Now is the perfect time to start watching Netflix’s best crime shows.

As one of MCU’s Vision show will feature James Spader as Ultron, nine years since his introduction.

James Spader’s Ultron Return Is A Reminder To Watch The Blacklist

The Blacklist Features Spader As A Villain

James Spader’s return as Ultron is a reminder to watch The Blacklist as Spader delivers an equally villainous performance in the crime show. Over the years, Reddington became the backbone of the show, and Spader himself has produced 196 out of the 218 episodes of The Blacklist. The crime show has a 91% Tomatometer on Rotten Tomatoes, showing highly favorable reviews, although some people have criticized the show for being too long. The length of the show has been stated by James Spader as one of the reasons why The Blacklist season 10 was the final season, as seen below:

I think if the show went beyond this year, it would turn into a very different show. And I think that the thing that has been nice about this show was that we’ve never really had a really clear paradigm for the show. Tonally, the show shifts a lot from episode to episode, and I think that even the show has taken strange turns, and I suspect that the show, if it went much further, would just become something that would be less recognizable to me.

Marvel faces similar problems due to “superhero fatigue,” although this mainly stems from a lack of highly rated MCU projects recently. With James Spader returning to the MCU as Ultron, fans are hopeful they will use this underrated villain to return to their roots and what made their films successful. Spader’s The Blacklist success will only add to Ultron’s return, as he’s had 10 years to perfect the classy villain character. With the MCU’S Vision show releasing in 2026, now is the perfect time for audiences to watch The Blacklist and experience a Spader villain before his MCU Ultron return.

Raymond “Red” Reddington & Ultron Were James Spader’s Only Roles In The Past 10 Years

The Blacklist Took Over James Spader's Workload

In the past 10 years, James Spader has surprisingly only featured in two roles; Raymond Reddington in The Blacklist and Ultron in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Despite James Spader being a well-known actor with a $30 million net worth, he has notably slowed down in recent years, most likely due to his workload with The Blacklist. Previously, Spader has appeared in 54 productions since 1978, in almost one production every year, up until his casting on The Blacklist in 2013. Since starting the crime show, Spader has only appeared in two other productions, The Homesman and Avengers: Age of Ultron.

The Homesman is a Western historical drama released in March 2014, in which James Spader starred in a ing role as Aloysius Duffy. The Homesman was Spader’s first production since starting The Blacklist two years prior and has an 81% Tomatometer score, although its Rotten Tomatoes critic score is much higher than its audience score. Following this, Spader starred in Avengers: Age of Ultron in 2015 and has not featured in another production outside The Blacklist since then. Therefore, James Spader’s return as Ultron in 2026 is apt as it will follow on from his previous production in his filmography.

The Blacklist ran from September 2013 to July 2023 after 10 seasons and 218 episodes.

The Blacklist’s 10-Season Run Is Worth Watching For Spader’s Performance Alone

Reddington Is One Of The Most Interesting TV Villains

The Blacklist is worth watching purely for James Spader’s performance, as he delivers a TV show villain more interesting than any hero character throughout the 10 seasons. The Blacklist’s clever plot twists and action-packed sequences set the show apart from other crime shows, however, James Spader’s character, Raymond Reddington, was a standout performance which drove the show to create more seasons. In early seasons, Reddington was a mysterious criminal with an unknown connection to Boone’s Elizabeth Keen. Elizabeth and Reddington’s growing relationship caused a lot of intrigue on The Blacklist, with Reddington’s know-it-all aura often clashing with Elizabeth’s professional attitude.

There's nothing more dangerous in this world than a man with nothing left to lose. - Raymond Reddington

Spader’s drawling accent compliments Reddington’s preference for luxury and provides some of the best quotes in The Blacklist. Reddington’s penchant for delivering philosophical and wise remarks only adds to his charm, especially as there is a constant debate by characters and viewers about whether he is truly as evil as he is portrayed. With all 10 seasons of The Blacklist available to stream on Netflix, now marks the perfect time to watch the show and experience James Spader’s loveable villain, especially as he will be returning to voice the enigmatic villain Ultron in the MCU’s Vision TV series in 2026.