Jason Bateman Movies
The younger brother of Family Ties star Justine Bateman, actor Jason Bateman has been a mainstay on television since the 1980s, starring in countless sitcoms of varying success. He first displayed his scene-stealing propensity in the role of young sharpster Derek Taylor, best friend of star Ricky Schroder, on Silver Spoons. The audience response to Bateman was so positive that the 15-year-old was given his own sitcom vehicle in 1984, as "teenaged con man" Matthew Burton on It's Your Move. When this series was cancelled after one season, Bateman moved to the long-running role of wise-guy teen David Hogan on the mid-1980s series Valerie, which of course later changed names (and leading actresses) to emerge as The Hogan Family.During this period, Bateman also found time to star or co-star in a handful of feature films, such as the 1985 made-for-TV summer-camp comedy Poison Ivy, Teen Wolf, Too, and 1991's Necessary Roughness. However, none of the projects were successful enough to give Bateman a springboard to bigscreen stardom.
Following the conclusion of The Hogan Family in 1991, Bateman embarked on a decade plagued by failed TV outings. On top of several pilots that never even saw the light of day, he was the lead in no less than four ill-fated sitcoms, Simon, George and Leo, Chicago Sons, and Some of My Best Friends. Fortunately, as the new millenium was ushered in, things started to look bright for Bateman. After a supporting turn in the Cameron Diaz comedy The Sweetest Thing, his first major theatrical feature in a decade, he was tapped to lead the eclectic ansemble cast of the Ron Howard-produced Fox sitcom Arrested Development. Acclaimed for its smart humor and fresh concept, the show became a hit with critics and viewers.
In the wake of Arrested Development's success, Bateman continued to increase his presence on the silver screen with roles in the 2004 comedies Starsky and Hutch and Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2009
After appearing in the director's 2007 shootem-up Smokin' Aces, Jason Bateman again teams with filmmaker Joe Carnahan for this action comedy. From an idea concocted by Bateman himself, Remarkable Fellows follows the adventures of a pair of brothers who elaborately exact revenge at the behest of their high-priced clients. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
A hard-drinking lush finds himself thrust into superhero mode in director Peter Berg's unconventional look at the private life of a crime-fighter. Will Smith stars as the embittered do-gooder whose lifestyle is more akin to a rock star than a role model, and who has grown as disillusioned with his once-admiring public as they have of him. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Will Smith, Charlize Theron, (more)
- 2005
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In this Emmy-winning comedy's hilarious third season, Michael Bluth finally realizes that it's his Uncle Oscar serving time in prison, not his father. Reluctant to spring Oscar due to the effect it may have on the family business, Michael decides that the only fair thing to do is to find his father and place him under house arrest. Yet once found, George Sr. insists he was tricked into working with the Iraqis, leaving Michael no choice but to investigate his father's outrageous claim. But it isn't until Michael and Buster go to Iraq on a rescue mission to save Gob that the depth of the devious plot is revealed...and Michael learns which family member is the real brains behind all the madness.
- Starring:
- Jason Bateman, Portia de Rossi, (more)
- 2005
This 2005 episode of Saturday Night Live is hosted by Jason Bateman and features musical guest Kelly Clarkson. ~ Skyler Miller, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jason Bateman, Kelly Clarkson, (more)
- 2004
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The Bluth family of Orange County, CA, once again forces the media critics to come up with new variations on the word "dysfunction" as the cult-favorite sitcom Arrested Development launches its second season. For those who came in late, straight-arrow Michael Bluth (Jason Bateman) is still trying to keep his family and the family business from disintegrating after his entrepreneur father is thrown in jail on a fraud charge. Well, anyway, he was in jail until he broke out with the help of lookalike convict Oscar (also Jeffrey Tambor) at the end of season one. Now that George Sr. is on the run, the authorities target poor Michael for prosecution in their efforts to bring Bluth Inc. to justice -- and thus Michael's older brother, Gob, an habitually unemployed (and woefully) inept magician, becomes head of the family, managing to convince the company's board of directors that he actually has some business sense! In other developments, Michael's kid brother, Buster (Tony Hale), takes a break from his indolence by romancing Lupe (B.W. Gonzalez), a girl he'd met at a charity drive, and by joining the U.S. Army -- conveniently losing a hand in a freak accident just before he is to be sent to Iraq.
