---
title: "Black Bird"
year: 2022
kind: "series"
canonical: "https://film.one/tv/black-bird"
fi1m_id: "black-bird"
imdb_id: "tt4301160"
tmdb_id: 155537
wikidata_id: "Q106911884"
fi1m_score: 78
critics_score: 76
critics_reviews: 13
published: "2026-09-24T22:01:45.292411+00:00"
updated: "2026-09-24T22:01:45.951112+00:00"
region: "FI"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Black Bird (2022)

Created by Dennis Lehane · KAVI K16 · Drama, Crime

## Identity

Black Bird

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/tv/black-bird
- **Type:** Series
- **Fi1m ID:** black-bird
- **IMDb ID:** tt4301160
- **TMDB ID:** 155537
- **Wikidata ID:** Q106911884
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4301160/, https://www.themoviedb.org/tv/155537, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q106911884

**Fi1m score: 78** · Critics 76 from 13 reviews

*In a sentence:* A prison drama in which the scariest inmate whittles birds and apologises a lot

> Dennis Lehane’s six-part prison drama sends a charming drug dealer in to befriend a suspected killer, and lives or dies on their conversations. Paul Walter Hauser makes those conversations unbearable in the right way; the police work around them is ordinary, but we recommend it.

## Synopsis

Illinois in the 1990s. Jimmy Keene (Taron Egerton), a drug dealer with a big house and a wide smile, is arrested and sentenced to ten years with no parole. FBI agent Lauren McCauley (Sepideh Moafi) offers him a way out: transfer to a maximum-security prison for the criminally insane in Springfield, Missouri, befriend Larry Hall (Paul Walter Hauser), a suspected serial killer whose conviction is under appeal, and get him to say where he buried the bodies. If Hall wins his appeal he walks; if Jimmy fails he serves every day. Jimmy’s father, Big Jim (Ray Liotta), a former policeman in poor health, begs him to take the deal. In a parallel strand, detective Brian Miller (Greg Kinnear) works the case that first put Hall away, the murder of a teenage girl, Jessica Roach (Laney Stiebing).

## Review

*Black Bird* rests on one arrangement. Jimmy Keene (Taron Egerton), a drug dealer who has just been sentenced to ten years without parole, is offered his freedom if he will move to a prison for the criminally insane in Springfield, Missouri, befriend Larry Hall (Paul Walter Hauser) and get him to say where he buried the girls he is suspected of killing. Dennis Lehane, who created the six-part series and wrote its story with Steve Harris, knows what he has: two men in a room, one of whom must charm the other. When the series stays in that room it grips. When it leaves, it is a decent police procedural.

Hauser is the reason to watch. His Larry Hall has muttonchop sideburns, a soft high voice and the manners of a man who has been told off a great deal and would rather not be told off again. He apologises. He carves wooden falcons in the prison woodshop. He talks about his dreams, in which he does terrible things to women, and he wants Jimmy to agree that dreams are only dreams. We were horrified, and what horrified us was the gentleness: Hauser never raises his voice or moves quickly, so every awful sentence arrives sounding like a confidence between friends. It is the quietest performance of a killer we can remember.

Egerton has the harder job, because Jimmy is written as a charmer and the script keeps telling us he is also clever. Egerton plays the gap. His Jimmy grins, flatters and lifts weights in the yard, and underneath he is a frightened man counting the days he can stand this. Natalie Kingston shoots him close and low-lit, so the prison, which production designer Charisse Cardenas has done in pale institutional paint and steel mesh, presses in from the edges of the frame. Amy Roth puts him in shiny shirts and leather in the flashbacks to his old life and in khaki inside. The score by Dominic Aitchison, Stuart Braithwaite, Martin Bulloch and Barry Burns, the members of Mogwai, is low guitar drone that hardly ever resolves.

Ray Liotta plays Big Jim, Jimmy’s father, a former policeman whose health is failing, and he moved us more than we expected. Liotta died before the series aired, and it is hard to watch him now without knowing that, but the performance would land regardless. He sits across a table from his son and tries to be tough and cannot manage it, and in one visit he cannot get to the end of what he wants to say, and Egerton simply waits for him. There is no music. It is the best-acted thing in the six episodes, and it has nothing to do with the plot.

The rest is less sure. Greg Kinnear’s detective, Brian Miller, works the murder of Jessica Roach (Laney Stiebing) in a parallel strand, and Kinnear is patient and decent, but the strand is standard: files, interviews, superiors who would rather he stopped. Sepideh Moafi’s FBI agent, Lauren McCauley, recruits Jimmy and then has little to do beyond phoning him with warnings. Editors Jonathan Alberts and Rob Bonz cut between the timelines steadily, and in the middle episodes the rhythm sags: Jimmy nearly gets Larry talking, Larry closes up, a week passes. The series also stages some of what Hall describes, at a distance and from the roadside, and Hauser’s telling has already done the work.

