Jason Bateman: I had ‘a period where I enjoyed partying instead of working’
I’m sure most everyone associates Jason Bateman, 48, with his role as the anchor of the Bluth family, Michael, on Arrested Development. He’s also well-known as the usually frazzled straight man in comedies like Identity Thief and Horrible Bosses.
What audiences may not have seen are the roles where the former teen star (Have you seen It’s Your Move? It’s one of my favorite forgotten 80s sitcoms) isn’t playing it strictly for laughs. I’m thinking about his foul-mouthed, ill-tempered adult spelling bee competitor in the underrated Bad Words and his mean-spirited bully in The Gift. In his new Netflix series, Ozark, Jason is looking to explore his dark side.
The actor, who just received his very own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame yesterday, spoke with The Daily Beast about the show. Jason not only stars in Ozark, but serves as executive producer and director for a few of the episodes. As for the public’s perception of him, Jason said, “To be honest, I don’t know how much people think about me, period.” He goes on to share:
I think people maybe see me as someone they might be familiar with, and they’ve seen me in a couple of things, but I don’t think most people are aware that there was a period where I really enjoyed partying instead of working, and then I got a job that really allowed me a second shot and I didn’t throw it away, and I really tried to build on that new relevance and access. I really tried to keep that going so that, now that I’m an adult and need to provide for a family, I’ve got a job after the next one.
On Ozark, which made its debut on Netflix last week, Jason plays a Chicago-based financial adviser who gets into trouble with a Mexican drug cartel and is forced to relocate his family, including his wife, played by Laura Linney, to a small town on an Ozark lake. Jason’s character then sets up a money laundering operation and clashes with the local eccentrics and low-level criminals. Jason told Vulture he wanted in on the show because, “The tone, the darkness, the danger — the writing was all so well-crafted. This wasn’t Taken 4.”
And Jason had an ally in exploring his darker side in his wife, Amanda Anka (daughter of singer Paul Anka, by the way). He told The Daily Beast:
I haven’t been asked to show that side that was in The Gift. My wife’s seen it. She’s like, ‘Now everyone knows the guy I’m married to.’ We all have tons of sides to ourselves—half-dark and half-light. If I were to play the real dark, sinister side in other jobs, I wouldn’t be doing the right job for that character. So when it fits the project, I’ve got plenty in me that’s appropriate for that character. And I think that’s the case with Ozark. There’s plenty of me that is this guy, and that’s why I enjoy playing him.
If you’re not down with this side of Jason, he’ll be back for a fifth season of Arrested Development. But, if Ozark is a success, you may see less of him in front of the camera. Jason, like many an actor before him, wants to do more directing. He confessed to Vulture that “After 38 years of acting, you start to feel the need to be less dependent on the phone ringing. You want to be the one, whether it’s producing or directing, who can perpetuate and drive your own work.” He adds that he’s become a bit “cynical” about acting, claiming it’s because he was a “bullish—t artist” in his 20s, adding:
I’m a little over being good at being fake. Not to belittle what an actor does, but while you’re sitting in your trailer, everyone else is out there making the movie. That’s where I want to be. If I ever got to the place where I was able to choose between acting and directing, it’d be the acting that goes away.
I haven’t seen Ozark yet, but I am anxious to watch it (it is in my Netflix queue). It was filmed near me here in Georgia, so there’s also that. The show, described as “Breaking Bad meets Bloodline,” has gotten some good reviews. Of course, I’ve always liked Jason (if you haven’t seen Bad Words, which Jason also directed, check it out) and I like to see actors spread their wings and take on new roles, so I’m definitely in. I just have to find ten hours of free time.
Photos: Getty Images, WENN.com
