‘The Wire’: Where Are They Now?

Dominic West (Det. James ‘Jimmy’ McNulty)

After flirting with feature films in projects such as John Carter, Centurion, and Pride (currently out in theaters), Dominic West has found his way back to premium cable in the steamy Showtime drama The Affair. Originally from the U.K., West had returned home previously to star in the BBC’s acclaimed, but short-lived, show The Hour, about a start up news magazine program in 1950s Great Britain. Prior to his Showtime role, he very nearly had a dalliance with another HBO show—he was apparently offered a role in Game of Thrones, before ultimately turning it down.
Chad L. Coleman (Dennis ‘Cutty’ Wise)

Coleman returned to the DMV area for his current role as zombie-apocalypse survivor and hammer-wielder Tyreese on AMC’s The Walking Dead. After guest-starring on shows such as It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, The Good Wife, Criminal Minds, Coleman will also tackle Law and Order: SVU in an upcoming episode loosely based on the Ray Rice scandal.
Idris Elba (Russell ‘Stringer’ Bell)

When he’s not posting videos of sweaty, shirtless workouts or explaining mysterious bulges, Elba is hanging out with superheroes, both fictional (Thor and Thor 2: The Dark World) and real—his turn as the South African president in Nelson Mandela: A Long Walk to Freedom garnered him a Golden Globe nomination. While he has lit up the silver screen in such blockbusters as Pacific Rim,Prometheus, and American Gangster, he has not neglected his TV roots. After recurring roles on The Office and The Big C, Elba took on an Emmy-nominated leading role in the BBC’s dark crime thriller Luther.
Callie Thorne (Elena McNulty)

The former Mrs. McNulty went on to play complicated exes of more difficult men in her role as Sheila Keefe on Rescue Me and Pam Mahone on Prison Break. Eventually, she found her own starring vehicle in USA network’s Necessary Roughness. The show ran for 3 seasons before it was eventually cancelled in 2013.
Pablo Schreiber (Nick Sobotka)

The actor formerly known as Nick Sobotka (left) has gone by a cheekier name these past few years, playing creepy and predatory prison guard Pornstache in Netflix’s Orange is the New Black. While his OINTB character may be (SPOILER) spending time behind bars himself, Schreiber has had no shortage of roles, guest-starring as the psychopathic William Lewis on Law & Order: SVU and as a series regular on HBO’s upcoming series, The Brink. Also, did we mention that his brother is Liev Schreiber?
Aidan Gillen (Councilman Thomas ‘Tommy’ Carcetti)

From Councilman Carcetti to wannabe king, Aidan Gillen has moved from modern day Baltimore to medieval Westeros where he’s played Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish in HBO’s Game of Thrones for the past four seasons. The Irish actor has appeared in a few TV series back in his homeland and will be seen in the sequel to this fall’s The Maze Runner.
Michael B. Jordan (Wallace)

Young Wallace’s (far right) murder did anything but kill Michael B. Jordan’s career as he’s gone on to star in Jason Katims-verse shows Friday Night Lights and Parenthood before making his way to the big screen. Bursting onto the film scene with cult-hit Chronicle and receiving critical praise for his turn as the doomed Michael Grant in last year’s Fruitvale Station, Jordan is set to launch into the superhero echelons with his upcoming role as the Human Torch in the Fantastic Four reboot.
Lance Reddick (Lt. Cedric Daniels)

In the last season of The Wire, Lance Reddick had a unique problem—he had roles in two critically acclaimed shows. After a previous commitment to the The Wire caused him to lose the role of Mr. Eko, Reddick joined the Lost cast in season 4 for a recurring role as Matthew Abaddon. However, it was in another cult TV show, the sci-fi drama Fringe, where Reddick once again made his mark. Since then, Reddick has had recurring roles in shows such as American Horror Story: Coven and The Blacklist and was a regular on the short-lived CBS show Intelligence with Lost co-star Josh Holloway.
Lawrence Gilliard Jr. (D’Angelo Barksdale)

