15 great TV series about the mafia and gangsters

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

"The Sopranos", "Peaky Blinders", "Narcos" and other legendary stories.

1. Wiretapping

• USA, 2002-2008.
• Thriller, drama, crime.
• Duration: 5 seasons.
• IMDb: 9, 3.

A police team from Baltimore is trying to prove the involvement of the local mafia in the distribution of drugs. Detective James McNulty organizes wiretapping of the main suspects. But the hero is faced with bureaucracy and corruption in the police itself.

2. The Sopranos

• USA, 1999-2007.
• Drama, crime.
• Duration: 6 seasons.
• IMDb: 9, 2.

The series tells about the life of the head of the mafia clan, Tony Sopranos. He successfully solves issues related to the criminal business, but in his personal life, everything turns out to be much more complicated.

One of the main advantages of The Sopranos is the successful combination of criminal plots with the traditional drama about the personal relationships of the heroes. The project successfully lasted for six seasons. And soon the authors promise to release a full-length prequel to the story.

3. Peaky Blinders

• UK, 2013 - present.
• Historical drama, crime.
• Duration: 5 seasons.
• IMDb: 8, 8.

The series is based on real events that took place in England in the 1920s. In the English city of Birmingham, against the background of general poverty, one after another small gangs are emerging. And the most famous of them is Peaky Blinders.

The main role in this series is played by Cillian Murphy. But there are also enough other stars. For example, Tom Hardy appears, and in the fifth season Anya Taylor-Joy and Brian Gleeson will join the cast.

4. Narco

• USA, Columbia, 2015-2017.
• Drama, action, crime.
• Duration: 3 seasons.
• IMDb: 8, 8.

The series is set in the Colombian city of Medellin in the eighties. In the center of the plot is the legendary drug lord Pablo Escobar, who is called one of the most influential criminals of the 20th century. The agents of the special services are hunting for him.

The third season shows the events that took place after Escobar's death. And then Netflix launched a new project "Narco: Mexico". Formally, this is a spin-off of the first series, but in fact, they are practically unrelated to each other.

5. Gomorrah

• Italy, 2014 - present.
• Drama, crime.
• Duration: 4 seasons.
• IMDb: 8, 7.

The main character of the series is Ciro Di Marzio, nicknamed the Immortal. He works for the Savastano clan in Naples, suppressing attempts by competitors to sell drugs in the controlled territory. And then he has to teach the young "godfather."

6. Boardwalk Empire

• USA, 2010–2014.
• Drama, crime.
• Duration: 5 seasons.
• IMDb: 8, 6.

The action takes place in the United States just before the passage of Prohibition. Enoch Thompson works as a treasurer, but at night he trades in a criminal business. The hero decides to seize the opportunity and make quick money on underground alcohol. But he is not the only one who makes such plans.

The first episode was directed and executive produced by Martin Scorsese. The authors managed to very realistically recreate the surroundings of America in the 1920s.

7. Crime story

• USA, 1986-1988.
• Detective drama.
• Duration: 2 seasons.
• IMDb: 8, 4.

Chicago 60s. A new brutal gang is operating in the city, led by a young gangster Ray Luka. He is hunted by Lieutenant Mike Torello - the head of a special police unit created to fight the most dangerous criminal clans in the city.

Now Dennis Farina is remembered for his roles in The Big Jackpot, Get Shorty and other famous films. But he became famous precisely because of the role of Mike Torello in "Crime Story". Interestingly, before becoming an actor, he actually served in the police.

8. Power in the night city

• USA, 2014–2019.
• Drama, crime.
• Duration: 6 seasons.
• IMDb: 8, 2.

The main character of the series is James St. Patrick, nicknamed the Ghost. He owns a popular nightclub in New York, and at the same time develops an underground drug trafficking network. But it turns out to be very difficult to combine the two businesses.

9. The Donnelly brothers

• USA, 2007.
• Drama, crime.
• Duration: 1 season.
• IMDb: 8, 1.

The series tells about four brothers, immigrants from Ireland. They live in New York and are forced to contact the local mafia due to financial problems. As a result, one of the Donnelly brothers ends up in jail, while the rest are trying with all their might to escape from the criminal business.

10. Criminal Australia

• Australia 2008 - present.
• Detective, crime.
• Duration: 6 seasons.
• IMDb: 8, 1.

This series covers almost the entire history of the development of crime in Australia. The first season is about a gang war in the late nineties in Melbourne. And then it reveals its background and events that happened later - up to the beginning of the XXI century.

11. Subura

• Italy, 2017 - present.
• Action, crime.
• Duration: 2 seasons
• IMDb: 8, 0.

In one of the oldest and at the same time the most dangerous districts of Rome, called Subura, drug trafficking, prostitution are flourishing, and at night there are often bloody showdowns of various criminal groups. Three young ambitious guys try to survive in a fierce struggle for territory and earn money and fame.

12. Lillehammer

• USA, Norway, 2012–2014.
• Drama, comedy, crime.
• Duration: 3 seasons.
• IMDb: 8, 0.

The middle-aged American criminal Tagliano testified against his boss. Under the witness protection program, he is sent to the Norwegian city of Lillehammer. The hero tries to start a new life, but the past still catches up with him.

Authors from Norway have added a lot of humor to the traditional crime plot. The series quickly became a hit in its home country, and then it was bought by the streaming giant Netflix.

13. The birth of the mafia

• USA, 2015-2016.
• Crime, drama, history.
• Duration: 2 seasons.
• IMDb: 7, 9.

The documentary-fiction series tells about real events that took place at the beginning of the 20th century. The plot of the first season is dedicated to Salvatore Lucania. As a child, he dropped out of school and, as a teenager, became a criminal, selling drugs. Years later, Lucania became the boss of one of the most famous mafia gangs in New York.

In the second season, the action moves to Chicago and Al Capone and his gang are in the center of the plot.

14. McMafia

• UK, USA, 2018 - present.
• Drama, crime.
• Duration: 1 season.
• IMDb: 7, 7.

Alex Goodman, the son of Russian criminals who emigrated to the United States, is trying to distance himself from family activities and live a normal life. But he has to infiltrate a criminal clan in order to destroy a well-functioning cocaine business.

15. Magic city

• USA, 2012-2013.
• Drama.
• Duration: 2 seasons.
• IMDb: 7, 6.

Miami mid-20th century. Ike Evans is the owner of the glamorous Miramar Hotel in Miami. To support his business, he has to make a deal with Mafia boss Ben Diamond. This brings a lot of benefits, but also creates huge problems.