Rome Flynn Teases Frank Lucas Portrayal In ‘Godfather Of Harlem’ & First-Look Photo Revealed; Addresses ‘Chicago Fire’ Exit
EXCLUSIVE: Rome Flynn is set to portray real-life drug lord Frank Lucas in the upcoming fourth season of the MGM+ series Godfather of Harlem, in an origin story of sorts from an era that has evaded both TV and film projects like the Denzel Washington-led American Gangster.
Flynn will bring to life a pivotal moment in Lucas’ life—going from “a country boy from North Carolina” to starting a new life in Harlem. While finding his way, he has “initial friction with gangster Bumpy Johnson (Forest Whitaker)” but “eventually rises to become Bumpy’s fierce defender and right-hand man.” In Godfather of Harlem, Lucas’ story begins 10 years earlier than American Gangster.
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In our first-look at Flynn as Lucas below, he has just exited a bus which has arrived at its destination: New York. Lucas has a look of curiosity mixed with a little apprehension, which is truthfully, most people’s reaction when they first visit the Big Apple.
“Essentially, Frank is escaping from his reality in North Carolina and trying to find a better reality,” Flynn tells Deadline about what headspace Lucas was when this scene was captured. “This first shot shows him getting off the bus and stepping into New York City seeing everything for the first time and making his way to Harlem.”
He added, “It’s always about the journey, figuring out why people do things in general. That’s the real basis of what the business is about to me. Acting is a reflection of the life around us at that moment in time. What was life like for him as he’s stepping off that bus? I think he saw a new beginning.”
Created by Chris Brancato and the late Paul Eckstein, Godfather of Harlem tells a story inspired by infamous crime boss Bumpy Johnson, who in the early 1960s returned from 11 years in prison to find the neighborhood he once ruled in shambles.
In Season 4, Bumpy continues his bloody war for control of Harlem against New York’s Mafia families, while contending with the emergence of a potential rival in newly arrived Black gangster Frank Lucas. After Malcolm X’s (Jason Alan Carvell) tragic death, Bumpy must also grapple with his daughter Elise’s (Antoinette Crowe-Legacy) involvement with the Black Panthers.
Flynn shares further details on what viewers can expect from his series debut, elements that helped him become Lucas and whether or not he left Chicago Fire for the MGM+ series.
DEADLINE: Frank Lucas has been portrayed before in various projects. What was your approach to learning about the real person?
ROME FLYNN: Frank Lucas is probably one of the most well-known American gangsters. When you see him enter the world of Godfather of Harlem, he is young Frank Lucas but there’s a lineage from that point. My approach to portraying a character who has lived… it’s not in my interest to talk to family members or anyone who may have known him. We have our foundation and the bones as to how we want to create [Frank Lucas] with Chris [Brancato] in the show and things are still loosely based on actual situations. Like, he did leave North Carolina and go to Harlem, all of those things are factual. I’ve deliberately tried not to go specifically into his life because we’re not following that timeline. We’re following a timeline from his arrival in Harlem but as far as the details and things of that nature, that’s not really what the show is about.
Denzel Washington famously played his character in American Gangster but there are no comparisons except that we’re both playing the same person. We’re creating a more fully dimensional character that I feel films don’t have the luxury of [time] to portray which is a great thing. With TV, you get to show the intricacies and the complexity of not just who Frank was, but who he is at that point in his life while taking people on a journey along with him as he becomes the man everyone knows he becomes.
DEADLINE: What did your research entail?
FLYNN: I’m pretty well-versed on his life. I researched detailed-oriented things, not necessarily the story of his life. So I was interested in how he spoke, for example. I was able to find a few younger pictures of him that exist, but there aren’t many. In one of the youngest pictures, he’s not even in his 20s. I’m trying to find the details that people probably won’t notice, but will help me feel more grounded to play in this character.
There’s an adolescence about him when he’s as ruthless as can be and is also unforgiving. I have to find those characteristics and commonalities because that’s what the viewers care about. The key is finding the synchronicities between these unlikely characters with normal people. That is something I do when I’m trying to go through a script, figuring out how something feels for people who are living their everyday lives. Playing this role in particular has been very transformative for me, more so than anything I’ve ever done. People will either be shocked or floored in a good way or a bad way, I don’t know. [Laughs]
DEADLINE: I did a little research on Frank Lucas hoping to learn more about his relationship with Bumpy Johnson but there’s a lot of grey area where recollections vary. How will Godfather of Harlem handle that?
FLYNN: [Even with the grey area,] these two individuals are tied together. As far as details, we don’t know. But the good thing about television is that it doesn’t matter. I think that the antithesis of these two people and the time period are all that matters and is what Chris is leaning into, not necessarily what the conversations Bumpy and Frank had but their dynamic. If you ask me, I think they’ll be butting heads early on. Frank is entering this new world and trying to figure out how he fits in, but he’s like a bull in a china shop. He didn’t really care about making friends when he came to Harlem. Whether on purpose or subconsciously, he ends up learning a lot from Bumpy.
Early on, we see these two very powerful individuals—powerful in different ways—going towards each other. Frank is powerful in his perspective on not really caring about the outcome of situations; being less calculated and instead being more reactionary. Bumpy is almost the opposite; he’s more calculated and has more principles.
DEADLINE: There’s a rumor you left Chicago Fire to work on Godfather of Harlem. True or false?
FLYNN: They were not connected at all. I did not leave that show for this one. Everything just happened to turn out that way. It’s like you have your people but you won’t be with all of them forever. Sometimes, you meet a new person and you connect. I loved my time there. I love the cast and the crew and I miss them a lot. But we all have our own journeys, and I’m grateful for that opportunity. Now, I’m excited and grateful for this opportunity because it’s giving me the chance to step into a life like I’ve never done before.
This interview was edited and condensed for length and clarity.
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