What’s worse: the decrepit crime-filled streets of Baltimore or a zombie-filled dystopia? Both are a ruthless struggle for survival and Larry Gilliard Jr. (right) has seen both as a part of the current cast of AMC’s The Walking Dead where he plays one-legged Bob Stookey. He has also guest-starred on Friday Night Lights, Army Wives, and Southland.
Amy Ryan (Off. Beatrice ‘Beadie’ Russell)

After getting her (semi-)happily ever after with recovering McNulty, the actress behind Beadie Russell, became one half of another tumultuous TV pairing on The Office where she played Holly Flax, human resource representative and eventual wife to Steve Carrell’s Michael Scott. The Oscar-nominated actress (for 2007’s Gone Baby Gone) has waffled between film and TV in the years since the finale, with roles in HBO’s In Treatment as well as in films such as Win-Win, The Changeling, and currently, the buzzy Birdman, alongside Michael Keaton and Edward Norton.
Wendell Pierce (Det. William ‘Bunk’ Moreland)

Trading Baltimore for the Big Easy, Pierce followed David Simon to his HBO drama Treme where he was a regular for all four seasons. However, even Treme’s eventual cancelation couldn’t hold him back as he has gone on to have significant recurring roles on Suits and Ray Donovan and was a regular on the now-defunct Michael J. Fox Show. This year he’s set to star in CBS’ upcoming reboot of The Odd Couple alongside Matthew Perry and Thomas Lennon and will step into the shoes of Reverend Hosea Williams in Ava Duvernay’s Selma.
Seth Gilliam (Sgt. Ellis Carver)

Joining his Wire co-stars Larry Gilliam Jr. and Chad L. Coleman, Gilliam (right) currently stars as Father Gabriel Stakes on AMC’s bonafide hit The Walking Dead. When he’s not dealing with flesh-eating zombies, he’s trying to handle flesh-baring teenage werewolves on Teen Wolf where he plays main character Scott McCall’s (Tyler Posey) employer and father-figure (and Druid).
Andre Royo (Reginald ‘Bubbles’ Cousins)

After his turn as the tragic and triumphant former heroin addict Bubbles on the The Wire, Royo has done everything from a TV miniseries (In Security) to roles in small, but critically praised, indie films (Spectacular Now), and historical blockbusters (2012’s Red Tails about the Tuskegee Airmen in WWII). He has not forgotten TV, however, and has had recurring guest roles on Heroes and Fringe (with Wire co-star Lance Reddick), and played himself on an episode of Bob’s Burgers.
Anwan Glover (Slim Charles)

In the end, it wasn’t Baltimore that was Slim Charles’ biggest problem, but DC, as Glover (left) made headlines in 2013 for an incident where he was stabbed at a DC nightclub. On screen, Glover was part of the cast of the Oscar-winning 12 Years a Slave.
Clarke Peters (Det. Lester Freamon)

Staying in the David Simon family, Peters (left) was one of the many Wire cast members to jump aboard the cast of Simon’s New Orleans-set drama Treme where he played the Mardi Gras Indian “Big Chief” Albert Lambreaux. Making his mark in complex TV dramas, Peters has guest starred in arcs on Damages, Person of Interest, and currently stars in the inaugural WeTV scripted drama The Divide. In 2011, Peters took his turn on stage in a lauded Sheffield production of Othello where he played the title role. His foe in the role of Iago? None other than Wire co-star Dominic West.
Deirdre Lovejoy (Asst. State’s Atty. Rhonda Pearlman)

Lovejoy has made her way from putting criminals behind bars to helping the criminals behind bars as prison therapist Chris Maser in Netflix’s hit series Orange Is the New Black. In the years since The Wire, Lovejoy has made short, impressionable turns on series such as Girls, Private Practice, and Bones, where she played the hated Heather Taffet aka The Gravedigger. However, one of her biggest successes has come on stage—she co-starred with Tom Hanks in Nora Ephron’s play Lucky Guy on Broadway in 2013.
Delaney Williams (Sgt. Jay Landsman)

