Who plays Jules in Netflix's Black Rabbit? Explained

In the pulsing heart of New York City’s nightlife, Black Rabbit unveils a world where power is currency and secrets are spilled like top-shelf whiskey. This eight-episode Netflix thriller, released on September 18, 2025, is the creation of Zach Baylin, Oscar-nominated for King Richard, and his collaborator Kate Susman. 

The series follows Jake Friedken (Jude Law), a charismatic restaurateur whose elite nightclub, Black Rabbit, is a magnet for Manhattan’s elite. But when his estranged brother Vince (Jason Bateman) stumbles back into his life, dragging gambling debts and dangerous loan sharks, Jake’s empire begins to fracture. At the centre of this neon-lit chaos is Jules Zablonski, a cunning artist played with chilling precision by John Ales, whose Emmy-buzzed role in Euphoria primed him to embody this predator in a tailored suit.

 Ales’ Jules is no mere villain- he’s the shadow cast by privilege, his charm a weapon that cuts deep. The plot, a taut blend of The Bear’s intensity and noir grit, unravels through a brutal incident involving bartender Anna (Abbey Lee) and a VIP patron, exposing the moral rot beneath the club’s glamour. Baylin and Susman, fresh off their 2024 film The Order, craft a story of brotherhood, betrayal, and reckoning that grips like a vice.

 Jules Zablonski in Netflix’s Black Rabbit: The predator in the penthouse

Jules Zablonski isn’t just a face in the Black Rabbit’s VIP lounge; he’s its darkest pulse. A celebrated artist with a penthouse overlooking Central Park, Jules moves through Jake’s club with the ease of a man who owns every room he enters. His polished exterior, bespoke suits, and sharp wit mask a serial predator whose assaults are buried by hush money and complicit fixers.

When he drugs and assaults Anna (Abbey Lee) in a backroom, the act shatters the illusion of the club as a “family.” Jules is no cartoonish villain; Baylin and Susman write him as a mirror to the elite’s excesses, his entitlement a quiet poison. His fixer, Campbell (Morgan Spector), offers Anna half a million to erase the CCTV evidence, forcing Jake to confront his own role in enabling such power. 

Jules' arc acts as the series' moral fulcrum - the audience feels able to exhale as he goes down, being taken out at the dawn of the day. Even in the wake of his arrest, Jules persists, an embodiment of the systems that protect men like him from the consequences of their actions.

The writers continue to accentuate this direct link through specific details, such as the abstract, red and black, smeared paintings that evoke the violence Jules metes out. Or the casual jabs throughout conversations with Jake, suggesting a shared history that gives the betrayal even more impact when Jules moves unethically. Jules doesn't just serve as a representation of a character; he is a marker of critique on a society where money can buy redemption.

John Ales shines in Netflix’s Black Rabbit

John Ales, 56, brings Jules to life with a performance that’s equal parts silk and steel. From being a corrupt politician in Painkiller (2023) or a sleazy lawyer in The Nutty Professor (1996),  Ales has built a career on complex villains. For Black Rabbit, he immersed himself in NYC’s art world, shadowing gallerists and collectors to capture Jules’ urbane menace.

“It’s about the mask slipping just enough.”

Ales told Variety after the premiere, describing how he balanced charm with cruelty. His preparation shows: Jules’ micro-expressions, a smirk, a fleeting glance, betray his intent long before his actions do.

On television, he has made appearances in programs like Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll (2015–2016 and Bosch (2017–2021). In the theater world, Ales, a Juilliard-trained stage actor, has also been seen in Broadway productions, such as A View from the Bridge. His abilities to portray nuanced characters who often blur the line between right and wrong make Ales a tremendous candidate for the role of the predatory Jules in Black Rabbit.

Off-screen, Ales is a grounded mentor and family man, a stark contrast to Jules’ venom. In a cast anchored by Law’s brooding intensity and Bateman’s wired charisma, Ales steals scenes with quiet menace, his performance earning early Emmy buzz. 

Black Rabbit streams exclusively on Netflix, all eight episodes available for a dive into NYC’s neon noir.

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