Warning: Mild SPOILERS for The Rainmaker season 1, episode 1, “Another Rainy Day.”
The USA Network’s adaptation of The Rainmaker is off to a strong start, not least because of the addition of an uncomfortable yet tasty villain scene that never occurred in John Grisham’s original novel. Much like Stephen King, it’s a sad reality that some of John Grisham’s best novels have received terrible adaptations, but USA’s giving us a beautiful exception.
Even from the trailer, it was clear that USA’s The Rainmaker changes Grisham’s book significantly, but those who understand the nature of adaptation likely expected certain characters to be portrayed with slight differences. From the very first episode, however, the network has made it clear that one member of The Rainmaker’s cast has gone above and beyond in that regard.
The Rainmaker Episode 1 Features Leo Drummond Imposing His Will With French Fries
Sadly, No Fast Food Chain Saw The Obvious Potential For Product Placement
Reactions to USA’s new legal drama have been fairly mixed, with Screen Rant’s review of The Rainmaker particularly highlighting that it’s the kind of show most viewers will need to settle into before fully getting on board. But John Slattery’s portrayal of Leo Drummond is one of the series’ greatest highlights, and episode 1 gives him an incredibly strong start.
His first major scene, in which he argues with protagonist Rudy about the legal outlook on domestic abuse, clearly sets him up as an abrasive personality. However, Drummond establishes himself as a true villain when he intentionally drops French fries on the ground so his employee has to pick them up. Prior to this, calling him evil would feel extreme.
When Drummond fires Rudy, the idea that he did so on the basis of their initial argument is largely speculation. Rudy also showed up late to his first day of work in a blood-stained suit, which feels like reasonable grounds for termination. The French fry scene tells us what Drummond’s truly all about, stretching far beyond anything empathy can justify.
After Sarah shows up in his office to plead Rudy’s case for a second chance, Leo hesitates before dropping the first fry, as if he’s genuinely considering how to progress the conversation. Two fries later, when Sarah finally demands an explanation, Leo tells Sarah that he’s using the fries as a method of “defining [the] relationship” between employer and employee.
This tells us far more about his character than firing an argumentative employee who showed up in a dirty suit. Drummond using French fries to assert his control over Sarah is an inarguable demonstration of his character, leaving no room for doubt as to whether he’s legitimately corrupt or simply giving problematic clients a constitutionally justified shot at fair defense.
Considering this scene occurs not long after Sarah’s assigned to represent the series’ true villain, the French fry scene establishes that Drummond and his client share disturbingly similar values. And the fact that this never happens in Grisham’s novel is actually what makes the scene ten times better.
John Grisham’s The Rainmaker Made Drummond A More Traditional Legal Villain
His Corruption Is Largely Displayed Through His Handling Of The Case Itself
John Grisham’s novel differs from USA’s The Rainmaker in several regards, but an immediately obvious change is that Rudy’s subplot about being fired by Drummond draws very little from the book at all. In the book, there’s no reason for Sara (don’t ask why her name is spelled differently in the series) to plead Rudy’s case.
In fact, Sara’s name appears less than 20 times in the novel, emphasizing how minor a character she originally was. Drummond’s first real villain moment in the novel is his humiliation in court over the revelation that a star lawyer didn’t pass the bar, which is treated as significant despite Deck’s character having performed even worse at the same achievement.
Grisham doesn’t choose his titles without reason. If he did, virtually anything he’s written could have been titled as The Client. But John Grisham’s novel is essentially a character study about two very different kinds of rainmakers. This makes Slattery’s character in the series doubly important. He provides a necessary foil to Rudy.
However, since Grisham’s The Rainmaker primarily characterizes Drummond through his handling of the malpractice case, Leo never receives the larger-than-life treatment that Grisham’s protagonists often do. He’s a villain because he manipulates legal strategies in a villainous way. For anyone who finds that line blurry, Slattery’s portrayal unblurs it.
Why John Slattery’s The Rainmaker Villain Is An Improvement On Grisham’s Version
He Walks A Terrifying Line Between Wholly Disgusting And Oddly Aspirational
If you show up to work in a clean suit and don’t argue, Drummond is probably a great boss. He challenges people to think and has no qualms about telling them when they could have thought harder. But Drummond’s fry scene works because it shows a side of him we’d never see if we only saw him in court.
Grisham excels at writing intriguing protagonists into realistic legal situations, but he often drops the ball when it comes to villains. The Rainmaker isn’t just changing the book, but rather specifically changing it so that Drummond becomes as interesting as his rival. Even if the USA series did little else right, Leo’s already proving to be the show’s strongest asset.
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