Meanwhile, bumbling detective Gene Parmesan (Martin Mull) gets lost somewhere south of the border while searching for the elusive George Sr.; Oscar, the man who'd traded places with George Sr. to effect his escape, may also end up replacing George Sr. in bed with his the elder Bluth's wife, Lucille (Jessica Walter); and Michael's 14-year-old son, George Michael, takes a surrealistic journey into "Charlie Brown" territory when he's dumped by his girlfriend. Plus, Michael's doctor-cum-actor brother-in-law Tobias (David Cross) edges further out of the closet when he adopts the drag alter ego of "Mr. Featherbottom." Also, this is the season when we meet George Sr.'s hated business rival Stan Sitwell (Ed Begley Jr.), whose daughter Sally (Christine Taylor) was once (and may still be) Michael's childhood sweetheart. Other guest performers include Martin Short as the paraplegic, monumentally annoying Uncle Jack Dorso, an old family friend who offers to help the Bluths regain their stock majority in their own company -- at a price; and blind lawyer/congenital liar Maggie Lizer (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), who shows up pregnant, leading Michael to believe that he's going to be a father again; and Ben Stiller as Gob's magician mentor Tony Wonder, whose most famous illusion was being baked in a loaf of bread -- and who, like everyone else on the show, has an ulterior motive for lending the Bluths a helping hand. The last episode of the season finds George Sr. still on the lam; Tobias linking up with his father-in-law's blackmailing, self-deprecating former secretary Kitty (Patricia Velasquez); and George Michael entering into a relationship with the devoutly Christian Ann Veal (Mae Whitman), despite her total revulsion for his family and everything they stand for. As in season one, Arrested Development earned several Emmy nominations for its second season, winning the prize for Outstanding Writing. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Meanwhile, bumbling detective Gene Parmesan (Martin Mull) gets lost somewhere south of the border while searching for the elusive George Sr.; Oscar, the man who'd traded places with George Sr. to effect his escape, may also end up replacing George Sr. in bed with his the elder Bluth's wife, Lucille (Jessica Walter); and Michael's 14-year-old son, George Michael, takes a surrealistic journey into "Charlie Brown" territory when he's dumped by his girlfriend. Plus, Michael's doctor-cum-actor brother-in-law Tobias (David Cross) edges further out of the closet when he adopts the drag alter ego of "Mr. Featherbottom." Also, this is the season when we meet George Sr.'s hated business rival Stan Sitwell (Ed Begley Jr.), whose daughter Sally (Christine Taylor) was once (and may still be) Michael's childhood sweetheart. Other guest performers include Martin Short as the paraplegic, monumentally annoying Uncle Jack Dorso, an old family friend who offers to help the Bluths regain their stock majority in their own company -- at a price; and blind lawyer/congenital liar Maggie Lizer (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), who shows up pregnant, leading Michael to believe that he's going to be a father again; and Ben Stiller as Gob's magician mentor Tony Wonder, whose most famous illusion was being baked in a loaf of bread -- and who, like everyone else on the show, has an ulterior motive for lending the Bluths a helping hand. The last episode of the season finds George Sr. still on the lam; Tobias linking up with his father-in-law's blackmailing, self-deprecating former secretary Kitty (Patricia Velasquez); and George Michael entering into a relationship with the devoutly Christian Ann Veal (Mae Whitman), despite her total revulsion for his family and everything they stand for. As in season one, Arrested Development earned several Emmy nominations for its second season, winning the prize for Outstanding Writing. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jason Bateman, Portia de Rossi, (more)
- 2003
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As Arrested Development leaps into its first season, hard-working Michael Bluth (Jason Bateman) is on the brink of starting a new life in Arizona with son George Michael (Michael Cera) when he is dragged kicking and screaming back to California, there to take charge of his family's business when his light-fingered father, George Sr. (Jeffrey Tambor), is jailed for fraud and the company's assets frozen. Though he had fondly assumed he'd seen the last of his vituperrious mother, Lucille (Jessica Walter), and his lazy, self-indulgent siblings, he was forced to hunker down and teach them how to behave (and spend!) more responsibly. As Michael's airheaded would-be-activist twin sister, Lindsay (Portia de Rossi), her sexually confused ex-doctor hubby, Tobias (David Cross), and their out-of-control daughter, Maeby (Alia Shawkat), move in with Michael, older brother Gob (Will Arnett), a spectacularly unsuccessful and untalented magician, must face the prospect of actually getting a real job, while the "baby" of the family, Michael's feckless kid brother, Buster (Tony Hale), remains sequestered in his mommy's Balboa Bay condo. Michael's well-ordered world doesn't take very long to unravel; by the second episode, his darling son George Michael has set fire to the Bluths' frozen-banana stand in Newport Beach, and has developed a borderline-incestuous crush on cousin Maeby. A few weeks later, Lucille Bluth's neurotic social rival Lucille Austero (Liza Minnelli) has entered into an affair with the much, much, much younger Buster, an act that will eventually move Buster's mom to spitefully adopt a Korean orphan named Annyong (Justin Lee). Meanwhile, Michael finds it next to impossible to break up the doomed romance between brother Gob and his girlfriend, Marta (Patricia Velasquez), and to fire such millstones around the Bluths' necks as hopelessly inept family lawyer Barry Zuckerkorn (Henry Winkler) and blackmailing company secretary Kitty Sanchez (Judy Greer).
