Ozark (TV series)

Premise

A financial advisor named Marty Byrde botches a money laundering job for a Mexican cartel. To fix things, he offers to run a bigger operation from Missouri's Lake of the Ozarks. He uproots his family from Naperville, Illinois, to Osage Beach, a quiet resort town. There, the Byrdes get mixed up with local crooks like the Langmores and Snells, and later the Kansas City mob.

Cast and characters

Jason Bateman plays Marty Byrde, a self-employed financial advisor who began laundering money for a Mexican drug cartel in 2007. Laura Linney portrays Wendy Byrde, Marty's wife and a former public relations operative who becomes a lobbyist for a casino proposal. Sofia Hublitz and Skylar Gaertner play their children, Charlotte and Jonah. Julia Garner appears as Ruth Langmore, a young woman from a local family of petty criminals.

Jordana Spiro plays Rachel Garrison, owner of the Blue Cat lodge and Marty's reluctant business partner. Jason Butler Harner portrays FBI agent Roy Petty. Esai Morales plays cartel lieutenant Del Rio. Peter Mullan and Lisa Emery play Jacob and Darlene Snell, local heroin producers.

Charlie Tahan appears as Wyatt Langmore, Ruth's cousin. Janet McTeer plays cartel attorney Helen Pierce. Tom Pelphrey portrays Wendy's brother Ben Davis, who has bipolar disorder. Jessica Frances Dukes plays FBI forensic accountant Maya Miller.

Felix Solis plays cartel leader Omar Navarro. Damian Young portrays lawyer Jim Rattelsdorf. Adam Rothenberg plays disgraced former cop Mel Sattem.

Production

The series is set at a modest waterfront resort inspired by the Alhonna Resort and Marina, where creator Bill Dubuque worked as a dock hand in the 1980s. Jason Bateman directed the first two and last two episodes of the first season. The writers brought an FBI financial crimes agent and a hedge-fund manager into the writers' room for accuracy. Beam Solutions, a financial-compliance software company, considered the series' depiction of money laundering plausible and creative.

The series was renewed for a 10-episode second season on August 15, 2017, a 10-episode third season on October 10, 2018, and a 14-episode fourth and final season on June 30, 2020. The fourth season was split into two parts, released on January 21, 2022, and April 29, 2022. Graphic designer Fred Davis created a white letter O with four symbols inside that foreshadow plot points. Most shooting locations are in the Atlanta area at Lake Allatoona and Lake Lanier, with some scenes filmed in Chicago and other Georgia locations.

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season has a 70% approval rating based on 69 reviews, with an average rating of 6.8/10. The critics consensus states that the series has satisfyingly complex plot and a gripping performance from Jason Bateman. On Metacritic, the first season has a weighted average score of 66 out of 100, indicating generally favorable reviews. Brian Lowry of CNN praised the clever twists and performances.

Sonia Saraiya of Variety called the series smart and well-crafted. Tim Dowling of The Guardian commended Laura Linney's performance. Alan Sepinwall of Uproxx criticized the lack of humor and failure to distinguish itself from other antihero shows, but commended Julia Garner's performance. The second season has a 76% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 46 reviews, with an average rating of 6.6/10.

On Metacritic, it has a score of 59 out of 100, indicating mixed or average reviews. Alison Foreman of Mashable praised the season's female characters.