Gangs of London (TV series) explained

Genre:
Country:United Kingdom
Language:English
Num Series:2
Num Episodes:17
List Episodes:
  1. Episodes
Producer:Hugh Warren
Runtime:53–93 minutes
Last Aired:present

Gangs of London is a British action thriller crime television series created by Gareth Evans and Matt Flannery.[1] Based on the 2006 video game,[2] serving as the fourth installment in The Getaway franchise created by Brendan McNamara and Katie Ellwood,[3] Gangs of London follows the struggles between rival gangs and other criminal organisations in present-day London.

The first series premiered on 23 April 2020 on Sky Atlantic. In June 2020, a second series was announced, with AMC to take over US broadcast rights and co-produce, and Corin Hardy to take over as showrunner.[4] [5] The second series premiered on 20 October 2022 in the UK and Germany and premiered on 17 November 2022 in the US.[6] In November 2022, the series was renewed for a third season.[7] In December 2022, a graphic novel titled A Gangs of London Story: Ghosts, set inbetween the first and second series, was released.

The series has received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised its performances, narrative and action sequences, though some criticism was aimed at its excessive violence.

Premise

London, one of the world's most dynamic and multicultural cities, is being torn apart by the power struggles of the international gangs following the assassination of the head of London's most powerful crime family.

Plot

For 20 years, Finn Wallace (Colm Meaney) was the most powerful criminal in London. Billions of pounds flowed through his organisation each year. But now he's dead, and nobody knows who ordered him killed. With rivals everywhere, it's up to the impulsive Sean Wallace (Joe Cole), with the help of the Dumani family headed by Ed Dumani (Lucian Msamati), to take his father's place. If the situation wasn't already dangerous enough, Sean's assumption of power causes ripples in the world of international crime within the streets of London, which consists of the Albanian mafia, Kurdish PKK, the Pakistani Drug Cartel, Welsh travellers and various other criminal elements. In the middle of this is newcomer Elliot Carter / Finch (Sope Dirisu), an undercover policeman who has infiltrated the Wallace Organisation.

Cast and characters

Main

ActorCharacterSeries
123
Main characters
Joe ColeSean Wallacecolspan="3"
Colm MeaneyFinn Wallacecolspan="2"
Lucian MsamatiEdward "Ed" Dumanicolspan="3"
Sope DirisuElliot Carter / Finchcolspan="3"
Michelle FairleyMarian Wallacecolspan="3"
Brian VernelBilly Wallacecolspan="3"
Valene KaneJacqueline Robinsoncolspan="1"
Paapa EssieduAlexander "Alex" Dumanicolspan="1"
Pippa Bennett-WarnerShannon Dumanicolspan="3"
Asif Raza MirAsif Afridicolspan="3"
Orli ShukaLuan Dushajcolspan="3"
Narges RashidiLalecolspan="3"
Mark Lewis JonesKinney Edwardscolspan="2"
Ray PanthakiJevan Kapadiacolspan="2"
Jing LusiVictoria "Vicky" Chungcolspan="2"
Waleed ZuaiterKobacolspan="1"
Jahz ArmandoSabacolspan="2"
Fady ElsayedFazcolspan="2"
Salem KaliBasem Soudanicolspan="1"
Aymen HamdouchiHakimcolspan="1"
Andrew KojiTBAcolspan="1"
Richard DormerCornelius Quinncolspan="1"
T'Nia MillerTBAcolspan="1"
Phil DanielsTBAcolspan="1"
Ruth SheenTBA

Recurring

Guest

Episodes

Series 2 (2022)

Production

In an interview with Sky News in April 2020, Gareth Evans stated that while initially hired with his creative partner Matt Flannery to "make a film franchise" out of The Getaway video game series (in particular the third game, 2006 action-adventure Gangs of London, developed by London Studio), inspired by Evans' The Raid duology of action crime films, he had instead felt like "if we were going to do a film franchise, we would have two-thirds of our running time focused purely on our central characters, and then only a third left to explore the side characters that populate that world", and so on deciding that "we wouldn't do justice to the myriad of different diverse cultures and ethnicities that make up the city [I then] pitched it back saying this should be a TV show because you can afford to go off and detour for 10 to 15 minutes and spend time with other characters, and learn about them in more detail."[9] A short film adaptation of the game series had previously been in development in 2005, when The Getaway co-creator Katie Ellwood had first partnered with Amber Templemore-Finlayson, before the project entered development hell (although the duo would continue to collaborate as "Bert and Bertie").[10] [11]

During filming, production visited St Clere Estate in Kent to stage a Traveller site and Dartford to film a speed boat scene near Queen Elizabeth II Bridge. A driving scene was also featured on Pilgrim's Way.[12] Gareth Evans also directed most of the action sequences for the first season.[13] The show was confirmed for a second series premiering in 2022, with Corin Hardy taking over as showrunner. In July 2021, production on the second series had been halted for 10 days following a crew member testing positive for COVID-19.[14] Filming for the second series began on 31 May 2021 and wrapped in February 2022. The second series premiered on 20 October 2022.[6] In November 2022, the series was renewed for a third season, with production started on October 2023.[15] In November 2023, Andrew Koji, Richard Dormer and T'Nia Miller were announced to have joined the cast for the third series.[16]

Release

The first season of the series was co-produced with the American pay network Cinemax which was expected to air the programme alongside Sky Atlantic. However, following an announcement in January 2020 by parent company WarnerMedia that Cinemax would no longer be developing original programming, its producers began negotiating to move the series to another U.S. outlet, with Cinemax's blessing.[17] AMC took over distribution,[18] with the first series premiering on October 1, 2020 on AMC+.

