🏷 Discover The Best Gangster Movies & TV Shows To Watch Today

186 titles with this tag

Dive into the thrilling world of gangster films and TV shows, where power, betrayal, and high-stakes drama collide. From classic mob epics to modern crime sagas, these stories captivate audiences with their raw intensity and unforgettable characters. Whether you're a longtime fan or a newcomer, our curated list highlights the best in the genre—perfect for binge-watching or movie night. Explore iconic films like The Godfather and binge-worthy series like Peaky Blinders as we uncover the must-see titles that define gangster culture.

Cast

Marlon Brando

Al Pacino

James Caan

Robert Duvall

The Godfather (1972)

8.7 23.2K votes

Genre: Crime, Drama

Country: United States of America

Duration: 175 min.

Audience: R

Story: Spanning the years 1945 to 1955, a chronicle of the fictional Italian-American Corleone crime family. When organized crime family patriarch, Vito Corleone barely survives an attempt on his life, his youngest son, Michael steps in to take care of the would-be killers, launching a campaign of bloody revenge.

Plot: based on novel or book, loss of loved one, love at first sight, gangster, symbolism, patriarch, europe, organized crime, ...

Time: 1940s, 1950s

Place: italy

Cast

Dominic West

Lance Reddick

Sonja Sohn

Wendell Pierce

The Wire (2002) TV Show

8.6 2.7K votes

Genre: Crime, Drama

Country: United States of America

Seasons: 5

Episodes: 60

Audience: TV-MA

Story: Told from the points of view of both the Baltimore homicide and narcotics detectives and their targets, the series captures a universe in which the national war on drugs has become a permanent, self-sustaining bureaucracy, and distinctions between good and evil are routinely obliterated.

Style: cynical, tense

Plot: corruption, newspaper, drug trafficking, drug dealer, baltimore, gangster, police, organized crime, ...

Place: usa

Cast

Francesc Orella

Carlos Cuevas

David Solans

Elisabet Casanovas

Merlí (2015) TV Show

8.6 1.2K votes

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Country: Spain

Seasons: 3

Episodes: 40

Audience: TV-MA

Story: He’s surly, unorthodox, unapologetically blunt, and he’s about to change your life. Meet the new philosophy teacher, Merlí, who will help his students view the world in a whole new light, both in and out of the classroom.

Plot: philosophy, bisexuality, friendship, high school, unrequited love, male homosexuality, teacher, coming of age, ...

Place: barcelona, spain

Cast

Al Pacino

Robert Duvall

Diane Keaton

Robert De Niro

The Godfather Part II (1974)

8.6 14.0K votes

Genre: Crime, Drama

Country: United States of America

Duration: 202 min.

Audience: R

Story: In the continuing saga of the Corleone crime family, a young Vito Corleone grows up in Sicily and in 1910s New York. In the 1950s, Michael Corleone attempts to expand the family business into Las Vegas, Hollywood and Cuba.

Plot: new year's eve, new york city, based on novel or book, italian american, gangster, praise, blackmail, symbolism, ...

Time: 1950s

Place: cuba, italy

Cast

Cillian Murphy

Paul Anderson

Sophie Rundle

Natasha O'Keeffe

Peaky Blinders (2013) TV Show

8.5 11.2K votes

Genre: Crime, Drama

Country: United Kingdom

Seasons: 6

Episodes: 36

Audience: TV-MA

Story: A gangster family epic set in 1919 Birmingham, England and centered on a gang who sew razor blades in the peaks of their caps, and their fierce boss Tommy Shelby, who means to move up in the world.

Style: suspenseful

Plot: gypsy, corruption, gangster, outlaw, murder, drugs, criminal, period drama, ...

Time: 1920s, 1910s

Place: england

Cast

John Travolta

Samuel L. Jackson

Uma Thurman

Bruce Willis

Pulp Fiction (1994)

8.5 30.4K votes

Genre: Comedy, Crime, Thriller

Country: United States of America

Duration: 154 min.

Audience: R

Story: A burger-loving hit man, his philosophical partner, a drug-addled gangster's moll and a washed-up boxer converge in this sprawling, comedic crime caper. Their adventures unfurl in three stories that ingeniously trip back and forth in time.

Plot: drug dealer, drug crime, gangster, dark comedy, stolen money, crime boss, redemption, theft, ...

