“A man must have a code.”
It might not be the most iconic line from The Wire, yet since every episode opened with a quote from a character, it only felt appropriate to start an article about the series with a quote. Especially when we’re here to get reacquainted with its iconic cast.
It’s one of the best original shows ever, and also an extremely rewatchable and bingeable show that beckons viewers to get fully immersed in its storyline all over again. This speaks volumes about The Wire, as achieving such a feat is not easy. Not every great show is totally rewatchable (just listing one of the top of my head: Lost).
Throughout its five seasons, The Wire takes on reality, and the blurred lines, borders, and boundaries of a real city ecosystem, one steeped in corruption, lack of resources, and the black market (the show takes on several black markets).
It’s not here to cheer you up, make you feel better about the real world, or to give you some insight and guide you into having an epiphany about terrible things that happen out of our control. No, it’s here to tell a story and to tell it with devotion to character, consistency, and ultimately, the city of Baltimore. This makes sense because the brain behind the series, respected and reputable journalist David Simon, was out to tell true stories steeped in the devastating reality that is America (and Baltimore as a microcosm) via its exceptionally well-played characters.
So when it recently popped up on HBO Max for a rewatch, it got us thinking – where is the cast of The Wire now?
While we would love to talk about each and every actor on the show, we will only be including the main characters here because talking about every single cast member would be a Herculean task. I mean, just check out this list!
Michael K. Williams — Omar
We had to start with Williams. Tragically, the man who played Omar had his own life cut short last year due to a drug overdose that was linked to fentanyl-laced heroin.
After (and even before) being a part of The Wire, Williams starred or guest starred in a few other police/crime-related shows, such as Law & Order, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, CSI, and CSI: NY. But most of all, aside from his performance The Wire, he is majorly remembered for his brilliant take in Boardwalk Empire.
Williams made several movies every year throughout the 2010s, and can be seen in his final roles in two films that were released in 2022: Breaking and Surrounded.
Dominic West — Jimmy McNulty
If you’ve only seen West in The Wire, then it may come as a shock that he’s actually British. The accent he puts on and keeps up throughout the show is very impressive. More recently you can see him back in that realm as Guy Dexter in Downton Abbey: A New Era, as well as Prince Charles in the fifth and sixth seasons (or series, if you wanna British it up) of The Crown. It seems with recent real-life events, his portrayal as Prince Charles — who is now King Charles — will take on a bigger meaning and draw even more eyes to his portrayal.
Not bad for West as The Wire and The Crown are considered some of the best shows in the world of television.
Sonja Sohn — Shakima “Kima” Greggs
Sohn also has been in a few crime and cop dramas since The Wire, including Burn Notice, Law & Order: SVU, The Chi, and Cold Case. Her most recent projects include her recurring role as Dr. Gabrielle Burnham in Star Trek: Discovery and Laverne Johnson in the still ongoing The Chi. She also appeared in a few episodes of Utopia in 2020 as well as an episode of Interrogation.
Sohn, whose ability to connect with everyone in every scene still stands out, provided much levity and grace to The Wire at times when the rest of the (largely male) crew was busy painting the storyline their brashness and bravado.
Lance Reddick — Cedric Daniels
Reddick is iconic in all his roles. From the hotel manager in the John Wick series to his other dramatic roles in films such as Fringe (still criminally underrated), Bosch, and Lost.
Last year he took part in the entertaining Godzilla vs. Kong and he is all set to be in the fourth John Wick film next year. As for television, he has a recurring main role in Resident Evil, which was released this year, as well as the animated Paradise PD. On top of that, he voices characters for a show called Farzar. You can catch his legendary voice in several video games, including all the Destiny 2 iterations and this year’s Horizon Forbidden West.
Reddick also appeared in the highest number of episodes of The Wire — 58 — with West and Sohn behind him at 56.
Wendell Pierce — Bunk Moreland
Pierce and West were so iconic together, and their on-screen chemistry just oozed out of the screen in every scene — especially the ones where the two are conversing over some shots and talking about life at the bar.
Pierce also popped up in dramas similar to The Wire such as Ray Donovan, Chicago P.D., and Numb3rs, just like many of his other co-stars on this list (not that we’re complaining). He’s also in the recently announced cast for the upcoming Jack Ryan season three, which will see the actor playing the role of CIA agent James Greer.
He also recently voiced two characters for The Watch and Eureka! respectively and appeared in two films — Don’t Hang Up and King of the South.
