Focus Features has released new images and a clip from Jason Bateman's directorial debut, Bad Words.  Bateman stars as Guy Trilby, a 40-year-old who exploits a loophole to compete in a national spelling bee competition.  Guy has a larger motive than just winning, but his mean-spirited nature allows him to berate and humiliate kids along the way.  In the clip, Guy meets 10-year-old Chaitanya (Rohan Chand), an innocent, naïve competitor, and their odd relationship provides the heart of the picture, or at least what little heart it has.  As I said in my review from TIFF, Bad Words is delightfully mean-spirited, and this clip is fairly tame compared to other moments in the picture.

Hit the jump to check out the clip and new images, and click here for Steve's interview with Bateman.  The film also stars Kathryn Hahn, Allison Janney, Ben Falcone, and Philip Baker Hall.  Bad Words will play at the 2014 SXSW Film Festival, and open in theaters on March 21st.

Here's the official synopsis for Bad Words:

Bateman stars as Guy Trilby, a 40-year old who finds a loophole in the rules of the National Quill Spelling Bee and decides to cause trouble by hijacking the competition.  Contest officials, outraged parents, and overly ambitious 8th graders are no match for Guy, as he ruthlessly crushes their dreams of victory and fame.

As a reporter attempts to discover his true motivation, Guy finds himself forging an unlikely alliance with a competitor: awkward 10-year old Chaitanya (Rohan Chand of ‘Homeland’), who is completely unfazed by Guy’s take-no-prisoners approach to life.