After 5 seasons as police Sergeant Jay Landsman, Delaney Williams stayed in the HBO family, co-starring in the HBO movie You Don’t Know Jack, alongside Al Pacino, and guest-starring in an episode of Veep skewering the government shutdown. Currently, he is recurring as John Buchanan on Law & Order: SVU.
Domenick Lombardozzi (Det. Thomas ‘Herc’ Hauk)

Like his Wire co-star Michael K. Williams, Domenick Lombardozzi (left) has similarly made the jump from the dangerous streets of Baltimore to the treacherous boardwalk of Atlantic City in Boardwalk Empire where he played the brother, Ralph, to notorious mob kingpin Al Capone. Prior to that turn, he’s guest starred on HBO’s Entourage and Bored to Death as well as series such as Chicago Fire, Breakout Kings, and 24. Recently, he also starred co-starred in directorial debut of Mad Men’s John Slattery, God’s Pocket.
Robert Wisdom (Howard ‘Bunny’ Colvin)

Bunny Colvin has been promoted from Major to Commander in another crime-addled city as Wisdom currently plays police Commander Ron Perry in NBC’s Chicago PD. The role comes after a season long stint as mayoral candidate (and Deacon’s AA sponsor) Coleman Carlisle on Nashville as well as roles in Supernatural, Burn Notice, and Prison Break.
Felicia Pearson (Felicia ‘Snoop’ Pearson)

One of the most vicious of all The Wire’s enforcers, Felicia Pearson (right), sharing a name with her character, made headlines in 2011 for her own problems with the law. After pleading guilty to distributing drugs following an arrest in a marijuana bust, the Snoop actress has started to stage a bit of a comeback—she’ll be seen in Spike Lee’s upcoming Da Sweet Blood of Jesus.
Frankie Faison (Acting Commissioner Ervin H. Burrell)

From Acting Commissioner to former felon, the former Ervin Burrell (left) has taken up a grayer role with the law enforcement in his current series Banshee, where he plays bartender-with-a-violent-past Sugar Bates. After a quick turn on Grey’s Anatomy as Bailey’s father and a short stint on the recently cancelled Unforgettable, he’s set to return to network TV a bit this fall as he reprises his role as Pastor Jeremiah Easton on The Good Wife.
Gbenga Akinnagbe (Chris Partlow)

After roles in films such as The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3, Edge of Darkness, and Lottery Ticket, the D.C. born Akinnagbe has firmly found his success in the TV arena with prominent roles in Nurse Jackie, Damages, and Graceland. He’s also appeared onThe Good Wife as Father Isaiah Easton, the son of fellow Wire actor Frankie Faison’s character. Most recently, he played Erik Ritter in 24: Live Another Day.
Isaiah Whitlock Jr. (State Senator R. Clayton ‘Clay’ Davis)

State Senator Clay Davis had bigger sights in his vision since the end of The Wire—namely, running for President on HBO’s Veep where he plays Secretary of Defense George Maddox. Along with guest appearances on Law & Order: SVU, Louie, and Smash, Whitlock was charged with investigating former Wire pal Clarke Peters in Spike Lee’s drama Red Hook Summer.
Jamie Hector (Marlo Stanfield)

The ruthless and ambitious former head of the Stanfield Organization (left) always used other people’s fears as a source of power—literally, in the case of his Heroes character Benjamin “Knox” Washington, an escaped criminal and evolved human turned Pinehearst recruit. He’s since guested on shows such as The Strain, Person of Interest, and, most recently, Starz’s Omari Hardwick-led drama Power.
J.D. Williams (Preston ‘Bodie’ Broadus)

