# Justine Bateman

Justine Bateman (born February 19, 1966) is an American filmmaker, author and former actress. Her acting work included Family Ties, Satisfaction, Men Behaving Badly, The TV Set, Desperate Housewives, and Californication. Her feature film directorial debut, Violet, starring Olivia Munn, Luke Bracey, and Justin Theroux, premiered at the 2021 SXSW Film Festival. Bateman also wrote, directed and produced the film short Five Minutes, which premiered at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival. She regularly makes guest appearances on USA television including Fox News and Today and is the author of the books Fame: The Hijacking of Reality (2018) and Face: One Square Foot of Skin (2021).

## Early life

Bateman was born to Victoria Elizabeth, a former flight attendant for Pan Am who was originally from Shrewsbury in the United Kingdom, and Kent Bateman. She is the older sister of actor Jason Bateman.
Bateman attended Taft High School in Woodland Hills, California. However, Bateman could not attend college at the time due to her contractual obligations with Family Ties. Bateman stated that she was informed by the series' line producer Carol Himes, "You're under contract to Paramount Studios."

## Career
### Acting

Bateman's most prominent acting role began when she was a teenager, playing the role of superficial Mallory Keaton on the television sitcom Family Ties in 1982; she continued the role throughout the show's run which ended in 1989. She hosted an episode of Saturday Night Live during its 13th season in 1988.
In the 1996–97 NBC American version of the British TV comedy Men Behaving Badly, featuring Rob Schneider and Ron Eldard, she starred as Sarah, Eldard's character's girlfriend. Bateman returned to TV with the 2003 Showtime mini-series Out of Order, alongside Eric Stoltz, Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy.
In the third-season Arrested Development episode "Family Ties," which was broadcast in February 2006, her character is initially believed to be Michael Bluth's sister, but she turns out to be a prostitute taken advantage of by his father, and pimped by his brother. Michael Bluth was played by Bateman's brother Jason.
Recurring roles included Men in Trees, Still Standing, and Desperate Housewives.
In 1988, Bateman starred in the lead role in the motion picture Satisfaction. The film, about an all-girl musical band, also featured Julia Roberts, Liam Neeson, and Britta Phillips. Bateman starred as the lead vocalist and also performed the vocals on the soundtrack. Other films include The Night We Never Met, with Matthew Broderick, and The TV Set, with David Duchovny and Sigourney Weaver.
Bateman has acted in several web series. She acted in John August's Remnants, Illeana Douglas' IKEA-sponsored Easy to Assemble (for which in 2010 Bateman was among the winners of the Streamy Award for Best Ensemble Cast and was nominated for a Streamy Award for Best Actress in a Comedy Web-Series), and Anthony Zuiker's digi-novel series Level 26: Dark Prophecy, in which she plays a tarot card reader.
Bateman's theater experience includes Arthur Miller's The Crucible (Roundabout Theater), David Mamet's Speed the Plow (Williamstown Theater Fest), and Frank Wedekind's Lulu (Berkeley Rep).

### Writer

Bateman wrote her feature film directorial debut, Violet, premiered at the 2021 SXSW Film Festival. Bateman also wrote her short film directorial debut, Five Minutes. It premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2017. She made her first script sale to Disney's Wizards of Waverly Place. She also co-wrote the adaptation of Lisi Harrison's teenage book series The Clique for a Warner Bros. internet series. Bateman's first book, Fame: The Hijacking of Reality, was published in 2018 by Akashic Books. Her second book, Face: One Square Foot of Skin, was also published by Akashic Books in 2021.

### Producer

Bateman co-produced and co-presented with fashion maven Kelly Cutrone on their internet talk show Wake Up and Get Real (WUAGR). Described as an alternative to the television series The View, WUAGR was last broadcast in June 2011. She was also a producer on the internet series Easy to Assemble (which garnered more than 5.1 million views during its second season).
Bateman produced the film short, Z, Five Minutes (Toronto Film Festival 2017 premiere), and Push, and the feature film, Violet (SXSW 2021 Film Festival Premiere). She also produced the upcoming avant-garde feature films, LOOK and FEEL.
Her production company is Section 5.

### Director

Her feature film directorial debut, Violet, starring Olivia Munn, Justin Theroux, and Luke Bracey, premiered at the SXSW 2021 film festival. Her short film directorial debut, Five Minutes, was an official selection at various film festivals, including the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival and the 2018 Tribeca Film Festival. It was a winner in Amazon Prime's Festival Stars competition, and one of Vimeo's Short of the Week.
Her subsequent feature films, LOOK and FEEL, will premiere at the CREDO23 Film Festival in March 2025.

### Other work

During a hiatus from the entertainment business, Bateman established a clothing design company in 2000. She managed it until its closure in 2003. Justine Bateman Designs was known for one-of-a-kind hand knits. It sold to BendelsNY, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Fred Segal.
She served on the national board of directors of the Screen Actors Guild until July 2009, when she resigned just before the end of her initial three-year term.
Bateman is the founder of CREDO23, an "organics stamp" for films and series that assure the audience that no generative AI was used. Justine is also the founder and festival director of the CREDO23 Film Festival.

