Diksha Sundriyal
Netflix’s ‘The Good Lawyer’ (originally titled ‘Un Bon Avocat’) follows a turbulent week in the life of Leonard Landry. His troubles begin long before that week as he drowns himself in drugs while trying to tackle his challenging cases. His problems come to a head when he tries to represent two clients at different trials at the same time while on cocaine. When he is caught, he has one chance to save himself from getting disbarred. The desperation to get his reputation back leads him on an even more dangerous journey. Directed by Tristan Séguéla, the legal drama film hits home with a realistic portrayal of the challenges and struggles of a highly demanding profession. SPOILERS AHEAD.
The Good Lawyer is a Fictional Story That Explores Questions About Human Psychology
‘The Good Lawyer’ is a fictional story written by Simon Jacquet, Marcia Romano, and Tristan Séguéla. The trio did not reference any real-life lawyer or a particular case of international importance concerning a major multinational corporation. The core idea of the story was to present a tense thriller with a tight one-week deadline for the main character. In an interview with Fred Film Radio, Séguéla explained that they wanted to explore the psychology of a complex character who walks a treacherous moral line, particularly owing to his profession. The fictional Leonard Landry doesn’t think twice before taking on a client and removes himself from the thought of judging his clients’ actions, no matter how abhorrent they might be.
What happens when he has to represent himself in a case and finally confront his own moral ambiguity and the extent of damage it inflicts on others? The screenplay was designed to progress at an accelerated pace, leaving the characters and the audience little room to breathe or be distracted. In building Landry’s character, the writers looked to media reports that told the stories of defense attorneys who began to lose themselves to the pressure and moral quandaries of the job, and ended up becoming the defendants rather than representing them. The writing trio was intrigued by the idea of tracing the downfall of such a character, which led them to develop the story of ‘The Good Lawyer.’
While the film critiques the cost of working such a high-intensity job, it also balances that critique by introducing characters like Landry’s new intern, Noe. So, while the main character embodies the destructive nature of the job, Noe serves as a counterbalance, representing a more hopeful and noble stance. What stirs things up even further in the movie is the introduction of a company called the Varenne Group, which is accused of supporting a terrorist group in Congo and is found responsible for a brutal massacre. As Landry becomes involved in this case, he is pushed to the limits of his moral boundaries, to the point where even the audience starts to wonder whether he has any redeeming qualities.
The Good Lawyer Borrows Elements from Reality to Ask Tough Questions About Morality
When sketching the Varenne plotline, the writers of ‘The Good Lawyer’ did not reference any real-life corporation facing similar allegations. However, over the years, several cases have been brought to light when megacorporations have been accused of either indirectly helping terrorist groups in African countries, like Congo, or turning a blind eye to what was happening in front of them for the sake of their profits. According to The Guardian‘s June 2026 report, companies like Amazon, Sony and Ericsson were alleged to have unknowingly sourced minerals from the mines occupied by the militia group known for causing a lot of violence and bloodshed in Congo. In the same vein, several companies and groups have faced sanctions for associating with the groups believed to have incited violence.
The film takes inspiration from these and other real-life events to show how companies driven solely by profit don’t have any problem looking the other way and letting bad people do terrible things to others. As Landry becomes involved in this case, on top of several other things, we find him tracing a gray line, which gets thinner by the minute, forcing him to choose one side and stick with it. This moral struggle lends a realistic touch to the story, prompting the audience to stand in the protagonist’s shoes and wonder what they would have done. This is why ‘The Good Lawyer’ feels so real and high-stakes despite being an entirely fictional tale of a made-up character.
Read More: Where Was Netflix’s The Good Lawyer Filmed?