The three directors, Michaël R. Roskam, Jim McKay and Joe Chappelle, hold one look across the run, which is not to be taken for granted. Lehane’s crime fiction has always been about men explaining themselves to other men, and this is the most concentrated version of it, with the sentimental streak of [*Mystic River*](https://film.one/film/mystic-river) mostly kept out. Against other true-crime dramas it is careful with its victims; Jessica Roach is a girl on a bicycle before she is a case, and the series makes sure we notice.

It is an 18 certificate, earned mostly by the talk. Watch it two episodes at a time, and expect an ending quieter than the trailer promises.

*Fi1m score 78, published 24 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics find Black Bird gripping, and the praise lands almost entirely on the performances. Paul Walter Hauser’s Larry Hall is called chilling and unsettling in review after review, and Ray Liotta’s turn as Big Jim, in his final screen role, is described as tender and heartbreaking. Taron Egerton’s long conversations with Hauser are singled out repeatedly as the series at its best. The script is credited with being pointed and confidently handled, and the tension holds for most reviewers.

The reservations cluster on pace. Even the warm reviews concede a slow start, heavy dialogue and a stately rhythm, and several note that the true-crime premise is a familiar one. Variety thinks the series runs longer than its story needs, with predictable turns that blunt the dread, and Vulture goes further, finding it stilted and the ending anticlimactic. Otherwise the spread is narrow: eleven of thirteen reviews are positive, and even the doubters praise the acting.

## Straight answers

**Is Black Bird worth watching?**

*Black Bird* is worth watching for anyone who can sit through six episodes built almost entirely on two men talking in a prison, and we scored it 78. Paul Walter Hauser's soft-spoken suspected killer is the reason to see it; the police work around him is ordinary and the middle episodes sag. Take it two at a time.

**How long is Black Bird, and what is it rated?**

*Black Bird* is rated K16 by the KAVI in Finland. It is a drama and crime series.

**Where can I watch Black Bird in Finland?**

*Black Bird* is streaming on Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video in Finland. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How violent or frightening is Black Bird, and is it suitable for children?**

*Black Bird* is an 18 certificate, and the rating is earned mostly by what is said rather than shown. Larry Hall describes, quietly and at length, what he dreams of doing to women, and we found that gentleness more frightening than any violence on screen. It is not for children, and the squeamish should know some of what he describes is staged, at a distance.

**How does Black Bird compare to MINDHUNTER?**

*Black Bird* and [*Mindhunter*](https://film.one/tv/mindhunter) both hang on FBI men sitting in rooms with killers, but *Black Bird* is the tighter and more concentrated of the two, with one suspect and one informant across six episodes. *Mindhunter* is cooler and nearly bloodless, its interview scenes the finer, its lead the thinner. Choose *Black Bird* for performances, *Mindhunter* for patience and range.

**What should I watch after Black Bird?**

After *Black Bird*, try [*Mindhunter*](https://film.one/tv/mindhunter) (2017, Fi1m 83): FBI men sit in rooms with killers; the talk is the whole show. Then [*Memories of Murder*](https://film.one/film/memories-of-murder) (2003, Fi1m 91): Rural Korean detectives chase a killer they may never catch; funnier and sadder than it sounds; and [*A Prophet*](https://film.one/film/a-prophet) (2009, Fi1m 86): A young man learns prison from the inside; harder, longer and more alive than most.

