Jude Law On Acting Alongside Jason Bateman In Netflix’s ‘Black Rabbit’

Jason Bateman and Jude Law are dynamic together in ‘Black Rabbit’ on Netflix.

PHOTO COURTESY OF NETFLIX

The new Netflix drama Black Rabbit is set in the high-pressure, high-stakes world of New York City’s nightlife scene, where getting past velvet ropes and into exclusive hotspots means you’re part of the elite crowd. It’s only once you’re in that you realize nothing is as it seems, and anything goes.

Co-creators, writers, and executive producers Zach Baylin and Kate Susman sat beside Jude Law just hours before the show’s premiere on Netflix to discuss their new limited eight-episode series, which debuted on September 18, and also stars Jason Bateman.

This was the first time Law and Bateman have worked together. There were Zoom meetings before filming began, but the two met just once in person prior. “We went for dinner about two weeks before we started shooting to make sure we didn’t hate each other,” Law laughed.

“Luckily, we didn’t. And that was it. We just hit the ground running. You never know. Actors approach acting very differently, and so there’s always a sense at the beginning of sniffing each other out. What was very clear was that he was happy to play and would go anywhere,” described Law, detailing the experience and adding, “I also got a sense very quickly that he trusted me as I trusted him. And that meant that we could keep just pushing the boundaries.”

The married producing partners were inspired to write this story, which is filled with a wide range of colorful characters, from the wild nights they spent out on the town while living in New York. Their experiences with the city’s exhilarating nightlife and the interesting mix of people they met served as the impetus for this show.

In the story, Jake Friedkin (Law) owns the popular restaurant and VIP lounge, The Black Rabbit, which is on the verge of becoming the hottest spot in New York. Everything is going smoothly until his brother, Vince (Bateman), unexpectedly returns to town. The viewer quickly learns that wherever Vince goes, trouble, death, and chaos follow.

“Kate and I lived in New York for 17 years, and did a lot of research at bars for this show,” Baylin said, chuckling as he listed some of their favorite hot spots. “There was a certain type of restaurant downtown, particularly in the early 2000s, and they all had this incredible elevated cooking.”

The three reflected on these VIP venues that were hard to access and what it meant to be a part of that elite world. Law described the thrill of gaining entry to these cool spots that weren’t open to just anyone. “You couldn’t always get in. The velvet rope came up, and it was like, ‘Sorry. Thank you, no more.’”

“I remember being on the outside of that rope a lot,” added Baylin. “The idea that something is happening behind that door that’s not just the food, but there’s a world and a scene and a vibe that you want to be part of. I think that’s really what we were trying to evoke, and then the people who put on that show every night.”

Susman described the show as an amalgamation of many people and places they encountered in New York. “Both Zach and I have siblings, and while this isn’t a depiction of our relationship with them, we wanted to explore the person you are with your siblings and how someone who has known you your whole life and can see through what you put on to the rest of the world. Those relationships are formative.”

These brothers, who bring out the best and worst in each other, struggle to overcome childhood trauma, achieve success, and fight their self-destructive tendencies in a battle that threatens to ruin everything they have worked so hard to build.

Casting Law and Bateman, who also serve as executive producers, as brothers was a smart move by Baylin and Susman. The actors seem destined to share the screen, and every scene featuring them should serve as a master class for actors. Bateman also directs; he helmed the first two episodes, with Laura Linney, Ben Semanoff, and Justin Kurzel directing subsequent two-episode blocks.

As for Law’s interest in portraying this down-on-his-luck guy, he said he’d just worked with Baylin, Susman, and Kurzel on the 2024 film The Order and wanted to work with them again, explaining the importance of relationships and the atmosphere on set. “If it’s harmonious and full of trust, I feel like I do my best work and get pushed in all the right ways.”

As for their concept for this series, Law liked the idea. “I remembered those restaurants and that vibrant nightlife, and I thought that was a great setting for a story. Then, the potential in these two brothers, this sort of biblical relationship at the heart of it…one brother bringing this whirlwind into the other brother’s life and them colliding again. You get to the kernel of what makes these two people who they are. It seemed like a challenge and a new territory for me. I love the idea of playing this front-of-house guy who had all these issues going on that he was covering up.”

Jake and Vince have an unbreakable bond that destroys everyone and everything, but as Law points out, their issues are rooted in their early family life. “This story is about how childhood trauma can completely destroy a person and leave them damaged forever, and so they’re constantly damaging themselves.”

Baylin brings up a quote by Hunter S. Thompson that reads: “The Edge…There is no honest way to explain it because the only people who really know where it is are the ones who have gone over.” He describes Bateman’s Vince as both a trailblazer and an arsonist. “You don’t really have control of that kind of power when you’re incredibly talented, charismatic, and pushing the envelope all the time. You end up leaving a lot of scorched earth behind.”

“There is the heartbreak, too, that Jake, above anyone else, knows who Vince really is; he knows that he’s lost,” adds Susman. “It’s a beautiful relationship. Jake still holds Vince on this pedestal despite what others may see and think about their relationship.”

Black Rabbit offers a nonstop ride into the dark side of family loyalty at any cost, contrasting self-destructive ambition and greed. For fans, the trio hinted that they are working on another project together.