'Ozark' returns for a third season on Netflix soon so we're looking at some trivia ahead of its launch.
The show follows a family forced to relocate to the Ozarks after a money laundering scheme goes wrong. The father of the clan, Marty Byrde (Jason Bateman) has to make amends with a Mexican drug cartel by setting up a larger laundering operation.
His whole family including wife Wendy (Laura Linney), daughter Charlotte (Sofia Hublitz) and son Jonah (Skylar Gaertner) become involved. In fact, if the trailer for season 3 is anything to go by, Wendy wants more of a foothold in the operation. Which Marty is not happy about.
Last year, the show won two Emmys, for Best Directing for a Drama series for Bateman (he had the best reaction ever to the win) and Best Supporting Actress for Julia Garner, plus Bateman won a SAG in January.
Read our review for 'Ozark' season 3 here and enjoy some trivia below.
1. If you're a fan, you've probably copped that the opening title card - which depicts four symbols in the centre of an "O" - foreshadow the events of the episode. But did you also notice that the symbols also spell the letters Z-A-R-K to form the word "OZARK"?
2. The Ozarks are also referred to as the Ozark Mountains or Ozark plateau. They form a physiographic and geologic highland region of the central United States, primarily in Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and extreme southeastern Kansas. The Ozarks cover nearly 47,000 square miles.
3. The show's co-creator Bill Dubuque based the show on his experience of working on the Lake of the Ozarks. The Missouri native worked for the Alhonna Resort and Marina. He actually loved the place, even though his characters loathe it.
4. After his stint on 'Arrested Development', Jason Bateman wasn't interested in doing another series. He did however agree to produce and when he was offered the chance to direct the pilot, he agreed to star in the show too. He went on to direct seven more episodes for the series.
5. Speaking of 'Arrested Development', there are some sneaky gestures to the sitcom in 'Ozark'. Just as 'Arrested Development' had the "money in the banana stand", Marty and his family hide money in the walls of a house. One episode sees Marty share his knowledge of maritime law; his former character Michael Bluth was obsessed with maritime law.
6. Laura Linney was also not all that interested in starring in a TV series. However she became intrigued when she learned of Bateman’s involvement as she wanted to observe him stretch his acting range.
7. Linney also really pushed for Wendy Byrde to be as complex as she is. The actress feared the character would be “just a wife,” defined entirely by her relationship to Marty. She brought her concerns to Bateman who agreed to flesh the character out.
8.Chloe Lukasiak from 'Dance Moms' auditioned for the role of Charlotte.
9. Charlotte is supposed to be 15 years old at the start of the series. But the actress who plays her, Sofia Hublitz, was actually 18.
10. Peter Mullan, who plays Jacob Snell, was “aggressively pursued” by the creators before they’d even finished the script. They'd loved his work in Jane Campion's 'Top of the Lake' as well as his roles in 'Westworld', 'Children' of Men' and 'Tyrannosaur' among other credits.
11. In every movie and TV show he stars in, Jason Bateman wears his favorite tennis shoes. They're "NB" or New Balance.
12. Some of the actors previously starred in Netflix's Marvel series. Lisa Emery (Darlene Snell) and Jessica Frances Dukes (who joins season 3 as Maya Miller) both starred in 'Jessica Jones'. Also new to the cast is Tom Pelphrey, who previously starred in 'Iron Fist.' Pelphrey will play Wendy's brother Ben Davis.
13. How many seasons of the crime drama there will be has yet to be confirmed. Showrunner Chris Mundy previously said there could be five seasons in total, or it could potentially go on for seven.
'Ozark' season 3 lands on Netflix Friday March 27th.
