NBC's crime thriller television series "The Blacklist" bids farewell to a major character. Tom Keen, portrayed by actor Ryan Eggold, died in season 5's midseason finale, "Ian Garvey."
Tom was led to the hands of a man named Ian Garvey (Jonny Coyne) in episode 8 as a result of his investigation into the mystery suitcase. Worried about Tom, Elizabeth Keen (Megan Boone) went to his apartment just to end up tied next to her husband. The couple was badly beaten and Tom suffered a stab wound. The two were saved by Red Reddington (James Spader) and Dembe Zuma (Hisham Tawfiq).
Long story short; Liz made it, Tom died.
During an interview with TVLine, series creator Jon Bokenkamp explained that the death of Tom was essential for the story centered on the struggle of Liz.
"It's about the storytelling going forward and what his death means to Elizabeth Keen and how it impacts her. Can she move forward? Can she overcome this? What does it do to the task force?" he said.
Bokemkamp revealed that Eggold was the first to know about the death of Tom, which served as a cliffhanger for the continuation of the season. Many reviews from entertainment sites agreed that this was one of the biggest and hardest character deaths in the series.
Eggold posted 10 pictures of him with the cast and crew of "The Blacklist" on Instagram. He captioned the post with, "A little more love @nbcblacklist."
Fans of the show and of Eggold quickly shared their sadness following Tom's death. Some people commended Eggold for his performance in the midseason finale. One fan wrote, "This episode was a masterpiece! I never liked Tom, but for you @ryaneggold all the best. Only a talented actor can make me hate a character."
"The Blacklist" season 5 will resume on Jan. 3, 2018 at 8 p.m. EST on NBC.
