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Godfather of Harlem
2019 - 2025 8.0 (638 votes) 4 Seasons
Official Website
Genres
Drama Crime
Networks
Epix
MGM+
Created By
Paul Eckstein
Chris Brancato

Godfather of Harlem

Harlem is mine.

Overview

Loosely based on infamous crime boss Bumpy Johnson, who in the early 1960s returned from ten years in prison to find the neighborhood he once ruled in shambles. With the streets controlled by the Italian mob, Bumpy attempts to regain his piece of Harlem.

Key Crew

Top Cast

Forest Whitaker
Forest Whitaker

Ellsworth 'Bumpy' Johnson

Erik LaRay Harvey
Erik LaRay Harvey

Delbert C. 'Del' Chance

Ilfenesh Hadera
Ilfenesh Hadera

Mayme Johnson

Antoinette Crowe-Legacy
Antoinette Crowe-Legacy

Elise Johnson

Lucy Fry
Lucy Fry

Stella Gigante

Michael Raymond-James
Michael Raymond-James

Joe Colombo

Seasons

Season 1 poster
Season 1 (2019)

No overview available.

10 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: By Whatever Means Necessary
2019-09-29

After returning from Alcatraz, Bumpy Johnson seeks to regain control of Harlem. With the streets controlled by the Italian mob, Bumpy must take on the Genovese crime family, led by Vincent “Chin” Gigante.

Runtime: 61 min
Episode 2: The Nitty Gritty
2019-10-06

Realizing a consistent source of heroin is vital to reclaim Harlem, Bumpy engages in a fevered search to find a dope supply independent of the Italians. Chin engages the services of crooked cops in a plot to arrest Bumpy and send him back to jail.

Runtime: 56 min
Episode 3: Our Day Will Come
2019-10-13

Bumpy unexpectedly finds himself at Elise's side when her shoplifting arrest and subsequent abuse is the catalyst for a protest where conflicting interests cause tensions to rise.

Runtime: 55 min
Episode 4: I Am The Greatest
2019-10-20

Cassius Clay battles local boxing hero Doug Jones in the ring. Mayme insists Bumpy back Jones, an advocate for her Harlem Youth organization, but Malcolm urges Bumpy to back Clay. Meanwhile, Chin engages in a turf war for Harlem with Bonnano.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 5: It's All In the Game
2019-10-27

In an effort to break Bumpy's bank, Chin fixes a bet, as a result, Bumpy owes the winners more than he can cover. Police arrest Stella and Teddy for kissing. Elise looks toward the Nation of Islam in order to better herself.

Runtime: 51 min
Episode 6: Il Canto de Malavita
2019-11-03

Elijah Muhammed tours Malcolm X's mosque where he meets Elise and asks her to spy on Malcolm. Chin finds out Teddy is alive, leaving Ernie Nunzi to correct his mistake. Esther James sues Adam Clayton Powell Jr. for slander.

Runtime: 55 min
Episode 7: Masters of War
2019-11-10

Striking back at the Italians, Bumpy exploits Chin's dark past. Mayme and Elise put aside their differences and Bumpy sees his wife and children reunited before his war explodes.

Runtime: 56 min
Episode 8: How I Got Over
2019-11-17

Chin and Bonnano are at war in Harlem. Mayme asks Bumpy to create a will where Bumpy finds out he and Mayme never formally adopted Margaret. Malcolm X and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. go to D.C. for the March on Washington.

Runtime: 55 min
Episode 9: Rent Strike Blues
2019-11-24

Due to slum conditions in Harlem, Adam Clayton Powell Jr. leads a rent strike and investigates the owners of the buildings. Ernie Nunzi searches for the hooker who helped set up Zambrano. Bumpy and Mayme experience tension in their marriage.

Runtime: 54 min
Episode 10: Chickens Come Home to Roost
2019-12-01

Bumpy blackmails the mob in an effort to secure the safety of himself and his family. President John F. Kennedy is assassinated. Teddy performs at the Apollo Theater in Harlem.

Runtime: 61 min
Season 2 poster
Season 2 (2021)

Season 2 finds Bumpy battling the New York Crime Families for control of the lucrative and murderous “French Connection,” the pipeline for heroin that runs from Marseilles to New York Harbor. With a distribution syndicate that includes black crime bosses from other major U.S. cities, Bumpy takes a cue from his friend Malcolm X’s message of black economic nationalism.