Place: los angeles, california

Cast

Robert De Niro

Ray Liotta

Joe Pesci

Lorraine Bracco

GoodFellas (1990)

8.5 14.5K votes

Genre: Crime, Drama

Country: United States of America

Duration: 145 min.

Audience: R

Story: The true story of Henry Hill, a half-Irish, half-Sicilian Brooklyn kid who is adopted by neighbourhood gangsters at an early age and climbs the ranks of a Mafia family under the guidance of Jimmy Conway.

Plot: prison, new york city, based on novel or book, gangster, mass murder, drug trafficking, irish-american, gore, ...

Time: 1970s

Place: florida, florida

Cast

Alexandre Rodrigues

Leandro Firmino

Phellipe Haagensen

Douglas Silva

City of God (2002)

8.4 8.3K votes

Genre: Crime, Drama

Country: Brazil, France

Duration: 129 min.

Audience: R

Story: In the poverty-stricken favelas of Rio de Janeiro in the 1970s, two young men choose different paths. Rocket is a budding photographer who documents the increasing drug-related violence of his neighborhood, while José “Zé” Pequeno is an ambitious drug dealer diving into a dangerous life of crime.

Plot: street gang, photographer, gangster, gang war, ghetto, based on true story, coming of age, introspective, ...

Place: rio de janeiro

Cast

Anahu00ed

Alfonso Herrera

Dulce Maru00eda

Christopher Von Uckermann

Rebelde (2004) TV Show

8.4 5.2K votes

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Country: Mexico

Seasons: 3

Episodes: 440

Audience: TV-14

Story: A group of young adults will spend their adolescence at the Elite Way School, where they will learn about love, life and live their passion for music.

Style: nostalgic

Plot: upper class, mexico city, mexico, private school, high school, teen angst, class differences, teenage romance, ...

Cast

Robert De Niro

James Woods

Elizabeth McGovern

Joe Pesci

Once Upon a Time in America (1984)

8.4 6.1K votes

Genre: Crime, Drama

Country: United States of America, Italy

Duration: 229 min.

Audience: R

Story: A former Prohibition-era Jewish gangster returns to the Lower East Side of Manhattan over thirty years later, where he once again must confront the ghosts and regrets of his old life.

Plot: new york city, regret, lovesickness, rape, life and death, sexual abuse, street gang, corruption, ...

Time: prohibition era, 1920s, 1960s, ...

Cast

Colin Farrell

Cristin Milioti

Rhenzy Feliz

Deirdre O'Connell

The Penguin (2024) TV Show

8.4 1.4K votes

Genre: Crime, Drama

Country: United States of America, Ireland

Seasons: 1

Episodes: 8

Audience: TV-MA

Story: With the city in peril following the seawall's collapse, Oswald "Oz" Cobb seeks to fill the power vacuum left by the death of Carmine Falcone and finally give his mother Francis the life he's always promised. But first, Oz must confront his enemies and his own demoralizing reputation as "the Penguin."

Plot: drug trafficking, gangster, villain, based on comic, crime boss, betrayal, organized crime, miniseries, ...

Cast

Damson Idris

Carter Hudson

Sergio Peris-Mencheta

Michael Hyatt

Snowfall (2017) TV Show

8.4 783 votes

Genre: Crime, Drama

Country: United States of America

Seasons: 6

Episodes: 60

Audience: TV-MA

Story: Los Angeles. 1983. A storm is coming and its name is crack. Set against the infancy of the crack cocaine epidemic and its ultimate radical impact on the culture as we know it, the story follows numerous characters on a violent collision course.

Plot: central intelligence agency (cia), drug abuse, drug crime, gangster, urban, crack cocaine, los angeles, california, ...

Time: 1980s

Cast

Tom Hardy

Pierce Brosnan

Paddy Considine

Joanne Froggatt

MobLand (2025) TV Show

8.3 726 votes

Genre: Crime, Drama

Country: United States of America, United Kingdom

Seasons: 2

Episodes: 10

Audience: TV-MA

Story: Two mob families clash in a war that threatens to topple empires and lives.

Plot: drug trafficking, gang war, gangster, family business, murder, betrayal, crime family, fixer, ...

Place: london, england

Cast

Edward Norton

Edward Furlong

Beverly D'Angelo

Jennifer Lien

American History X (1998)

8.3 12.7K votes

Genre: Drama

Country: United States of America

Duration: 119 min.

