“By Whatever Means Necessary”

SEPTEMBER 29

Bumpy Johnson (Forest Whitaker) returns from Alcatraz after an eleven year absence to reunite with his family and reclaim his Harlem territory from Italian mob boss Vincent “Chin” Gigante (Vincent D’Onofrio). He finds an unlikely ally in his old friend Malcolm X.

GODFATHER OF HARLEM is inspired by the true story of infamous crime boss Bumpy Johnson (Forest Whitaker), who in the early 1960s returned from eleven years in prison to find the neighborhood he once ruled in shambles. With the streets controlled by the Italian mob, Bumpy must take on the Genovese crime family to regain control. During the brutal battle, he forms an alliance with radical preacher Malcolm X (Nigél Thatch) – catching Malcolm’s political rise in the crosshairs of social upheaval and a mob war that threatens to tear the city apart. GODFATHER OF HARLEM is a collision of the criminal underworld and the civil rights movement during one of the most tumultuous times in American history. 

In addition to Oscar winner Forest Whitaker (The Last King of Scotland) as star and executive producer and Nigél Thatch (Selma, American Dreams), cast members include Vincent D’Onofrio (Law and Order: Criminal Intent, Daredevil), lfenesh Hadera (She’s Gotta Have It, Baywatch), Paul Sorvino (Goodfellas), Chazz Palminteri (A Bronx Tale, Modern Family), Giancarlo Esposito (Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul), Lucy Fry (Bright, Vampire Academy), Kelvin Harrison Jr. (It Comes at Night, Mudbound) and Antoinette Crowe-Legacy.