'The Blacklist' season 4 premiere date, spoilers: NBC confirms premiere date as Megan Boone dishes out on Liz and Kirk's relationship

The finale of "The Blacklist's" third season was a nail-biting experience at best. Whereas fans were treated to the knowledge that Liz Keen (Megan Boone) was alive, her subsequent capture by Alexander Kirk (Ulrich Thomsen), who claims to be her father, probably left fans frustrated and eager to find out what happens next.

It was a cliffhanger of a season finale, to say the least. Here was a man who seems to have intimate knowledge about Liz, but who ends up kidnapping her after purposely looking for her. Were those the breadcrumbs fans needed to establish his role as the fourth season's big bad?

John Eisendrath, "The Blacklist's" executive producer, said Alexander Kirk's status as a villain or otherwise "is definitely a cliffhanger for next year [season 4]." That said, fans would have to stick around to find out if Kirk would help, hurt, destroy Liz, or if he merely wants to get to know her as his daughter.

"I don't know why we wouldn't believe him. Red's said before that he's not Liz's father. This man shows up in her life and says he's her father. Liz should take him at his word. She thought she shot her father. It raises a number of questions, which is going to be the joy of season 4," Jon Bokenkamp, the series co-producer, added.

Aside from questions regarding Kirk's true identity, Liz also has to answer why she had to fake her death in order to protect her daughter from Red (James Spader) and his influence. Fans know that Red went to great lengths just to ensure she was safe from Kirk, so what gives?

Moreover, while Kirk's relationship with Liz hasn't been firmly established yet, it's apparent that she doesn't trust him at all. That's what Boone told Entertainment Weekly when she sat down with them for an interview.

"I don't think she trusts this guy. He took away her family and possibly the anonymity she tried to gain by faking her death," Boone said.

What's certain about "The Blacklist" season 4 is that Red will team up with the FBI again to look for Liz. There's also the possibility that Tom Keen (Ryan Eggold), Liz's husband, might be getting out of the picture this season, so a romantic involvement between Liz and Red might be on the horizon, more so since he already said he wasn't Liz's father.

"The Blacklist" season 4 will air its premiere episode on Sept. 22 on NBC.