Reception

Audience viewership

The series became Sky Atlantic's second-biggest original drama launch of all time, with a 7-day cumulative audience of 2.23 million viewers for the opening episode.[19]

Critical response

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds an approval rating of 91% based on 33 reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "A modern crime family masterpiece, Gangs of London builds its own empire atop tried and true mafia turf -- complete with engaging drama, exhilarating action, and fine performances all around"[20] GQ said it is "a strong early contender to be the best show of the summer."[21]

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the second season holds an approval rating of 81% based on 16 reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "Gangs of London's second season can sometimes border on a lot of sound and fury signifying nothing, but fans of the series' crunchy action and swaggering attitude ought to remain satisfied."[22]

Book

In December 2022, a Gangs of London graphic novel, set between the first and second series and titled A Gangs of London Story: Ghosts, written by Corin Hardy and Rowan Athale and illustrated by Ferenc Nothof, was released digitally to the news aggregator Den of Geek, ahead of a physical release.[23]

Notes and References

  1. Ritman . Alex . Cinemax/Sky Series 'Gangs of London' Rounds Out Cast . . 15 April 2019 . 19 March 2019.
  2. Rossatron . Unleashing Havoc: The Journey to Gareth Evans' New Film . en . February 16, 2020 . January 20, 2023 . Youtube.
  3. Web site: Beckwith . Michael . April 24, 2020 . Gangs of London is actually based on a video game – here's what it was like . . April 24, 2020.
  4. Web site: AMC Boards Sky Drama Gangs of London After HBO's Cinemax Pulls Out; Thriller Renewed for Season 2 . Peter . White . . 24 June 2020 . 24 June 2020.
  5. Web site: Sky Original Gangs of London returns for a second series. 2021-03-15. www.skygroup.sky. en-gb.
  6. 1573311320551817216. skytv. Who will take London? #GangsOfLondon returns, 20 October..
  7. Web site: Gangs of London renewed for season 3 and fans are already buzzing. Metro. Stella. Akinwumi. 30 November 2022. 4 December 2022.
  8. Web site: Andrew Koji, Richard Dormer and T'Nia Miller join the third series of the explosive BAFTA-winning Sky and AMC+ Original series Gangs of London . 2024-01-12 . www.skygroup.sky . en-gb.
  9. Web site: Peplow . Gemma . April 23, 2020 . Gangs of London: 'We spent time with undercover police – I have to be careful' . . April 23, 2020.
  10. Web site: Morfoot. Addie. January 4, 2019. 10 Directors to Watch: Bert and Bertie Combine Forces on Underdog Comedy Troop Zero. live. July 10, 2021. Variety. https://web.archive.org/web/20190104195814/https://variety.com/2019/film/features/10-directors-to-watch-bert-and-bertie-troop-zero-1203099229/ . 4 January 2019 .
  11. Web site: Bert and Bertie. Bert and Bertie. January 17, 2020. Bert&Bertie's Great Girl Adventure. live. July 14, 2021. Talkhouse. https://web.archive.org/web/20200929194253/https://www.talkhouse.com/bertberties-great-girl-adventure/ . 29 September 2020 .
  12. Web site: Kent Film Office – Gangs of London (2020) article. Kent Film Office. 7 May 2020. 12 August 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200812093758/https://kentfilmoffice.co.uk/filmed-in-kent/2020/04/gangs-of-london-2019/. dead.
  13. Web site: Jordan. Richard. April 20, 2020. The Best Gangs of London Fight Scenes and the Action Movies That Inspired Them. December 22, 2023. .
  14. Web site: Gangs of London: Sky/AMC Series Pauses Production After Crew Member Tests Positive For Covid. Deadline. Kanter. Jake. 23 July 2021. 23 July 2021.
  15. Web site: 'Gangs of London' Season 3 Starts Production With Director Kim Hong Sun and Writer Peter McKenna (EXCLUSIVE). Variety. Ellise. Shafer. 17 October 2023. 2 January 2024.
  16. Web site: 'Gangs Of London' Season 3 Cast Revealed. Deadline Hollywood. Max. Goldbart. 29 November 2023. 2 January 2024.
  17. Web site: How the Launch of HBO Max Sidelined Cinemax. John. Jurgensen. The Wall Street Journal. 22 June 2020. 22 June 2020. A high-profile crime series promised for later this year, "Gangs of London," is departing the network for another buyer, according to people familiar with the negotiations. [...] In January at a press event introducing HBO Max, WarnerMedia executives said there would be no new original programming on Cinemax. [...] Within weeks, "Gangs of London" producers went looking (with Cinemax's blessing) for a new U.S. home for the thriller..
  18. Web site: AMC Boards Gangs of London After Cinemax Drops Out. The Hollywood Reporter. 24 June 2020. Porter. Rick. 24 June 2020.
  19. Web site: Gangs of London is Sky's most-binged box set of 2020 already. 2020-05-14. Metro.co.uk. en. 2020-05-25.
  20. Web site: Gangs of London: Season 1 . . 2020-12-31.
  21. Web site: Barrie. Thomas. Review: Gangs of London is like The Godfather, but in Spitalfields. GQ. 24 April 2020. 24 April 2020.
  22. Web site: Gangs of London: Season 2 . . 2023-12-18.
  23. Web site: Fletcher . Rosie . December 15, 2022 . Gangs of London Comic Book Tells the Story of Elliot's Year. Read it Exclusively Here. . . December 15, 2022.

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