‘Tulsa King’ Fans Need to Watch Jon Bernthal’s Underrated Gangster Drama

Jon Bernthal has starred in a slew of big and small-screen hits throughout his decorated career, with the fan-favorite actor having landed his breakthrough performance in the juggernaut zombie apocalypse sensation The Walking Dead in 2010 before going on to further dominate Hollywood. After his successful stint on the acclaimed survival series, Bernthal once again collaborated with former TWD developer and showrunner Frank Darabont for the 2013 neo-noir crime drama Mob City, which takes place in 1947 Los Angeles and chronicles the escalating struggle for power between the L.A.P.D. and dangerous gangsters.

Bernthal appears as a determined and weary detective who finds himself caught up in the mounting violence and chaos taking over the streets of the city, starring alongside famous faces like Milo Ventimiglia, Neal McDonough, and Edward Burns in the captivating crime series. Mob City was disappointingly canceled after just one season but nonetheless features immersive visuals, exciting storylines, and complex characters and is a must-watch for both fans of Bernthal and the spellbinding noir genre itself.

Mob City

Release Date

December 4, 2013

Network

TNT

Frank Darabont’s Spellbinding Neo-Noir Knockout

Based on the John Buntin book, L.A. Noir, featuring thrilling real-life accounts of the many notorious gangsters and determined L.A.P.D. officers who engaged in a power struggle during 1940s Los Angeles, the engrossing neo-noir crime drama Mob City features a loaded ensemble cast led by Jon Bernthal, Milo Ventimiglia, and Neal McDonough and chronicles the ongoing conflict between the two opposing sides. The Punisher alum memorably appears as Detective Joe Teague, a former Marine and World War II veteran who finds himself swept up in the escalating violence between his fellow lawman and ruthless mobsters.

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Teague’s L.A.P.D. Police Chief William Parker (Donough) makes it his mission to clean up the streets of the city and eliminate the ever-looming presence of the mob, going head-to-head with notorious gangster Bugsy Siegel (Edward Burns) in his quest to crack down on crime. The weary detective attempts to navigate the brutal tug-of-war as he realizes just how corrupt the police force truly is and how far Siegel’s reach expands, forcing him to face his own skeletons in his closet and shortcomings while on his own pursuit of justice.

‘Mob City’ Is a Criminally Underrated Crime Drama Gone Too Soon

Mob City excitingly reunited Jon Bernthal with Frank Darabont, who had notably served as a showrunner and helped develop the zombie apocalypse juggernaut The Walking Dead, with the gritty and immersive crime drama also featuring his former co-star Jeffrey DeMunn from the hit horror show. Bernthal had previously skyrocketed to prominence when he appeared as Shane Walsh in the first two seasons of the fan-favorite series from 2010 to 2012, and Darabont himself had played a huge part in the actor being cast in TWD, which effectively kicked off Bernthal’s stellar Hollywood career.

Consisting of six spellbinding episodes, Mob City features the glitz and glamour of Tinseltown as a backdrop while brilliantly capturing the moodiness and mystery of the noir genre, as the mafia and L.A.P.D. explosively clash in a constant fight for dominance and power. Despite the series attracting solid reviews by critics for its enigmatic characters, sleek and stylish visuals, and hypnotic storytelling, Mob City was canceled after just one season due to low viewership. It was nominated for Best Miniseries or Television Film at the Satellite Awards and nabbed both a 66% Rotten Tomatoes score and 80% Popcornmeter from fans, with The Hollywood Reporter writing:

“Mob City is a big, bloody, flashy, violent and pulpy exercise that slowly builds into some solid entertainment and it’s a fine, identity-bending effort on the part of TNT.”

TNT chief Michael Wright would later defend the crime series in 2014 despite its disappointing cancellation, declaring in an interview that “Mob City was a chance. It didn’t draw the audience, but I’d do it again tomorrow.” Bernthal didn’t stay down long after appearing in the short-lived drama, as just a few years later, he began starring as Frank Castle A.K.A. The Punisher in both Marvel’s Daredevil and the spin-off series The Punisher, a role that has since become one of his most celebrated and one that he is set to reprise in the 2025 revival Daredevil: Born Again. He also won an Emmy Award for his impressive performance in the critically acclaimed dramedy The Bear.

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Bernthal has a slew of dynamic projects in the works on both the big and small screen, as he is set to portray Detective Jack Harper opposite Tessa Thompson in the Netflix mystery series His & Hers, in addition to movies like the action thriller The Accountant 2, spy flick The Amateur, and The Odyssey. The latter epic will be directed by Christopher Nolan and touts a stacked cast including Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, and Zendaya and will be the revered filmmaker’s most expensive project, with a reported budget of $250 million. Buy Mob City on Prime Video.

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