From one criminal organization to another, J.D. Williams (far left) has jumped from being an associate of Avon Barksdale to one of The Good Wife’s Lemond Bishop, where he plays “legitimate” businessman Dexter Roja. The part comes after brief turns on Black Box, The Following, and Blue Bloods.
Jim True-Frost (Det. Roland ‘Prez’ Pryzbylewski)

Another actor who made the pilgrimage from The Wire to David Simon’s Treme, True-Frost played James Woodrow in 9 episodes of the post-Katrina New Orleans drama. He was a series regular on CBS’ limited event series Hostages and made his mark in guest starring roles in shows such as Wire alum favorite The Good Wife, Elementary, and Blue Bloods. Most recently, he was seen as infamous prohibition agent Eliot Ness on Boardwalk Empire.
John Doman (Dep. Comm. For Operations William A. Rawls)

In the first episode of Showtime’s The Affair, Wire fans were pleased to see a quick reunion between Deputy Commissioner Rawls and McNulty. The Affair is not the only place Doman can be seen this fall—he also plays mob boss Carmine Falcone on Fox’s Gotham. Previously, he had recurring guest spots on shows such as Person of Interest, Rizzoli and Isles, and Damages. As for being heard this fall, he also narrates videos for the Philadelphia Eagles.
Method Man (Calvin ‘Cheese’ Wagstaff)

Though he has guest starred in The Good Wife and CSI and co-starred in the film Red Tails, the Wu-Tang Clan member and actor (left) behind traitorous Cheese Wagstaff has focused more on his hip hop career of late, participating in a Wu Tang comeback show in Brooklyn this past September. However, he hasn’t left the screen completely behind as he’s co-starring in both Adam Sandler’s upcoming The Cobbler and the Judd Apatow/Amy Schumer vehicle Trainwreck in the coming year.
Michael K. Williams (Omar Little)

From the roaming the crime-ridden streets of Baltimore to starring in Gap ads with Angelica Huston, Michael K. Williams is saying anything other than “sheeeiit.” After guest spots on shows like Community and Law & Order, Williams has traded one crime empire for another, albeit a historical one, with his role as Chalky White in HBO’s Boardwalk Empire. On the film side, Williams recently starred in the Robocop remake and was part of the ensemble cast that won an Oscar with 12 Years a Slave. The big screen will see much more of him in the near future as he’ll be seen in The Gambler and Paul Thomas Anderson’s buzzy Inherent Vice.
Michael Kostroff (Maurice ‘Maury’ Levy)

Baltimore’s most unscrupulous lawyer has made the TV rounds, appearing on such shows as Sonny with a Chance, Damages, and Law & Order: SVU. Recently, Kostroff become embroiled in some other legal drama as part of The Good Wife’s NSA storyline.
Paul Ben-Victor (Spiros ‘Vondas’ Vondopoulos)

Spiros Vondas may have only made it to second-in-command for The Greek, but Paul Ben-Victor was able to rise to the top of another money-making operation as Warner Brothers studio head Alan Gray in HBO’s Entourage. He went on to co-star in Everybody Hates Chris and Are We There Yet? and played WitSec Southwest Chief Inspector Stan McQueen on 5 seasons of In Plain Sight. Most recently, he was seen on El Rey Network’s Matador.
Reg E. Cathey (Norman Wilson)

Prior to joining Wire co-star Clarke Peters on The Divide, Reg. E. Cathey was serving up sumptuous BBQ to Frank Underwood on House of Cards. From memorable arcs on shows like Law & Order: SVU, Grimm, and Banshee (with another Wire alum, Frankie Faison) to co-starring in films such as Arbitrage, Cathey has had no trouble finding work since the hit show ended. Currently, he’s co-starring with Bill Murray in St. Vincent and will play Dr. Franklin Storm (Michael B. Jordan’s father!) in the upcoming Fantastic Four reboot.
Sonja Sohn (Det. Shakima ‘Kima’ Greggs)

