61st Street — the AMC two-season television event with eight episodes per season is set to debut on Sunday, April 10, at 9 pm CT on AMC. The Michael B Jordan series was filmed last year at Cinespace and exterior Chicago locations.
Here’s the official information that AMC has made available for Sunday’s Season 1 Episode 1:
Moses Johnson is swept into a world of chaos and corrupt policing during a presumed drug sting.
the story:
The story follows Moses Johnson (Tosin Cole), a promising black high school athlete, who is swept up into the infamously corrupt Chicago criminal justice system. Taken by the police as a supposed gang member, he finds himself in the eye of the storm as police and prosecutors seek revenge for the death of an officer during a drug bust gone wrong. Franklin Roberts (Vance) is a public defender in the twilight of his career serving the busiest courthouse in America.
After promising his wife he’d retire to spend more time with their 17-year-old autistic son, Franklin realizes Moses Johnson is the case of a lifetime, one that can upend the entire Chicago judicial system, challenging the institutional racism and endemic corruption at its heart. Timely and provocative, 61st Street is set against the systemic abuse happening in some of our country’s most vulnerable communities.
the filmmakers:
Executive producer is Michael B Jordan (Black Panther.) Writer/executive Producer Peter Moffat (Criminal Justice.) The UPM/Co-Producer is Chicago’s Carrie Holt de Lama (Echo Boomers, Tiny Pretty Things, Lovecraft Country.) AMC Studios is the in-house studio, production and distribution operation for AMC Networks Inc.
the cast:
“We couldn’t be more thrilled to have the phenomenal Courtney B. Vance returning to the courtroom for 61st Street,” Sarah Barnett, President of AMC Networks Entertainment Group and AMC Studios, said in a statement. “Courtney is the cornerstone of what’s sure to be a stellar ensemble for this ambitious and highly entertaining drama.”
