Apple TV has released the first trailer for Black Bird. The new limited series stars Taron Egerton as Jimmy Keene, a convicted drug dealer given the choice of a lifetime — befriend a suspected serial killer in a maximum-security prison for the criminally insane for the chance to be set free. Black Bird also features one of Ray Liotta’s last roles, and although he isn’t featured a lot in the trailer, his presence looms large in the opening moments.
Based on the autobiographical novel In With The Devil: A Fallen Hero, A Serial Killer, and A Dangerous Bargain for Redemption by James Keene, Black Bird was developed by Dennis Lehane (Mystic River), who also wrote and executive produced the series. Ray Liotta plays Big Jim Keene, a decorated and beloved former policeman. Upon learning of Ray Liotta’s death, Lehane remembered him as “the most electric American actor of his generation,” adding that he wrote the part of Big Jim Keene specifically for Liotta and that it was the “culmination of a lifelong dream” to work with him. In addition to Taron Egerton and Ray Liotta, Black Bird also stars Paul Walter Hauser, Sepideh Moafi, and Greg Kinnear.
The official synopsis for Black Bird:
Inspired by actual events, when high school football hero and decorated policeman’s son Jimmy Keene (Taron Egerton) is sentenced to 10 years in a minimum-security prison, he is given the choice of a lifetime — enter a maximum-security prison for the criminally insane and befriend suspected serial killer Larry Hall (Paul Walter Hauser), or stay where he is and serve his full sentence with no possibility of parole. Keene quickly realizes his only way out is to elicit a confession and find out where the bodies of several young girls are buried before Hall’s appeal goes through. But is this suspected killer telling the truth? Or is it just another tale from a serial liar? This dramatic and captivating story subverts the crime genre by enlisting the help of the very people put behind bars to solve its mysteries.
Black Bird will debut on Apple TV+ on July 8, 2022.