John Doman — William Rawls
Always at odds with McNulty, Doman is still recognizable for his staunch portrayal of a major player in the top ranks of the criminal justice system. You might also recognize him from 2020’s The Trial of the Chicago 7 wherein he played Attorney General John N. Mitchell or from his three-episode take as Dr. Jonah Vogelbaum in The Boys. He even got a mini-reunion of sorts with one of The Wire alum – he starred alongside Dominic West in tv series The Affair.
He’s set to appear in the upcoming miniseries called The Big Cigar, which follows his multiple episode stints in Birdgirl and City on a Hill in 2021.
Clarke Peters — Lester Freamon
Another actor who deftly played an American cop, but is actually British! Peters’ Freamon leaves so much beneath the surface in every action and word he brings to the screen that it makes his character one of the truly more dynamic and engaging ones in The Wire, even if he’s sometimes given criminally little screen time.
Recently he had the memorable performance as Otis in Da 5 Bloods and will appear in the due out this year Whitney Houston biopic I Wanna Dance with Somebody, in which he plays Houston’s father. On the other side, he has a role in The Man Who Fell to Earth and has been steadily putting out a movie, show, or both basically steadily the past two decades. He also appears in the original John Wick.
Jim True-Frost — Roland “Prez” Pryzbylewski
Pretty impressive that his character goes from someone you openly loathe and root against to actually worming his way to someone with a rehabbed personality as the show goes on. True-Frost worked for a bit after The Wire but had a big break between intensive roles and films, as he appeared in the 2019 film Saint Frances after a nine-year break. He continues to take on episodic roles for TV, though, with stints on Yellowstone and Law & Order: SVU this year.
Wood Harris — Avon Barksdale
Still known best for his role as the kingpin of the drug ring on The Wire, Harris has also put in some fine dramatic work with great roles in the Creed movie series — reprising his role in Creed III as well — along with Blade Runner 2049 and the recurring role in Empire.
Most recently, you saw and maybe didn’t even recognize him as Spencer Haywood in the controversial Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty.
Idris Elba — Russell “Stringer” Bell
Is Elba the most famous or recognizable member of The Wire these days? Most likely he is.
And get this — he’s the third British actor on our list already! While people are waiting around for him to become James Bond, Elba has kept on expanding his repertoire in both stage theater, TV, and film (along with his DJ and music career).
He appears in seven movies over the past two years, including Beast, Three Thousand Years of Longing, and The Suicide Squad. Back in 2020 he starred in In the Long Run, which he created, and he’s been on screen as himself in Idris Elba Meets Paul McCartney, Idris Elba’s Fight School, and narrating Coronavirus, Explained.
Michael B. Jordan — Wallace
The star of the aforementioned Creed movie trilogy, Jordan has really come on as an iconic leading man, especially after the depths he showed in Black Panther and Creed. He’s continued to do TV work, too, with roles in both ongoing series Gen:Lock and Raising Dion, both of which he’s executive produced on as well. This year he’s the narrator for America the Beautiful, and last year he appeared in What If…? and Love, Death & Robots.
Dierdre Lovejoy — Rhonda Pearlman
Pearlman had to represent a lot in her roles across the series, and she did it all with a metronome-like resilience that you could feel under every scene she carried.
Since The Wire, Lovejoy has been busy since in both film and TV. She still stars as Cynthia Panabaker in the ongoing The Blacklist, and last appeared in a movie in 2017.
Andre Royo — Reginald “Bubbles/Bubs” Cousins
The man who played Bubs was in several episodes of Truth Be Told and With Love last year, and held a big role in Empire until its conclusion in 2019. This year he is in the film To Leslie, as well.
Domenick Lombardozzi — Thomas “Herc” Hauk
You may have caught Lombardozzi in 2020’s The King of Staten Island or the prior year’s The Irishman, fitting right in. He was also in last year’s Boogie, and has two films in post-production currently, Reptile and Armageddon Time. He was also in Billions, We Own This City, and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, with a main role in the upcoming Tulsa King.
Larry Gilliard Jr. — D’Angelo Barksdale
He may have appeared in fewer episodes than a lot of the others on this list, but there’s no way you can think of The Wire without Gilliard Jr.
Recently he appeared in That Damn Michael Che and Power Book III: Raising Kanan, and was in the movie One Night in Miami, along with Reddick. He’s set to be in the upcoming film Pep, a boxing sports biopic.
Now that it’s in your head again, go on over to HBO Max and dig in, whether for the first time or the fifth.