‘We Own This City: ‘The Wire’ Alums Thaddeus Street, Tray Chaney & Chris Clanton Among 5 Cast In HBO Limited Series

Denise Petski
·2 min read

EXCLUSIVE: HBO is rounding out cast for We Own This City, its upcoming limited series from The Wire executive producers David Simon and George Pelecanos. Joining in recurring roles are The Wire alums Thaddeus Street, Tray Chaney and Chris Clanton. Additionally, Jermaine Crawford and Nathan E. Corbett are set to guest star.

The six-hour limited series, to be directed and executive produced by Reinaldo Marcus Green, is based on The Baltimore Sun reporter Justin Fenton’s book We Own This City: A True Story of Crime, Cops and Corruption. The series will chronicle the rise and fall of the Baltimore Police Department’s Gun Trace Task Force and the corruption and moral collapse that befell an American city in which the policies of drug prohibition and mass arrest were championed at the expense of actual police work.

More from Deadline

Street will play James Otis. A Baltimore resident and HVAC repairman, Otis was scraping by to support a large family until he was robbed and locked up by GTTF Detective Daniel Hersl.

Chaney will portray Gordon Hawk, a recent addition to the Harford County Narcotics Task Force who was working alongside Cpl. David McDougall on the early drug-overdose casework that set the GTTF probe in motion.

Jermaine Crawford, Nathan E. Corbett - Credit: WarnerMedia
Jermaine Crawford, Nathan E. Corbett - Credit: WarnerMedia

WarnerMedia

Clanton is Brian Hairston, a Baltimore cop who isn’t afraid to speak up when he sees police misconduct or unsound strategies.

2020-21 HBO Pilots & Series Orders

Crawford will guest as Jaquan Dixon, a young BPD patrolman who’s still trying to do the job well, even as the police department standards begin to fail.

Corbett is Tariq Touré, a West Baltimore author and community activist who helps Nicole Steele better understand the issues facing Baltimoreans under BPD policies as she works to finalize the Consent Decree.

Simon and Pelecanos write the series with The Wire scribes Ed Burns and Bill Zorzi. Simon, Pelecanos and Burns also executive produce with Kary Antholis, Nina K. Noble and Green, who also directs. Zorzi is writer and co-executive producer. Dwight Watkins also serves as writer.

Street is repped by Cultivate Entertainment Partners and APA. Chaney is repped by the J Pervis Talent Agency. Crawford is repped by Luber Roklin Entertainment. Corbett is repped by Linda Townsend Management.

Best of Deadline

Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.