Secrets & lies in Ozark
Netflix's new, dark, chilling series
Jason Bateman may be best known for his dry, comedic roles, like in the cult classic sitcom Arrested Development or the Horrible Bosses movies, but his fans know that there is also a deadly serious side to the 48-year-old actor. He has directed films rife with pitch-black comedy (Bad Words, The Family Fang) and starred in tightly-constructed thrillers like The Gift and intimate dramas like Disconnect.
Bateman’s latest project, Ozark, looks to be his darkest, most intimate journey yet. He executive produces and directs about half of the episodes, and also stars. In it, he plays an in-over-his-head money launderer for a Mexican drug cartel who must relocate his family from Chicago to a small community in Missouri’s Ozark mountains and scrounge up enough money to survive the wrath of his violent overlords, no matter how many lives are ruined in the process.
The luminous Laura Linney co-stars as his wife, Jason Butler Harner plays an FBI agent following the money trail to its source, and Esai Morales embodies the cartel kingpin whose specter looms over the proceedings. Ozark conjures up frightening memories of Breaking Bad and its uncompromising examination of the War on Drugs and all the dramatic potential therein. However, based on the trailer for the show, this looks to have a style all its own, with enough unique elements to set it apart from that legendary AMC series. Plus, for Jason Bateman fans, it’ll certainly be interesting to see a completely different side of the actor while we eagerly await the highly-anticipated fifth season of Arrested Development.
All ten episodes of Ozark will be made available to binge on Netflix starting July 21.