The Wire (2002–2008)

Baltimore drug scene, seen through the eyes of drug dealers, and law enforcement.

Creator:

David Simon

Stars:

Dominic West, Lance Reddick, Sonja Sohn

Nominated for 2 Primetime Emmys. Another 14 wins & 42 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Dominic West	...	Det. James 'Jimmy' McNulty / ... (60 episodes, 2002-2008)
John Doman	...	Dep. Comm. for Operations William A. Rawls / ... (60 episodes, 2002-2008)
Deirdre Lovejoy	...	Asst. State's Atty. Rhonda Pearlman (60 episodes, 2002-2008)
Wendell Pierce	...	Det. William 'Bunk' Moreland (60 episodes, 2002-2008)
Lance Reddick	...	Lt. Cedric Daniels / ... (60 episodes, 2002-2008)
Sonja Sohn	...	Det. Shakima 'Kima' Greggs (60 episodes, 2002-2008)
Seth Gilliam	...	Sgt. Ellis Carver / ... (60 episodes, 2002-2008)
Domenick Lombardozzi	...	Det. Thomas 'Herc' Hauk / ... (60 episodes, 2002-2008)
Clarke Peters	...	Det. Lester Freamon (59 episodes, 2002-2008)
Andre Royo	...	Reginald 'Bubbles' Cousins (52 episodes, 2002-2008)
Michael Kenneth Williams	...	Omar Little (51 episodes, 2002-2008)
Jim True-Frost	...	Det. Roland 'Prez' Pryzbylewski / ... (50 episodes, 2002-2008)
Frankie Faison	...	Acting Commissioner Ervin H. Burrell / ... (47 episodes, 2002-2008)
Corey Parker Robinson	...	Det. Leander Sydnor (45 episodes, 2002-2008)
Delaney Williams	...	Sgt. Jay Landsman (45 episodes, 2002-2008)
J.D. Williams	...	Preston 'Bodie' Broadus (42 episodes, 2002-2006)
Wood Harris	...	Avon Barksdale (38 episodes, 2002-2008)
Idris Elba	...	Russell 'Stringer' Bell (37 episodes, 2002-2004)
Aidan Gillen	...	Councilman Thomas 'Tommy' Carcetti / ... (35 episodes, 2004-2008)
Jamie Hector	...	Marlo Stanfield (32 episodes, 2004-2008)
Gbenga Akinnagbe	...	Chris Partlow / ... (30 episodes, 2002-2008)
Robert Wisdom	...	Howard 'Bunny' Colvin / ... (27 episodes, 2003-2008)
Anwan Glover	...	Slim Charles (27 episodes, 2004-2008)
Felicia Pearson	...	Felicia 'Snoop' Pearson (27 episodes, 2004-2008)
Chad L. Coleman	...	Dennis 'Cutty' Wise (26 episodes, 2004-2008)
Tray Chaney	...	Malik 'Poot' Carr (26 episodes, 2002-2008)
Michael Kostroff	...	Maurice 'Maury' Levy (25 episodes, 2002-2008)
Isiah Whitlock Jr.	...	State Sen. R. Clayton 'Clay' Davis (25 episodes, 2002-2008)
Robert F. Chew	...	Joseph 'Proposition Joe' Stewart (25 episodes, 2002-2008)
Michael Salconi	...	Off. Michael 'Sanny' Santangelo / ... (25 episodes, 2002-2008)

Storyline

Set in Baltimore, this show centers around the city's inner-city drug scene. It starts as mid-level drug dealer, D'Angelo Barksdale beats a murder rap. After a conversation with a judge, Det. James McNulty has been assigned to lead a joint homicide and narcotics team, in order to bring down drug kingpin Avon Barksdale. Avon Barksdale, accompanied by his right-hand man Stringer Bell, enforcer Wee-Bey and many lieutenants (including his own nephew, D'Angelo Barksdale), has to deal with law enforcement, informants in his own camp, and competition with a local rival, Omar, who's been robbing Barksdale's dealers and reselling the drugs. The supervisor of the investigation, Lt. Cedric Daniels, has to deal with his own problems, such as a corrupt bureaucracy, some of his detectives beating suspects, hard-headed but determined Det. McNulty, and a blackmailing deputy. The show depicts the lives of every part of the drug "food chain", from junkies to dealers, and from cops to politicians.

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Plot Keywords:

drugs | police department politics | 2000s | wiretapping | surveillance | 

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Taglines:

Listen carefully (first season)

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

18A

Details

Official Sites:

HBO [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Greek Mandarin Spanish

Release Date:

2 June 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Escuta

Filming Locations:

Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Blown Deadline Productions, Home Box Office (HBO)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

55 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital (seasons 3-5) Dolby (Dolby Surround) (seasons 1-2)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

4:3

Did You Know?

Trivia

The writers/producers briefly considered doing a sixth season about the influx of Latinos into Baltimore. But none of them knew enough about Baltimore's Latino population to write about it so the idea was dropped.

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Goofs

Throughout the series some Officers are shown on both the day, evening and Night shifts in a short period of time, some even within the same day. The Baltimore police department rarely gives shift changes until the next fiscal year.

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Quotes

Lt. Dennis Mello: [repeated line at end of role call] Don't get captured!

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Crazy Credits

The opening song is the same, but every season a new version is used with different artists performing in different genres (blues, soul, etc.).

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Connections

Referenced in Saturday Night Live: Kerry Washington/Eminem (2013)

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Soundtracks

Way Down in the Hole
Written and Performed by Tom Waits
(season 2)

User Reviews

Like a great novel

Season 3 of The Wire ended like a great novel, in a series of great novels, about crime, politics, "po-lice" and personalities in the City of Baltimore. The Wire truly has no equivalent on American TV, more akin to something like the British miniseries Traffik, or Robert Altman's Short Cuts, but really in a class by itself. The show also doesn't fetch the ratings of HBO's other blockbuster series, like The Sopranos or Deadwood, but so far the network has stood behind what is indisputably a creative / artistic success. Viewers accustomed to having a Tony Soprano or an Al Swearingen to latch onto may be daunted by The Wire's 2-dozen or so "main" characters, all given equal importance within multiple story lines. The concurrent tales all buoy one another, and as the season draws to a close, they begin to merge and compliment each other in unexpected ways. No detail is too small to not be done with great care, and no significant threads are left to hang, which also speaks to the brilliance of the writers.

The Wire is no less than a dramatic triumph, and I can't wait for a new season.