Among the supporting actors entering into the lunacy are Rocky co-star Carl Weathers, who makes the first of several self-deprecating appearances as himself in the episode wherein George Michael is forced to hire a public relations service to gain entrance to a private school; Inside the Actors Studio host James Lipton as the warden in the prison where George Sr. is wasting away, so to speak; Seinfeld veteran Julia Louis-Dreyfus as the sight-challenged attorney Maggie Lizer, who plays up to Michael while trying to dig up more damaging dirt on his family's business practices; and series regular David Cross' longtime Mr. Show cohort Bob Odenkirk as a marriage counselor who tries to patch up the differences between Lindsay and Tobias (chief among them the fact that the "never-nude" Tobias will not undress in front of his spouse); and Amy Poehler, real-life wife of regular Will Arnett, as the "where the hell did she come from?" new wife of the gormless Gob. The season finale finds George Sr. staging a heart attack for the purpose of busting out jail, Maeby finally tumbling to George Michael's unspoken love for her, an unintentionally gay-themed book written years ago by Tobias embarrassingly hitting the best-seller charts, and the rivalry between Buster and Annyong coming to a head -- and threatening to bust both of their heads. Although season one of Arrested Development posted lukewarm ratings, the series earned a renewal from the Fox network largely on the strength of its five surprise Emmy Award wins (Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series, Outstanding Directing, Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing, and Outstanding Writing). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Among the supporting actors entering into the lunacy are Rocky co-star Carl Weathers, who makes the first of several self-deprecating appearances as himself in the episode wherein George Michael is forced to hire a public relations service to gain entrance to a private school; Inside the Actors Studio host James Lipton as the warden in the prison where George Sr. is wasting away, so to speak; Seinfeld veteran Julia Louis-Dreyfus as the sight-challenged attorney Maggie Lizer, who plays up to Michael while trying to dig up more damaging dirt on his family's business practices; and series regular David Cross' longtime Mr. Show cohort Bob Odenkirk as a marriage counselor who tries to patch up the differences between Lindsay and Tobias (chief among them the fact that the "never-nude" Tobias will not undress in front of his spouse); and Amy Poehler, real-life wife of regular Will Arnett, as the "where the hell did she come from?" new wife of the gormless Gob. The season finale finds George Sr. staging a heart attack for the purpose of busting out jail, Maeby finally tumbling to George Michael's unspoken love for her, an unintentionally gay-themed book written years ago by Tobias embarrassingly hitting the best-seller charts, and the rivalry between Buster and Annyong coming to a head -- and threatening to bust both of their heads. Although season one of Arrested Development posted lukewarm ratings, the series earned a renewal from the Fox network largely on the strength of its five surprise Emmy Award wins (Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series, Outstanding Directing, Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing, and Outstanding Writing). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jason Bateman, Portia de Rossi, (more)
- 1995
The popular television detective duo from Hart to Hart reunites for another go-around in this made-for-television adventure movie. While the Harts (Robert Wagner and Stephanie Powers) attend a charity auction, they stumble upon an old locket with what may be a picture of Jonathan Hart's long-lost sister. Jonathan may be on the brink of finding his missing sibling -- or he may be a pawn in scheme concocted by some thieves. ~ Bernadette McCallion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Wagner, Stefanie Powers, (more)
- 1994
Helmed by Anthony Harvey, director of the early-70s cult classic They Might Be Giants, this made-for-television romantic drama stars Anthony Quinn and Katherine Hepburn. The pair of aging movie stars appropriately play a pair of aging movie stars named Michael Reyman and Marion Bennett. For decades the two held intense animosity toward one another, but in their golden years they begin to realize that perhaps they've simply been trying to mask their feelings of love. Jason Bateman and Jami Gertz head up the supporting cast. The film was originally broadcast on CBS, March 13, 1994. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Katharine Hepburn, Anthony Quinn, (more)
- 1994
