‘Reasonable Doubt’: Emayatzy Corinealdi Breaks Down Jax’s Complicated Dynamic With Eric

Reasonable Doubt is putting Jax Stewart (Emayatzy Corinealdi) through the wringer in Season 4 as she continues her recovery post-shooting, and Episode 5 delves deeper into the repercussions of that as she becomes reliant on pain pills. Warning: Spoilers for Reasonable Doubt Season 4 Episode 5 ahead!

As Jax continues to work with her client, Eric Cropper (Durrell “Tank” Babbs), the episode, “Who Gon Stop Me,” uncovers their history as well as her downward spiral as she attempts to keep control by losing it. “I think what most excited me was the opportunity to look even further behind the veil, look even even deeper into the cracks behind the veneer of Jax Stewart,” Corinealdi tells TV Insider about tackling the storyline.

Over the years, fans have seen lawyer Jax face a bevy of challenges, but being shot by Monica (Brandee Evans) in Season 3’s finale and nearly dying as she was attempting to get her own firm up off the ground has proven to be the biggest yet. “She runs at such a high level in her life, she takes pride in that,” Corinealdi adds.

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And so, seeing Jax deny her problems, lash out at family and colleagues, and go so far as to risk her reputation and job by getting pills from Eric’s dealer is a sign of some serious trouble. As fans see in the final moments of the episode, Jax’s addiction leads her to doze off in the tub, nearly drowning herself, but that doesn’t stop her from licking a pill out of a sink when she drops her last fix amid court sessions.

“How is she going to claw her way back to her top or is there going to be a new top?” Corinealdi questions. That’s for fans to find out as we await further exploration of Jax’s story.

As for Eric’s knowledge of Jax’s pill acquisition, he addresses that with her in his car. He promises to have her back, but we’re not so convinced, and Corinealdi admits, “It makes things very tricky. The dynamic of the relationship between Eric and Jax has been one that she should not be entertaining it again, and Corey could pick up on that and Jax probably knows that.”

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'Reasonable Doubt' First Look: See Corey Visit Jax in the Hospital

Corey (Morris Chestnut) returns to Los Angeles to help Jax’s firm amid her recovery and is the first to flag that Eric isn’t the best client, despite his high profile and Jax’s 14-year history with the music mogul. “In true Jax fashion, she feels like I can handle it, I can handle him. And there does come a point where maybe he’s handling her, you know, she’s being played and that’s hard,” Corinealdi teases.

How will this latest development in Jax’s story play out? Corinealdi offers a closer glimpse in the full video above, as she discusses Jax and Lewis’s (McKinley Freeman) relationship, the new threats she’s tackling, and much more.

Reasonable Doubt, Season 4, Tuesdays, Hulu