Raymond “Red” Reddington, a notorious fugitive on the FBI’s most-wanted list, unexpectedly turns himself in at the FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C. He asserts that his goals align with those of the FBI: to take down perilous criminals and terrorists. Over the past twenty years, Reddington has compiled a list of the most significant criminals and terrorists, ones the FBI is unaware of because they don’t know these individuals exist. He refers to this compilation as “The Blacklist.” Reddington is willing to collaborate, but he demands that he will only communicate with Elizabeth Keen, a novice FBI profiler.