Confessions: Two Faces of Evil is a "ripped from today's headlines" TV movie. Jason Bateman and James Wilder play a couple of mixed-up youths, both of whom confess to killing a cop. Investigator James Earl Jones is assigned to separate fact from fancy. Commendably, the film avoids concentrating on the scuzzier elements of the story; the emphasis is on the police, as they endeavor to see that justice is served. Confessions: Two Faces of Evil originally aired on January 17, 1994. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Jason and Justine Bateman help teens work through challenging issues in How Can I Tell If I'm Really in Love?. Discussing dating and intimacy, the brother and sister celebrities speak casually but candidly. They offer personal advice and tackle hard questions, explaining why sex is not love, and how best to tell if you're really in love with another person. The actor siblings' tone is upbeat and never condescending. Students from University High School in Los Angeles participate in the lively discussion. ~ Betsy Boyd, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Two rich boys decide to try their hands at manual labor and so get summer jobs working on a Texas offshore oil rig in this taut thriller. They look forward to it until they encounter a mean-spirited boss who resents them because of their wealth. He mercilessly picks upon them and they wonder if they will survive until helpful Bo Landry shows up. Bo seems to be such a good person and the boys are glad to have him on their side. Unfortunately, things are not what they seem and soon their lives are really in danger. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1988
Jason Bateman's troubles begins when he gets his girl friend pregnant. Thrown out of high school, he falls in with traditional bad crowd, and soon he's up to his eyelids in mob activity. When his family is threatened, Bateman must turn stoolie...if he can avoid sleeping with the fish before the film is over. Most trade mags barely acknowledged this TV movie's existence, chalking it up as a ratings-hype assignment for young star of The Hogan Family. Crossing the Mob was originally telecast October 14, 1988. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Made for television, Moving Target bears a few faint echoes of the 1986 theatrical feature Out of Bounds. Jason Bateman plays a teenaged musician returning home from summer camp. He is hardly greeted with open arms; as a matter of fact, his family has moved out in his absence. Compounding this traumatic turn of events, Jason becomes the quarry of a syndicate hit man (Jack Wagner)--and of the US Justice Department. It dawns on the boy that he'd better locate his family before anyone else does. Jason Bateman's leading lady in Moving Target is Chynna Phillips, daughter of musicians John and Michelle Phillips, and later the star of the TV biopic Roxanne: The Prize Pulitzer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1987
This busted TV pilot film is set in the sinister family-operated motel made infamous by Hitchcock's Psycho. Former mental patient Bud Cort inherits the motel from its cross-dressing owner Norman Bates (played in Psycho by Anthony Perkins, who wisely passed up this TV film). With the help of runaway teen Lori Petty, Cort renovates the motel and hopes to re-open for business. Unfortunately the joint is haunted, thus it attracts only devotees of the Supernatural. Bates Motel was aimed at teenagers, who turned away in droves. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bud Cort, Jason Bateman, (more)
- 1986
When it was first telecast on November 23, 1986, the made-for-TV Thanksgiving Promise (based on a novel by Blaine and Brenton Yorgason) was advertised as "A Thanksgiving Story as Only Disney Can Tell It." Actually, the film might not have come to fruition at all without the input of the Bridges family: Lloyd, Beau, Lloyd's wife Dorothy, Beau's son Jordan, and Jeff Bridges (uncredited). Jordan Bridges is the central character, a farm boy living in the shadow of his older brothers. Jordan's neighbor (Lloyd) entrusts the boy with a man-sized job: To care for a wounded gosling and fatten up the bird for Thanksgiving dinner. Inevitably, Jordan becomes attached to the bird, and as Thanksgiving approaches, he takes a series of odd jobs, hoping to buy the goose from his neighbor. But Jordan's father (Beau) insists that the boy keep his word and relinquish the goose. In addition to his costarring chores in Thanksgiving Promise, Beau Bridges coproduced and directed the film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1986
Hosted by popular 1980's stars Justin Bateman and Ted Danson, this video explores the realistic nature of dating and intimacy. Using a straight talk approach the issues explored during this fifty-six minute program include the following topics: how you know if you're in love, is sex love and can you fall in love several times in your life, the difference between love and infatuation and how to distinguish the two, should teenagers have sex, and what does real love feel like. The presentation speaks directly to the teens -- in their terms -- and is also ideal for teachers and parents. ~ Forrest Spencer, All Movie Guide
