'The Blacklist' Season 5 Updates: What Will Liz Do About Her Discovery Regarding Red's Other Daughter?
The Reddington family just got bigger.
In the previous episode of "The Blacklist" season 5 titled "Zarak Mosadek," Liz (Megan Boone) did not expect to find out that the woman who Ian Garvey (Jonny Coyne) keeps on visiting on a hot wings place even if it is out of his way is actually Red's (James Spader) long-lost daughter. This means that the woman named Lilly (Fiona Dourif) is also her half-sister, Jennifer Reddington.
This is not the first time that Red's other daughter has been mentioned in the crime drama thriller. Fans of the series found out that Red and Naomi Hyland (Mary-Louise Parker) was once married and had a daughter named Jennifer in the episode titled "Dr. Linus Creek" in season 2. Naomi told him that they lost contact when she remarried, and the person behind the name was not seen in the series until the previous episode.
Speaking with Variety, series creator Jon Bokenkamp revealed that the storyline involving Red's other daughter has been brewing for a long time.
"It's something we often talk about in the writers room: who that Jennifer character is, when would be a good time to bring her back. As the story plays out you'll see it's a very organic, personal story and the reason for the 'why now' is a really compelling one," the series creator stated.
He also said that Lilly/Jennifer's link to Ian Garvey has been established since the writers conceptualized the latter's character. According to Bokenkamp, fans will find out who Ian Garvey really is and how he is connected to Lilly/Jennifer in the upcoming episodes of the season, but they want to introduce him with a very emotional story.
"It's going to be really compelling. This new character that we meet as Lilly is a key that is going to unlock a pretty cool door into the mythology of the show," he also said.
In a separate interview with TV Guide, Bokenkamp also said that Lilly/Jennifer was added in the storyline of season 5, so she could hopefully give more answers to a lot of hanging questions, particularly for Liz.
The series creator also teased that the next episode titled "Ian Garvey: Conclusion" will provide the answers about the contents of the duffle bag, the identity of the person who owned the skeleton, and its importance for Red, as well as the reason Ian Garvey opted to keep all the answers instead of doing something about it.
He also said that the next episode will finally reveal Ian Garvey's real relationship with Lilly/Jennifer.
But when asked about Liz's plans regarding her knowledge about Lilly/Jennifer, the series creator said that she might use it against her father. "She's learned a little bit from dad in the ways to investigate and move forward, and it may not always be completely above board like a good FBI agent," Bokenkamp stated.
According to the synopsis for the upcoming episode, Liz will use intel that comes from an unexpected source to launch a race with Red to find more information about his secrets. On the other hand, Red will spend a lot of time to plan the retrieval of the duffel bag.
The next episode of "The Blacklist" season 5 will air on NBC on Wednesday, April 25, at 8 p.m. EDT.