10 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: The French Connection
2021-04-18

After three months in hiding from Chin Gigante and the Italians, Bumpy Johnson takes action to lift the sanctions off his head. By forging new alliances with European suppliers, Bumpy aims to reunite with his family safely back in Harlem.

Runtime: 54 min
Episode 2: Sting Like a Bee
2021-04-25

Bumpy Johnson wants to use his new French supplier to distribute to the “Harlems” of other major American cities. Malcolm X uses Cassius Clay to leverage himself back into favor with the Nation of Islam before Clay’s famous fight versus Sonny Liston.

Runtime: 48 min
Episode 3: The Fruit Stand Riot
2021-05-02

When innocent black teenagers and bystanders are savagely beaten and arrested by police, the Harlem community rallies to free them. Adam Clayton Powell and Mayme Johnson use peaceful protest, but Bumpy Johnson and Malcolm X prefer street justice.

Runtime: 52 min
Episode 4: The Geechee
2021-05-09

An unlikely partnership proves to be extremely lucrative for Bumpy Johnson and Chin Gigante, but their success puts targets on their backs. Malcolm X fights off attacks on his character and his life.

Runtime: 51 min
Episode 5: It's a Small World After All
2021-05-16

An incident at the Geechee Club threatens to break up Bumpy and Chin's partnership. Adam Clayton Powell looks to end the filibuster on the Civil Rights Bill, even if it means playing dirty.

Runtime: 53 min
Episode 6: The Ballot or the Bullet
2021-05-23

Three Freedom Riders are murdered in Mississippi, and Bumpy Johnson wants justice, as well as a hedge against Federal investigation. Chin Gigante evades imprisonment with an “insanity” defense, and Malcolm X delivers his most fervent call to action.

Runtime: 54 min
Episode 7: Man of the Year
2021-08-08

Before accepting a prestigious award, Bumpy Johnson contemplates the many contradictions in his life, and struggles to do what's best for his family; Chin Gigante learns a difficult truth about his daughter, Stella.

Runtime: 52 min
Episode 8: Ten Harlems
2021-08-15

Confronted with a betrayal in his ranks, Bumpy Johnson hunts for enemies within his Ten Harlems. The conflict between Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam escalates from threats to outright violence.

Runtime: 56 min
Episode 9: The Bonanno Split
2021-08-22

Bumpy Johnson must protect the Italian mob when Joseph Bonanno decides to abolish the Commission; captain Omar takes his campaign against Malcolm X to a new level.

Runtime: 56 min
Episode 10: The Hate That Hate Produced
2021-08-29

Bumpy Johnson must fend off rivals to receive the largest dope shipment in New York history, while Harlem explodes into riot; Malcolm X reluctantly agrees to protection from an unusual source.

Runtime: 55 min
Season 3 poster
Season 3 (2023)

Season Three finds Bumpy Johnson continuing to battle for control of Harlem, with other aspirants to the throne, namely the Cuban Mafia from neighboring Spanish Harlem. Taking on the Cuban mob puts Bumpy, his loved ones, and his community in the crosshairs of not only the rival Italians, but ruthless Latin assassins and, ultimately, the CIA.

10 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: The Negro in White America
2023-01-15

To repay a drug debt owed to the Italians after the Harlem riots, Bumpy Johnson robs from his own community. Omar seeks to return to Elise and Malcolm's good graces. Someone close to Stella orders a hit on her life.

Runtime: 54 min
Episode 2: Alzado
2023-01-22

When Joe Colombo carries out a gentleman's kidnapping of Mayme, Bumpy angrily prepares for a coming war.

Runtime: 54 min
Episode 3: Mecca
2023-01-29

Jose Battle asks for a favor from his new partner Bumpy Johnson: a political assassination. Malcolm X is detained by Saudi authorities when he travels to Mecca. The district attorney's office targets Mayme for her gangster ties.

Runtime: 54 min
Episode 4: Captain Fields
2023-02-05

When two uniformed cops attack the Geechee, Bumpy and Battle make a play for control of local 27th police precinct. Stella decides whether to rat Colombo out to the Feds. Meanwhile, Malcolm's life is threatened in Cairo.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 5: Angel of Death
2023-02-19

Bumpy and Colombo face off for control of the heroin trade when Monsieur 98 returns to bring in the next shipment. Omar makes a romantic appeal to Elise. Pettigrew discovers cocaine through his love affair with a Cuban woman.

