвЂ™s a mixture of both but I didnвЂ™t change a thing about her from this episode except her place in the world. I really tried to make it a point not to just spring back into action in the next episode as if nothing happened I wanted to carry a feeling of вЂњRuin,вЂќ throughout the rest of the season. How much of this new, darker Liz carries forward into the back half of the season? But because IвЂ™ve been stretching myself so much over the last four seasons to do work that feels like itвЂ™s a bit more of a stretch for me, I also felt that this work was more enriched by that experience. In some ways it was actually a lot easier for me to do work like this, because it just feels more in line with who I am. Through most of the episode thereвЂ™s not a gun in sight, so itвЂ™s very different than the work IвЂ™ve been doing for the last four years. I liked the quiet quality of the scene-work and the very internal nature of the character. This is a very time-intensive episode but this kind of work is the kind of stuff IвЂ™ve always wanted to do my whole life. YouвЂ™re in nearly every scene of вЂњRuin,вЂќ what was it like doing that extra heavy lifting?

ItвЂ™s a standalone episode that centers around Liz after TomвЂ™s death, which gives it a very reflective tone and it definitely goes off formula for the show. Tonally how does the episode differ from a usual вЂњBlacklistвЂќ episode? In the episode sheвЂ™s just suddenly trapped by this extreme weather event with this threatening group of travelers who stumble upon her cabin, and sheвЂ™s forced to fight for her life. The people who do know her donвЂ™t know much about her and she goes by a pseudonym. The show returns nearly a year following that death, what kind of emotional state is Liz in? I made him a cake saying, вЂњвЂ™ The BlacklistвЂ™ lost its coolвЂќ with a picture of him on it and we just tried to make it a special time. But it made for a really nice few weeks of work where I got to spend quality time with him and appreciate him in the way we donвЂ™t do in the hustle of the day-to-day. Ryan and I had become really close over the last four seasons so I was definitely sad to see him go. What was your initial reaction to learning about TomвЂ™s death and what was it like to play out those final scenes with Ryan?

The blacklist season 5