Recovering Ray
Ray Donovan has a difficult season ahead on free-TV as he fights his wife’s cancer, his molestation and the Russian mob.
Ray Donovan Season 4 Wednesdays (from 20 March) e.tv (*194) 22:00
At the end of season 3, we find Ray at the point where he was so beaten down, broken down that he’s willing to confess and ask for forgiveness, reveals Liev Schreiber, who plays lead character Ray in bloody drama series Ray Donovan (2013- current). Doesn’t sound quite like the ruthless, violent fixer we’ve come to know but that’s where Ray is at the start of season 4. “We’ve never seen him accepting that he was abused by a priest who was meant to protect him. We see Ray unravelling. Everything that he has done, lying, the cheating, the murdering… everything has been tame for him and easy in comparison to being in a church and telling someone that he was once weak and fragile and that he was taken advantage of.” Accepting this weakness makes Ray more dangerous. Forget about how weak he starts; it’s his sheer evil finish that will count this season.
RECOVERY ROCKSLIDE
In his mind, everything is going to be okay, says Liev – except for one person. “His wife Abby (Paula Malcomson) will recover from her cancer and they will fix their broken marriage. His daughter Bridget (Kerris Dorsey) is going to move back home and Conor (Devon Bagby) is going to behave… everyone will be fine except for Ray.” By going to victim meetings like his brother Bunchy (Dash Mihok), Ray questions his violent ways, but not for long. “Ray has spent 30-odd years on the run from his abuse secret. He’s been able to use violence to get his way in business and become successful.” But as he listens to more abuse stories, he realises that he never wants to be in that position again and it fuels his anger. “He is 180-degrees the opposite man by the season finale [episode 12, which should air in June],” says Liev. This isn’t a comfortable spot and the people Ray trusts most, his business partners Avi and Lena [Steven Bauer and Katherine Moennig], are turning on him because they can’t cope with his ruthlessness. “He may not have anyone in his corner by episode 12 when he needs it most,” adds Liev.
DADDY DILEMMA
Something that viewers will notice has changed from episode 1 of the season is Ray’s bond with his dad Mickey (Jon Voight). Gone is the “I’m going to kill you with my own hands” tone in Ray’s voice. In its place is a more understanding way of speaking. Don’t get it wrong: Ray hasn’t forgiven or forgotten what Mickey has done, like beating him as a child or involving him in con jobs; he’s just being a bit kinder to his dad because of his issues with unruly Conor. And Ray is right not to trust Mickey fully still – even when he steps in front of a figurative bullet for Ray in episode 6 (24 April), there is a hidden agenda. “This is typical Mickey,” says Jon with a grin. “There is nothing that he does without there being some kind of benefit for him. So going to prison, taking the blame for the season 3 hit on the Minassian crime family is little more than an inconvenience for him. Ray does what he can to protect his father inside because Mickey has spared him prison time, but Mick is an old hand at this manipulation game. Even when things don’t go his way, you can bet that he will come out smiling. This guy even fakes incontinence and senility. He has everyone wrapped around his finger, including his son.”
BROTHERS IN ARMS
With everything falling apart, there is one thing that Ray can count on: his brothers Bunch and Terry (Eddie Marsan), although it’s not always smooth sailing, explains Eddie. “They have patches like all brothers. They can go from punching each other bloody in their boxing ring to laughing about something they did in fourth grade to get out of trouble. They definitely don’t see eye-to- eye on everything, but they are brothers. They are from the same blood and they will always be united by that.”
With Ray using unsettlingly violent means at work while juggling his crumbling family, his brothers getting into their own trouble and their dad still scheming behind bars, it’s a makeor-break season for the Donovans. “No doubt, this is probably the emotionally most difficult period of his life,” says Liev. “I don’t know how he keeps living. This is a difficult season to watch. My character is falling apart.”