The Bad Side of Blue: Jon Bernthal Tries to Humanize ‘Monster’ at Heart of HBO’s ‘We Own This City’
variety.comJoe Otterson TV ReporterJon Bernthal has played cops, criminals, and everything in between. But his role in the HBO limited series “We Own This City” presented a new challenge for the celebrated actor.The series is based on the nonfiction book of the same name by Justin Fenton.
It tells the story of a group of corrupt Baltimore police officers who worked on the city’s Gun Trace Task Force (GTTF). It was eventually discovered that the officers routinely violated citizens’ rights, stole money they seized in drug raids, and even resold drugs back onto the street.Bernthal stars as Sgt.
Wayne Jenkins, a leader of the GTTF who was eventually sentenced to 25 years in prison. The actor says that he was most concerned about not simply portraying Jenkins as a one-dimensional “monster.” Instead, he spoke to Jenkins, his fellow officers and even his victims to develop a more nuanced portrayal of the man behind the headlines. “The first thing [Jenkins] said to me is ‘You must think I’m the worst guy on Earth.’ I said, ‘Look, Wayne, everybody told me you’re a good father,’” Bernthal says. “And to me, there’s nothing more important to me than my kids.
So that was a real access point where I really could latch on to him as a character.”The biggest draw for Bernthal to join the series was the chance to explore systemic issues in American policing that have been laid bare in recent years following protests against police violence in cities including Ferguson, Baltimore and Minneapolis.
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