Nearly everything we learn about The Blacklist opens up a subfolder of curious questions and theories about what it all means. And that's definitely the case with a pair of new casting announcements for The Blacklist Season 5, which will bring in The Sopranos vet Aida Turturro, as well as former The Americans' co-star Michael Aronov. But how will they fit into the story?
When Aida Turturro pops up in The Blacklist Season 5, she will be playing a character who apparently only goes by the last name Hawkins. She'll be an accountant with brilliance to spare, but the business she works for is anything but traditional. It sounds like Hawkins was destined for some major jail time, but she ended up signing on for a deal with the FBI to rat out her former business partner. Don't expect a lot of guilt to weigh her down, either, as she "absolutely loathes" her old partner, according to EW. One has to assume that person will be someone fans are familiar with, considering Red has been associated with some extremely loath-worthy people.
It's unclear just how much Aidi Turturro will be involved with The Blacklist, as she was added to the show in a recurring guest star capacity. Which means she could show up for two episodes, or for ten episodes. I'm guessing a firmer decision will be made on that front after her initial episodes are filmed. Then, if everyone is having a good time, the creative team may figure out a way to keep using her without causing a ruckus.
On the flip side of things. we have Michael Aronov, who's recently showed up on The Americans and Madam Secretary,, and as characters named Anton for both shows. That won't be his name for The Blacklist, though, where he'll recur as Smokey Putnam, a logistics expert who wasn't being too logical when he went on the run after being targeted with accusations that he embezzled over $2 million from the company he held a job making travel plans for. In the synopsis, it's noted that Smokey also works for an unusual business, so it's more than possible that he's Hawkins' despised former partner.
Having played Tony Soprano's sister Janice for 6 seasons, Aida Turturro is well-versed in being on a crime drama that fans can't get enough of. In the years since that HBO classic wrapped its run, Turturro has appeared on other popular series such as Blue Bloods, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Curb Your Enthusiasm and Grey's Anatomy, with her biggest role of late coming via her recurring presence as Judge Catano on Law & Order: SVU. Meanwhile, Michael Aronov landed his biggest break on The Americans as scientist Anton Baklanov, but he's also popped up all across the TV-scape in recent years, taking on everything from The Good Wife to Person of Interest to Quantico and many more.
We'll get to see just what kind of trouble Hawkins and Smokey will cause for Liz and her confirmed father Red when The Blacklist Season 5 premieres on NBC on Wednesday, October 4, at 9:00 p.m. ET. Check out who won't be back, and then to see what other new and returning shows are hitting the small screen soon, check out our summer TV schedule and our fall premiere schedule.
