Taylor Sheridan’s gritty thriller has exploded into a cultural phenomenon, dominating the Prime Video charts in 85 countries. This is not just a TV show—it’s a haunting experience of survival.

In a forgotten prison town where corruption bleeds into every alley and loyalty can get you killed, Amazon Prime’s Mayor of Kingstown has emerged as the gritty new masterpiece everyone is calling “the next Goodfellas“ and “the closest thing to The Wire in years.”

The series—which premiered its third season on June 2, 2025—has become a global phenomenon, topping Prime Video charts in 85 countries with 45 million hours viewed in its first month alone. Audiences describe the drama as “entrancing,” “uncomfortably real,” and “the kind of drama that crawls under your skin and refuses to leave.” With every episode exposing deeper betrayals, darker secrets, and shocking twists, Mayor of Kingstown is an experience viewers must “survive” alongside the characters. If you hunger for raw, high-stakes storytelling that hits like a sledgehammer, this thriller is about to become your next obsession.

The Nameless Town, The Unsolvable Case

Set in the decaying rust-belt enclave of Kingstown, Michigan—a land where the prison industry is the only game in town—Mayor of Kingstown follows the McLusky family, a clan of “fixers” who broker an uneasy peace between cops, gangs, and inmates in a system rotten to its core.

Jeremy Renner stars as Mike McLusky, the reluctant “mayor” (not elected, merely tolerated) who navigates the moral minefield of a place where 60% of residents are incarcerated or employed by the system. What starts as a gritty procedural about a botched prison riot quickly spirals into a sprawling epic of racial tensions, cartel incursions, and family feuds, exposing America’s underbelly.

“Kingstown isn’t a town—it’s a cage,” creator Taylor Sheridan told Variety. “Mike’s not a hero; he’s the lock on the door.”

Devastating Performances and Haunting Cinematography

Renner’s performance as Mike is a revelation—a haunted everyman with a jaw set like granite and eyes that have seen too much; his quiet menace echoes De Niro in Goodfellas. Dianne Wiest shines as Iris McLusky, the matriarch whose “peacekeeping” empire masks a lifetime of compromises. Tobi Bamtefa as gang leader Bunny Washington brings fiery authenticity to the Black underworld.

Sheridan’s signature style—featuring vast cinematography of desolate lakes and rusted mills by Ben Richardson (Wind River), and a brooding score of guitars by Jónsi (Sisters Brothers)—transforms Kingstown into a character as suffocating as the Cuyahoga River fog.

The Season 3 premiere, a riot that leaves 47 dead, sets an irreversible tone: Mike’s desperate bid to broker peace amid a cartel war that imports fentanyl and exports bodies. The twists are relentless: a cop’s betrayal, a sister’s secret affair, a riot’s hidden architect—each reveal is a gut-punch that rivals The Wire‘s institutional rot.

Critics are obsessed. The Hollywood Reporter called it “Sheridan’s magnum opus—Goodfellas grit in The Wire‘s soul.” IndieWire awarded an A+: “Renner and Wiest redefine anti-heroes—unmissable.”

Mayor of Kingstown is more than a thriller—it’s a mirror to society’s fractures. As Mike growls in the finale: “In this town, peace is just war on pause.” Streaming now on Prime Video. Your obsession—and unease—awaits.