Paramount+ owes much of its subscriber base to Taylor Sheridan. Starting with Yellowstone, Sheridan built a massive library of television shows, including The Mayor of Kingstown and Landman. The odd duck out might be Tulsa King, though it has less to do with Sylvester Stallone playing a hardened gangster and more with the series’ reception. Over four seasons, Tulsa King has drawn mixed reviews and seen creative turnover, yet it continues on; it’s even getting a spin-off later this year with Samuel L. Jackson‘s Frisco King. Another Paramount+ series is a near-perfect crime thriller that will hook fans and non-fans of Tulsa King alike.
We’re talking, of course, about Ray Donovan. It premiered on Showtime in 2013 and stars Liev Schreiber in the title role. Ray Donovan is an extremely skilled “fixer” who uses any means necessary to keep the rich and powerful out of trouble. Yet his life is overturned when his estranged father, Mickey (Jon Voight), is released from prison. Mickey eventually slips back into his criminal ways, drawing the FBI’s attention; as a result, Ray struggles to balance his career and family life while staying one step ahead of the law. The result is a gripping thriller that rivals The Sopranos or Breaking Bad instorytelling.
‘Ray Donovan’ Crafted One of Television’s Best Antiheroes
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Image via Showtime</figure>
While Ray Donovan debuted in an era when television embraced antiheroes, its titular character stood out because of his dedication to his family. Ray looked after his three brothers, struggled to keep his marriageintact, and wanted to make surehis kids were raised right. At the same time, he was utterly ruthless when it came to his job, keeping people in line via threats of blackmail or violence. Even when one of his bosses threatens to fire him, Ray coldly responds, “I’m not the kind of guy you fire.” While Breaking Bad slowly dragged Walter White into darkness,and Mad Men had Don Draper struggle with his vices, Ray Donovan found a perfect balance for Ray’s development.
This balance drew a dedicated audience: Ray Donovan became one of Showtime’s highest-rated shows at its premiere and ran for seven seasons. The series was suddenly canceled in 2020, leaving fans shocked — as well as Liev Schrieber and showrunner David Hollander. The duo had plans for an eighth and final season that would finally see Ray and Mickey resolve their bitter family feud, and they would eventually get to tell that story, though not in the way they expected. Showtime would greenlight a Ray Donovan movie meant to wrap up the series, with Hollander telling Vulture that fans rallying online made the movie possible.
“It’s become clear to me that the living organism that is Ray Donovan is not just a collaboration between those of us who make the show, but a collaboration, a shared ownership, with our audience.”
“It’s become clear to me that the living organism that is Ray Donovan is not just a collaboration between those of us who make the show, but a collaboration, a shared ownership, with our audience.”
Four criminal masterminds. One of them was always going to be yours.
Here is who comes for you, why they picked you out of everyone available, and what they want from
the encounter.
Your nemesis does not want to beat you. He wants to know you
completely, and he is patient enough to wait for it. The frightening part is how good the
conversation is.
- Lecter is the most dangerous kind of opponent: the one who finds you interesting. He
never raises his voice, because he has never needed to. - You keep a great deal to yourself and you are careful about what you show. That reserve
is exactly the door he would knock on. - The films understood something other thrillers missed. The horror is not the violence.
It is being perfectly understood by the wrong person. - He would be unfailingly polite about all of it. That is the worst part.
Your nemesis is not after money, territory or revenge. He is
after a demonstration, and you are the person he has chosen to prove his point on.
- The Joker only picks opponents who believe in something. Your decency is not a defence
against him. It is the entire reason he showed up. - He has no plan you can predict and nothing you can take away, which removes every tool
you would normally reach for. - His whole argument is that you are one bad day away from being him, and you would spend
the rest of your life proving him wrong. - He would call it a magic trick. You would call it the worst night of your life.
Your nemesis respects you, which sounds flattering until you work
out what it means. He chose you because nobody else was worth his time.
- Moriarty is the original criminal mastermind, the template every later one borrows from:
a mind the equal of the hero’s, pointed the wrong way. - You enjoy being the cleverest person in the room. He is counting on exactly that, and he
has already built the room. - This is the rare nemesis who would be genuinely disappointed if you lost badly. He needs
the game to be worth playing. - It ends the way these things always end. Two people, one problem, and only one way down.
Your nemesis has no personal interest in you whatsoever, and that
is precisely what makes him unsurvivable. You are not a rival. You are a stop on the way.
- Chigurh does not negotiate, gloat or explain. He arrives, he asks one question, and the
answer was decided long before you opened your mouth. - You trust yourself to handle things. He is the one problem in the world that has no
interest in how capable you are. - No Country for Old Men rewrote the screen villain by removing the thing audiences
quietly rely on: the sense that talking might work. - Call it. He will wait.
A Paramount+ Hit Owes Its Existence to ‘Ray Donovan’
Image via Cara Howe / ©Showtime/courtesy Everett Collection- Image: Jeff Neumann / ©Showtime/courtesy Everett Collection
- Image via Showtime
- Image via Paramount+
- Image via Paramount+
Image via Cara Howe / ©Showtime/courtesy Everett Collection
Image: Jeff Neumann / ©Showtime/courtesy Everett Collection
Image via Showtime
Image via Paramount+
Image via Paramount+- Image via Cara Howe / ©Showtime/courtesy Everett Collection
- Image: Jeff Neumann / ©Showtime/courtesy Everett Collection
- Image via Showtime
- Image via Paramount+
- Image via Paramount+
Image via Cara Howe / ©Showtime/courtesy Everett Collection
Image: Jeff Neumann / ©Showtime/courtesy Everett Collection
Image via Showtime
Image via Paramount+
Image via Paramount+Ray Donovan‘s legacy lives on in an unexpected way, as it gave birth to one of Paramount+’s hottest series. Plans were made for Guy Ritchie to direct a spinoff series titled The Donovans, which would focus on Ray’s family members carrying out the fixer buisness overseas. Eventually, the series was reworked into MobLand, though much of Ray Donovan‘s DNA remains. Like Ray Donovan, Harry Da Souza (Tom Hardy) is a grizzled fixer dedicated to his job and his family. The major twist is that his “family” is the Carringtons, a criminal dynasty struggling to hold on to the empire they’ve created. MobLand also follows in Ray Donovan‘s footsteps by becoming a massive streaming hit, and it’s certain to keep going now that a third season’s in the works.
While Ray Donovan might have come to an unexpected end, it still remains one of the best modern crime thrillers. Liev Schrieber crafted a compelling character who stands apart from other antiheroes, while still retaining the necessary edge. Tulsa King‘s crew should watch this series and take notes.
Ray Donovan
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