- 1985
This lively made-for-television comedy is set at a summer camp and chronicles the romantic misadventures of the staff. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1985
Justine Bateman plays a young, blind teen who wishes to get out from under her overly-concerned family's control and finds support in a romantic relationship. Jason Bateman, oddly enough, plays her brother in this drama which was co-produced by their father, Kent Bateman. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
- 1984
The made-for-TV Fantastic World of D.C. Collins is curiously not a pilot film, despite the presence of the principal character's name in the title. D. C. Collins (played by Gary Coleman) is the son of a U.S. diplomat. His own life is deadly dull, so D.C. escapes into fantasy. At various junctures, he imagines himself to be space traveller Dwight Cloudclimber and archaeologist Alabama Smith (these character names are a tip-off to the film's level of wit). Collins gets a chance to act out his fantasies when he becomes embroiled in a real-life adventure involving stolen documents. The eclectic supporting cast includes Jason Bateman, Michael Ansara, and George Gobel! Fantastic World of D.C. Collins premiered February 10, 1984. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1984
Christopher Collet stars as real-life teenager Richard Jahnke Jr. in the made-for-TV Right to Kill. After suffering years of torment and abuse from his father (Frederic Forrest), Jahnke can stand no more. Hiding in the closet of his Wyoming home, Jahnke hears the familiar sounds of his father beating his mother. "I just wanted to make him stop," Jahnke later explained to the authorities--after he killed his father with a rifle. Written for television by Joyce Eliason, it initially aired on May 22, 1985 ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Frederic Forrest, Christopher Collet, (more)
- 1982
In the conclusion of a two-part story, James (Jason Bateman) remains in a coma after being shot in a bank robbery. Everyone has given up hope for the boy's recovery except his adoptive father, Charles (Michael Landon), whose obsessive belief that a "miracle" will occur alienates him from his family and all but drives him insane. Ultimately, Charles builds an altar and places James upon it, hoping against hope that God will save the boy. An astonishing climax caps this, the final episode of Little House on the Prairie (though the series would be revamped in the fall of 1982 under the title Little House: A New Beginning). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, (more)
- 1982
In the first episode of a two-part story, James (Jason Bateman) heads to the Sleepy Eye bank to make a deposit. The bank is robbed and James is shot, leaving him comatose. Seething with grief and rage, James' adoptive father, Charles (Michael Landon), persuades his friend Mr. Edwards (Victor French) to help him track down the outlaws. As they set out on their mission, Charles and Edwards order Albert ( Matthew Laborteaux) to stay behind -- an order he disobeys. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, (more)
- 1982
Hester-Sue (Ketty Lester) is astonished when her ex-husband, Sam Terhune (J.A. Preston), who left her years ago for another woman, suddenly shows up in Walnut Grove. Insisting that he has giving up drinking, gambling, and womanizing, Sam tries to charm his way back into Hester-Sue's heart. Unfortunately, there are a few "details" about Sam's so-called reformation that he has kept secret from his former bride. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, (more)
- 1982
It has been several months since Charles (Michael Landon) adopted the orphaned James (Jason Bateman) and Cassandra (Missy Francis), and the children are now fully and happily settled in the Ingalls household. This may soon change, however: The youngsters' grand-uncle Jed (E.J. Andre) suddenly materializes and demands custody of the two kids. Backed up by his new-found wealth, Jed may very well have the law on his side -- and, as expected, the ensuing court battle is not a pretty sight. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, (more)
- 1982
In the conclusion of a two-part story, the troubles that have recently beset the Wilders continue unabated. Their crops have already been wiped out by hail, and Almanzo (Dean Butler) has been partially paralyzed in an accident. Now, a tornado destroys the couple's home, injuring Laura (Melissa Gilbert), who has recently given birth. In the depths of depression, Almanzo is ready to give up -- but is suddenly galvanized into a valiant effort to get back on his feet, both figuratively and literally, with the help of Laura's father, Charles (Michael Landon). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, (more)
