Netflix, 3:00 a.m. ET
SEASON PREMIERE: Season 3 of Ozark begins with a scene that’s really, really dark, so if you’re seeking pure escapism, look elsewhere. But from the start, this series, starring Jason Bateman and Laura Linney as a troubled couple who move to the Ozarks and try to deal with the mob, the feds, and the often deadly locals all at once, has been great, dark fun, if there is such a thing. It’s the sort of spiritual successor to FX’s Justified, with a similar cast of quirky characters. And the acting here is of a similarly high quality. Bateman, who also directs the Season 3 premiere, delivers yet another shrewdly calibrated performance. It’s about time someone said it, so I’ll say it now: Considering his performances on Arrested Development, The Outsider and Ozark, just to name his three most recent credits, Bateman should be considered among the best and most accomplished former TV child actors of his generation – with the former Silver Spoons sitcom star ranked right up there with Growing Pains alumnus Leonardo DiCaprio. The acting on Ozark is so good that this Netflix series scored Emmy nominations for both Bateman and Linney – and earned a Supporting Actress Emmy for Julia Garner, who formerly played the troubled, feisty teen on FX’s The Americans, as another troubled, feisty young woman here (pictured with Bateman).
