The first part of Ozark Season 4 had its share of twists and shocking deaths. One of them was not planned.
Warning, spoilers. It is advisable to have seen the first part of season 4 of Ozark before continuing to read this article.
Freshly landed on Netflix, the first part of season 4 of Ozark marks the beginning of the end for the Byrde family. These seven episodes push its members to their limits and separate them more than ever. Will their shenanigans with the cartel, the FBI and the gangsters of the Ozark Mountains get the better of the family balance?
The decisions and betrayals of Marty (Jason Bateman) and Wendy Byrde (Laura Linney) have greatly affected their children Charlotte (Sofia Hublitz) and Jonah (Skylar Gaertner) but also their former protege Ruth Langmore (Julia Garner). And the last events of the end of the first part of season 4 will not improve their relationship.
An unexpected but necessary death
Javi (Alfonso Herrera), the nephew of Omar Navarro (Felix Solis), the leader of the Mexican drug cartel, has taken too much power over the Byrdes and wanted to settle some scores. He thus killed Darlene Snell (Lisa Emery), the local heroin producer who stood up against the cartel, and her companion Wyatt Langmore (Charlie Tahan), who is also Ruth’s cousin.
And this latest death was not originally planned, according to showrunner Chris Mundy, who explained this choice in an interview with TVLine :
“It was so tough. It’s something that evolved but it wasn’t the original plan. There aren’t a lot of soft or pure souls on our show. [Rires] And he was one of those people. Also, I love [son interprète] Charlie Tahan. Obviously you separate the actor from the role, but [mon instinct] is to want to protect Wyatt. Therefore [le tuer] was really difficult.”
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Even though this death is shocking and unexpected, according to the showrunner it was necessary for the development of Ruth:
“There’s been quite a bit of debate. But we knew we were writing the end of the show, so we figured even though it was a really tough decision, we had to do what was going to make Ruth’s pain worse. It was the only thing that could expose her.
If we were in season 2, we wouldn’t have done it. I wouldn’t have wanted to be without Wyatt for so long. But knowing we were coming to an end – and how that could benefit the dynamic of the final seven episodes – I knew it was the right decision.”
The disappearance of Wyatt will therefore deeply mark Ruth who is mad with rage towards the Byrdes. This umpteenth tragedy will perhaps push her to commit the irreparable. Will the Byrde family come out unscathed in the final episodes? To find out, we will have to wait for the release of the second part of season 4 of Ozark, soon on Netflix.