### Reviews we read (13)

- **The AV Club**, Saloni Gajjar (A-): The review calls the series an engrossing, tense true-crime drama with a pointed script and strong performances. It especially praises Ray Liotta’s tender, evocative performance in his final on-screen role. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/black-bird-review-apple-tv-plus-true-crime-drama-1849140682)
- **The Guardian**, Lucy Mangan (85/100, inferred): Lucy Mangan calls the series exquisitely pitched and well worth watching despite a slow start. She especially praises Ray Liotta’s heartbreaking performance and the subtle, shifting conversations between Taron Egerton and Paul Walter Hauser. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2022/jul/08/black-bird-review-taron-egerton-ray-liotta-dennis-lehane-apple-tv)
- **The i Paper**, Emily Baker (85/100, inferred): Baker finds the series gripping and intense despite its slow pace and heavy dialogue. She singles out the performances, especially Paul Walter Hauser’s unsettling work and Ray Liotta’s tender final role. [Read](https://inews.co.uk/culture/television/black-bird-apple-tv-plus-review-taron-egerton-ray-liotta-true-crime-drama-1732762?ico=related_stories)
- **Empire**, John Nugent (80/100, inferred): The review finds the true-crime series tense and confidently made, with its performances elevating the story. It especially praises Paul Walter Hauser’s chilling portrayal and Ray Liotta’s heartbreaking final performance. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/tv/reviews/black-bird/)
- **Evening Standard**, Vicky Jessop (4/5): Jessop finds the series gripping and classy, despite its stately pace. She especially praises the performances, singling out Ray Liotta’s barnstorming turn and the chilling scenes with Paul Walter Hauser. [Read](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/tvfilm/black-bird-review-apple-tv-taron-egerton-ray-liotta-b1010625.html)
- **IndieWire**, Kristen Lopez (B): Lopez finds the episode less forceful than the first two, though the performances remain compelling. She especially praises Paul Walter Hauser’s quietly eerie portrayal of Larry Hall. [Read](https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/black-bird-season-1-episode-3-review-spoilers-1234740726/)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Daniel Fienberg (70/100, inferred): Fienberg finds the series flawed but ultimately worthwhile, with its familiar premise gaining power as it goes. He singles out Paul Walter Hauser’s layered, unsettling performance, alongside strong work from Taron Egerton and Ray Liotta. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-reviews/black-bird-review-1235176296/)
- **Variety**, Daniel D'Addario (60/100, inferred): The review finds the series solid but overextended, with its dread and predictable turns limiting its impact. It praises Taron Egerton’s vulnerable, charismatic performance as the element that carries the show. [Read](https://variety.com/2022/tv/reviews/black-bird-taron-egerton-ray-liotta-1235310274/)
- **Vulture**, Roxana Hadadi (30/100, inferred): Hadadi finds the miniseries stilted, especially in its pacing and anticlimactic ending, though she considers it worthwhile overall. She praises Ray Liotta’s moving, human performance as Big Jim, which grounds the story. [Read](https://www.vulture.com/article/black-bird-review-ray-liotta.html)
- **Collider**, Abby Cavenaugh (A): Cavenaugh praises Black Bird as a distinctive, suspenseful true-crime series, though she notes that some flashbacks feel out of place. She singles out the powerful performances of Taron Egerton, Paul Walter Hauser, and Ray Liotta. [Read](https://collider.com/black-bird-review-taron-egerton-ray-liotta-apple-tv-plus/)
- **NME** (90/100, inferred): The critic calls the series expertly handled and a must-watch, praising its performances across the cast. They single out Paul Walter Hauser’s chilling portrayal of Larry Hall and Ray Liotta’s moving final TV role. [Read](https://www.nme.com/reviews/tv-reviews/black-bird-review-ray-liotta-3264991)
- **Paste**, Terry Terrones (9/10): Terrones finds the series gripping and engrossing, praising its addictive story and strong lead performances. He especially singles out Taron Egerton’s compelling transformation and the intensity of his scenes with Paul Walter Hauser. [Read](https://www.pastemagazine.com/tv/black-bird/blackbird-review)
- **The Ringer**, Alison Herman (75/100, inferred): Herman finds Black Bird worthwhile, despite its pacing and familiar true-crime tropes. She praises its nuanced exploration of how men shape one another, supported by Paul Walter Hauser’s and Ray Liotta’s performances. [Read](https://www.theringer.com/2022/07/08/tv/black-bird-apple-tv-plus-review-ray-liotta-taron-egerton)

## Details

- **Created by:** Dennis Lehane
- **Creator:** Dennis Lehane
- **Director:** Michaël R. Roskam, Joe Chappelle, Jim McKay
- **Story:** Dennis Lehane, Steve Harris
- **Teleplay:** Dennis Lehane, Riccardo DiLoreto, Sean K. Smith
- **Cinematography:** Natalie Kingston
- **Editor:** Rob Bonz, Jonathan Alberts
- **Music:** Martin Bulloch, Stuart Braithwaite, Dominic Aitchison, Barry Burns
- **Production design:** Charisse Cardenas
- **Costume design:** Amy Roth
- **Cast:** Taron Egerton as James 'Jimmy' Keene; Paul Walter Hauser as Larry Hall; Sepideh Moafi as Lauren McCauley; Greg Kinnear as Brian Miller; Ray Liotta as James 'Big Jim' Keene; Addison Ross as Brooke Miller (Age 7); Laney Stiebing as Jessica Roach; Robert Wisdom as Edmund Beaumont
- **Certificate (KAVI):** K16
- **Release (Finland):** 7 July 2022
- **Genres:** Drama, Crime
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aH1FOkJys3Y

## Where to watch in Finland

- Apple TV: streaming, uhd
- Amazon Prime Video: add-on, uhd

*Checked 2026-09-24.*

Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PH, PL, PT, SE, SG, TH, UA, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Golden Globes 2023: Best Limited or Anthology Series or Television Film (nominated)

## If you liked this

- *Mindhunter* (2017), Fi1m 83: FBI men sit in rooms with killers; the talk is the whole show. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/tv/mindhunter.md)
- *Memories of Murder* (2003), Fi1m 91: Rural Korean detectives chase a killer they may never catch; funnier and sadder than it sounds. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/memories-of-murder.md)
- *A Prophet* (2009), Fi1m 86: A young man learns prison from the inside; harder, longer and more alive than most. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/a-prophet.md)
- *Manhunter* (1986), Fi1m 84: Mann’s first Lecter film: a profiler who understands killers too well for comfort. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/manhunter.md)
- *Mystic River* (2003), Fi1m 82: Lehane’s Boston novel on screen; louder grief, same interest in what men owe each other. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/mystic-river.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/tv/black-bird