FIRST LOOK: JK Simmons heads the cast of The Westies, a new crime drama set in New York City in the early 1980s that will debut worldwide on MGM+ on July 12, 2026.
Described as a gritty and kinetic crime drama centring on New York’s infamously violent Irish gang of the same name, the series opens as the construction of the Jacob Javits Convention Center on the Westies’ home turf in Hell’s Kitchen promises a financial windfall.
Despite being outnumbered 50-to-one by the Five Families of the Italian Mafia, the Westies’ legendary brutality and cunning have given them the leverage necessary to share the spoils through a fragile détente. But internal conflict between the brash younger generation and the old-school leadership threatens to set a match to this powder keg, which will sweep the Westies into the FBI’s ever-deepening investigation into the Italian mafia.
Simmons stars as Eamonn Sweeney, as part of a cast that also includes Titus Welliver, Tom Brittney, Stanley Morgan, Sarah Bolger and Jessica Frances Dukes.
Created and executive produced by Chris Brancato, alongside co-creator Michael Panes, The Westies will be available to stream on MGM+ across the US, UK, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Brazil, Mexico, Chile and Colombia.
The eight-episode series marks Brancato’s third collaboration with MGM+, following Godfather of Harlem and Narcos.
tagged in: Chris Brancato, JK Simmons, MGM, The Westies