Runtime: 56 min
Episode 6: Spooks
2023-02-26

Bumpy utilizes Battle's contacts in the CIA to secure a steady supply of a new drug: cocaine. Stella lies to Fineman in an attempt to escape Colombo's oversight. Mayme applies for a government contract for Palmetto.

Runtime: 53 min
Episode 7: All Roads Lead to Malcolm
2023-03-05

When Battle's arrested, Bumpy must find a way to spring him and find the mole. Bumpy discovers that Malcolm X has more enemies than they thought.

Runtime: 58 min
Episode 8: Homeland or Death
2023-03-12

Bumpy uncovers a CIA plot to assassinate Malcolm X and Che Guevara at the United Nations. Malcolm writes his autobiography. Olympia utilizes Father Louis to get out of trouble.

Runtime: 48 min
Episode 9: We Are All Kings
2023-03-19

Chin Gigante is released from prison and seeks to excise Joe Colombo from the Commission.

Runtime: 55 min
Episode 10: Our Black Shining Prince
2023-03-26

Bumpy and Chin enlist Morgenthau's help to prevent Colombo and Battle from bringing in a shipment of heroin, guns, and cocaine. Stella must choose between Colombo and her father.

Runtime: 57 min
Season 4 poster
Season 4 (2025)

In season 4, Bumpy Johnson continues his bloody war for control of Harlem against New York's Mafia families, while contending with the arrival of gangster Frank Lucas. After Malcolm X's tragic assassination, Bumpy must also grapple with his daughter Elise's involvement with the Black Panthers.

10 episodes

Episodes
Episode 1: New Harlem
2025-04-13

Bumpy plans to build a new club in Harlem but must find a new way to finance it without the heroin business. Elise testifies in the Malcolm X murder trial when three innocent men are accused. Stella negotiates a business deal between Colombo and Chin.

Runtime: 49 min
Episode 2: Country Boy
2025-04-20

A power struggle erupts in Harlem as Bumpy seeks allies against Chin's betrayal. Meanwhile, he assigns a risky heroin heist to Frank Lucas, while Elise uncovers deadly secrets and Stella maneuvers for control.

Runtime: 48 min
Episode 3: The Straw Man
2025-04-27

When the property for Bumpy's new club is being sold to a powerful, white real-estate developer, Bumpy must convince the black "Straw Man" to sell it to him instead; Mayme and Elise stage a protest at Margaret's school.

Runtime: 50 min
Episode 4: Union Blues
2025-05-04

Bumpy battles a union strike threatening club construction. Elise bails out a fellow Panther and Frank faces consequences for Cowboy Nick's murder.

Runtime: 47 min
Episode 5: Concrete Jungle
2025-05-11

Bumpy finds a new concrete supplier that subverts payments to the Italians; Elise and the Panthers plan a symbolic action against the police; Frank does a job for Colombo; Mayme asks James Baldwin to do a reading for the Fine Arts Board.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 6: The Visit
2025-05-18

Bumpy suffers a heart attack and has visions of Malcolm in the hospital; he's forced to negotiate with Colombo for Chance's safe return; Elise and Sadiq discover a rat in the Panthers; Olympia Gigante returns to get vengeance.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 7: The Pawn Goes First
2025-06-01

The Club St. Clair opens, but Bumpy has to pay Colombo a tax; Frank seeks protection from the Italians trying to kill him; Colombo responds to FBI harassment; Sadiq opens up to Elise; Mayme faces a financial obstacle to joining the Fine Arts Board.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 8: If We Must Die
2025-06-08

Fred Straub returns to sue Bumpy for ownership of the St. Clair, but this time, he's backed by the Italian Mob; the Panthers intervene when Delia's son is drafted to Vietnam; Colombo makes an interesting proposal to Stella.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 9: Black and White
2025-06-15

Without the St. Clair, Bumpy's forced to bring an old enemy back to Harlem to take care of Joe Colombo; Omar gets the name of one of Malcolm's shooters and the Panthers investigate; Mayme's invited to Truman Capote's Black & White Ball.

Runtime: N/A min
Episode 10: Unity Day
2025-06-22

An attack on Bumpy's family forces him to team up with unlikely allies to retaliate against Joe Colombo; Margaret stays with Elise and the Panthers and helps Jerome; Pino betrays Stella; Colombo plans a Civil Rights rally in Central Park.

Runtime: N/A min

Videos

Godfather of Harlem | Trailer

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