## Personal life

In 2001, Bateman married Mark Fluent, with whom she has two children. An outspoken supporter of net neutrality, she testified before the United States Senate Commerce Committee in support of it in 2008.
Bateman earned a degree in computer science and digital media management from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 2016. During the film industry strikes in 2023, Bateman was a vocal critic of the use of AI for human characters in productions, and has proposed a label designating that AI was not used for the actors.
Bateman is a licensed pilot of single-engine planes and a certified scuba diver.
Bateman has been an advocate for natural aging and has not had any cosmetic surgery.

### 2024 U.S. presidential election

In 2024, Bateman criticized The Hollywood Reporter for claiming she was a "well-known supporter of Donald Trump", a claim the publication removed five hours after publishing it. Bateman also chose to not to inform the media who she voted for in the 2024 presidential election.
Following Trump's win in the 2024 presidential election, Bateman declined to state whether she had voted for Trump. Though it was reported that she felt like she can breathe again in a new era after Trump's win and Bateman was quoted as saying that she feels like we're "going through the doorway into a new era", adding that she is "100% excited about it".

### Comments on the Southern California Fire

In 2025, Bateman called the behaviour of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle "repulsive" for showing up at a food bank during the January 2025 Southern California Fire in the Pacific Palisades, a section of Los Angeles. Bateman stated that they were not "politicians" and were only after a "photo op". Bateman called them "disaster tourists".

## Filmography

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1982–1989 | Family Ties | Mallory Keaton | 176 episodes Young Artist Award for Best Young Actress in a Comedy Series Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Series, Miniseries or Television Film Nominated - Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (1986 & 1987) Nominated - Young Artist Award for Best Young Actress in a Comedy Series |
| 1984 | It's Your Move | Debbie | Episode: "Pajama Party" |
| 1984 | Tales from the Darkside | Susan 'Pookie' Anderson | Episode: "Mookie and Pookie" |
| 1985 | ABC Afterschool Special | Sara White | Episode: "First the Egg" |
| 1985 | Right to Kill? | Deborah Jahnke | Television movie |
| 1985 | Family Ties Vacation | Mallory Keaton | Television movie |
| 1986 | Can You Feel Me Dancing? | Karin Nichols | Television movie |
| 1988 | Satisfaction | Jennie Lee | |
| 1988 | Mickey's 60th Birthday | Mallory Keaton | Television movie |
| 1990 | The Fatal Image | Megan Brennan | Television movie |
| 1990 | The Closer | Jessica Grant | |
| 1992 | Deadbolt | Marty Hiller | Television movie |
| 1992 | In the Eyes of a Stranger | Lynn Carlson | Television movie |
| 1992 | Primary Motive | Darcy Link | |
| 1992 | How Can I Tell If I'm Really In Love | Herself | Educational classroom video |
| 1993 | Beware of Dog | Linda Irving | |
| 1993 | The Night We Never Met | Janet Beehan | |
| 1994 | Terror in the Night | Robin Andrews | Television movie |
| 1994 | Another Woman | Lisa Temple | Television movie |
| 1995 | A Bucket of Blood | Carla | Television movie |
| 1996 | The Acting Thing | Unknown | Short film |
| 1996 | God's Lonely Man | Meradith | |
| 1996 | Kiss & Tell | Molly McMannis | |
| 1996 | Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman | Sarah/Zara | 4 episodes |
| 1996 | Men Behaving Badly | Sarah Stretten | 22 episodes |
| 1999 | Rugrats | Art Patron | Episode: "Opposites Attract"/"The Art Museum" |
| 1999 | Say You'll Be Mine | Chelsea | |
| 2002 | Highball | Sandy | |
| 2002 | Ozzy & Drix | Rota | Episode: "Gas of Doom" |
| 2003 | Out of Order | Annie | 6 episodes Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film |
| 2004 | Still Standing | Terry | 3 episodes |
| 2004 | Humor Me | Paula | Television movie |
| 2004 | The Hollywood Mom's Mystery | Lucy Freers | Television movie |
| 2005 | Trailer for a Remake of Gore Vidal's Caligula | Attia, Imperial Courtesan | Short film |
| 2006 | Arrested Development | Nellie Bluth | Episode: "Family Ties" |
| 2006 | The TV Set | Natalie Klein | |
| 2006 | To Have and to Hold | Meg | Television movie |
| 2006 | Men in Trees | Lynn Barstow | 10 episodes |
| 2007 | Hybrid | Andrea | Television movie |
| 2008, 2012 | Desperate Housewives | Ellie Leonard | 5 episodes |
| 2008, 2012 | Californication | Mrs. Patterson | 2 episodes |
| 2008, 2012 | Easy to Assemble | Justine Bateman | 12 episodes |
| 2009 | Psych | Victoria | Episode: "Tuesday the 17th" |
| 2009 | Celebrity Ghost Stories | Herself | Episode: "1.7" |
| 2010 | Private Practice | Sydney | Episode: "Short Cuts" |
| 2011 | Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior | Margaret | Episode: "See No Evil" |
| 2013 | Modern Family | Angela | Episode: "The Future Dunphys" |
| 2013 | Deep Dark Canyon | Cheryl Cavanaugh | |
| 2021 | Violet | | Director, writer, producer |