The actress behind self-destructive, openly gay Detective Kim Greggs has stayed tied to the Baltimore community through as CEO and founder of the at-risk youth outreach program reWIRED for Change. Though dedicated to social causes, Sohn quietly made her way back to TV with recurring and regular roles on Burn Notice and Body of Proof, respectively. Currently, she’s a recurring player on season 2 of CW’s The Originals as the powerful witch Lenore.
Chris Bauer (Frank Sobotka)

From the docks to the bayou, Chris Bauer (right) spent 7 seasons as Detective Andy Bellefleur on HBO’s soapy supernatural series True Blood, which had its series finale this past August. After bouncing his way around TV shows from Parks and Recreation to Elementary to The Divide (with fellow alums Clarke Peters and Reg. E. Cathey), Bauer had found himself starring in LA Center Theatre Group’s production of David Mamet’s Race and will be seen in the George Clooney-starrer Tomorrowland next year.
Tristan Wilds (Michael Lee)

There is probably no actor that had a greater amount of series whiplash than Wilds as he traded drugs and mean streets for, well, drugs and mean girls in the CW’s 90210 reboot. On the big screen, he starred in WWII narrative Red Tails and the adaptation of Sue Monk Kidd’s The Secret Life of Bees.
Wood Harris (Avon Barksdale)

The actor best known for his turn as the ruthless drug kingpin Avon Barksdale, and as Julius “Strong Side” Campbell in the football epic Remember the Titans, has made his way through a few different mediums in the years since The Wire. The classically trained Harris has popped up in TV shows such as Justified, Hawaii Five-0, and Southland and co-starred in the 2012 Broadway revival of A Streetcar Named Desire alongside Blair Underwood. He’ll soon be seen alongside Paul Rudd in Ant Man.

Dominic West (Det. James ‘Jimmy’ McNulty)

Chad L. Coleman (Dennis ‘Cutty’ Wise)

Idris Elba (Russell ‘Stringer’ Bell)

Callie Thorne (Elena McNulty)

Pablo Schreiber (Nick Sobotka)

Aidan Gillen (Councilman Thomas ‘Tommy’ Carcetti)

Michael B. Jordan (Wallace)

Lance Reddick (Lt. Cedric Daniels)

Lawrence Gilliard Jr. (D’Angelo Barksdale)

Amy Ryan (Off. Beatrice ‘Beadie’ Russell)

Wendell Pierce (Det. William ‘Bunk’ Moreland)

Seth Gilliam (Sgt. Ellis Carver)

Andre Royo (Reginald ‘Bubbles’ Cousins)

Anwan Glover (Slim Charles)

Clarke Peters (Det. Lester Freamon)

Deirdre Lovejoy (Asst. State’s Atty. Rhonda Pearlman)

Delaney Williams (Sgt. Jay Landsman)

Domenick Lombardozzi (Det. Thomas ‘Herc’ Hauk)

Robert Wisdom (Howard ‘Bunny’ Colvin)

Felicia Pearson (Felicia ‘Snoop’ Pearson)

Frankie Faison (Acting Commissioner Ervin H. Burrell)

Gbenga Akinnagbe (Chris Partlow)

Isaiah Whitlock Jr. (State Senator R. Clayton ‘Clay’ Davis)

Jamie Hector (Marlo Stanfield)

J.D. Williams (Preston ‘Bodie’ Broadus)

Jim True-Frost (Det. Roland ‘Prez’ Pryzbylewski)

John Doman (Dep. Comm. For Operations William A. Rawls)

Method Man (Calvin ‘Cheese’ Wagstaff)

Michael K. Williams (Omar Little)

Michael Kostroff (Maurice ‘Maury’ Levy)

Paul Ben-Victor (Spiros ‘Vondas’ Vondopoulos)

Reg E. Cathey (Norman Wilson)

Sonja Sohn (Det. Shakima ‘Kima’ Greggs)

Chris Bauer (Frank Sobotka)

Tristan Wilds (Michael Lee)

Wood Harris (Avon Barksdale)