‘Ray Donovan’ Fans Will Get Their Questions Answered With Superb Movie Finale

Life for the Donovan clan was a bloody mess at the end of season seven. Their chaotic circumstances were, in many ways, representative of the state of the world at the time.

It was February 2020 and the pandemic was a destructive force and the one thing many TV lovers worldwide had to look forward to was binge-watching beloved series, including Ray Donovan.

So, when Showtime abruptly announced it was actually the end of the series, Donofans were stunned. The way in which we were forced to bid farewell to our favorite fixer for the rich and famous felt very unfinished. We have diligently watched Ray fix everyone else and their problems but we never got to see him fix himself.

This is one of the cable giant’s best series and fans were confused because there were so many unresolved storylines and unanswered questions. We needed and deserved closure. It’s not overrated.

Fans, as well as those involved with the hit drama series, took to social media to vent their disappointment. During its 82-episode run from 2013 to 2020, Ray Donovan earned a multitude of Emmy, Writers Guild and Critics’ Choice awards nominations because it was so well done.

Simply put, this series got better with each passing season and it deserved a proper send-off with either an eighth season, or at least a few closing episodes, or a film to respectfully wrap it up.

Showtime listened and announced a few weeks ago that Ray Donovan: The Movie will premiere Friday, January 14 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT. The movie was co-written by series star Liev Schreiber and series showrunner David Hollander, who also directed the film. Both serve as executive producers alongside Mark Gordon, Bryan Zuriff and Lou Fusaro. 

All of our favorite cast members have reprised their roles, including Eddie Marsan as Terry, Dash Mihok as Bunchy, Pooch Hall as Daryll, Kerris Dorsey as Bridget, Katherine Moennig as Lena, Kerry Condon as Molly, Alan Alda as Ray’s therapist Dr. Arthur Amiot and of course, Oscar-winner Jon Voight as Mickey. 

It’s not clear what moved the needle and pushed the cable giant to give the green light but it was a wise decision. The movie is superb. Was it Schreiber’s pleas at the time? He’d taken to social media to implore fans to reach out to the network if they wanted a proper conclusion for the Donovans. Hollander was also vocal in an interview with Vulture at the time saying they had no idea the show was coming to an end. “We were behaving creatively as though we were in mid-sentence. And so, there was no sense that this was going to be a completion. This was in no way a series finale.”

The movie definitely answers many questions with the story picking up right where season seven left off. Mickey is on the run and Ray is as determined as ever to find and stop him before he can cause any more damage. We get a deeper look into Ray and Mickey’s current relationship and through a series of flashbacks get a clearer understanding of them by going back 30 years to see how and why things unfolded the way they did.

Now that Ray sees how Mickey’s actions have hurt Bridget with the loss of her husband, Smitty (Graham Rogers), his actions become even more desperate and he makes a life-changing decision. One thing has never changed throughout the years: When it comes to family, the Donovans will do anything to protect one another.

Back to the issue of closure: This movie is a gift for the fans but this one wonders if there is still more story to tell.