Audience: R

Story: Derek Vineyard is paroled after serving 3 years in prison for killing two African-American men. Through his brother, Danny Vineyard's narration, we learn that before going to prison, Derek was a skinhead and the leader of a violent white supremacist gang that committed acts of racial crime throughout L.A. and his actions greatly influenced Danny. Reformed and fresh out of prison, Derek severs contact with the gang and becomes determined to keep Danny from going down the same violent path as he did.

Plot: prison, neo-nazism, rape, skinhead, sibling relationship, swastika, nazi, brother, ...

Place: los angeles, california

Cast

Jean Reno

Natalie Portman

Gary Oldman

Danny Aiello

Léon: The Professional (1994)

8.3 16.2K votes

Genre: Action, Crime, Drama

Country: France

Duration: 111 min.

Audience: R

Story: Léon, the top hit man in New York, has earned a rep as an effective "cleaner". But when his next-door neighbors are wiped out by a loose-cannon DEA agent, he becomes the unwilling custodian of 12-year-old Mathilda. Before long, Mathilda's thoughts turn to revenge, and she considers following in Léon's footsteps.

Style: suspenseful, tense

Plot: hotel room, new york city, immigrant, assassin, police brutality, corruption, s.w.a.t., hitman, ...

Cast

Cantinflas

Rosita Arenas

u00c1ngel Garasa

Rebeca Iturbide

El señor fotógrafo (1953)

8.3 79 votes

Genre: Comedy, Thriller

Country: Mexico

Duration: 100 min.

Story: Cantinflas, a traveling photographer, is captured by some gangsters while trying to get some flowers for his girlfriend. The gangsters have confused him with the assistant of Dr. Penongo, a scientist who has discovered the formula of a new atomic bomb. Meanwhile, Penongo has suffered a car accident and has lost his memory ...

Plot: amnesia, atomic bomb, photographer, gangster, professor, chemist, manicurist, mental clinic, ...

Prison Playbook (2017) TV Show

8.2 104 votes

Genre: Crime, Drama

Country: South Korea

Seasons: 1

Episodes: 16

Audience: TV-MA

Story: With his major league baseball debut right around the corner, a star pitcher lands in prison and must learn to navigate his new world.

Style: gritty, witty

Plot: prison, corruption, baseball, prisoner, gangster, dark comedy, baseball player

Cast

Leonardo DiCaprio

Matt Damon

Jack Nicholson

Mark Wahlberg

The Departed (2006)

8.2 16.3K votes

Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller

Country: Hong Kong, United States of America

Duration: 151 min.

Audience: R

Story: To take down South Boston's Irish Mafia, the police send in one of their own to infiltrate the underworld, not realizing the syndicate has done likewise. While an undercover cop curries favor with the mob kingpin, a career criminal rises through the police ranks. But both sides soon discover there's a mole among them.

Style: intense

Plot: police, undercover, massachusetts, gangster, irish-american, crime boss, friends, remake, ...

Place: boston

Cast

Al Pacino

Steven Bauer

Michelle Pfeiffer

Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio

Scarface (1983)

8.2 13.2K votes

Genre: Action, Crime, Drama

Country: United States of America

Duration: 170 min.

Audience: R

Story: After getting a green card in exchange for assassinating a Cuban government official, Tony Montana stakes a claim on the drug trade in Miami. Viciously murdering anyone who stands in his way, Tony eventually becomes the biggest drug lord in the state, controlling nearly all the cocaine that comes through Miami. But increased pressure from the police, wars with Colombian drug cartels and his own drug-fueled paranoia serve to fuel the flames of his eventual downfall.

Plot: corruption, sibling relationship, loss of loved one, gangster, cocaine, rise and fall, remake, tragedy, ...

Place: miami, florida, cuba

Cast

Ali Fazal

Pankaj Tripathi

Shweta Tripathi Sharma

Rasika Dugal

Mirzapur (2018) TV Show

8.0 191 votes

Genre: Action, Crime, Drama

Country: India

Seasons: 3

Episodes: 29

Audience: TV-MA

Story: The iron-fisted Akhandanand Tripathi is a millionaire carpet exporter and the mafia don of Mirzapur. His son, Munna, is an unworthy, power-hungry heir who will stop at nothing to inherit his father's legacy. An incident at a wedding procession forces him to cross paths with Ramakant Pandit, an upstanding lawyer, and his sons, Guddu and Bablu. It snowballs into a game of ambition, power and greed that threatens the fabric of this lawless city.

Plot: gun, gangster, lawlessness, drugs, father son relationship, brother brother relationship, sex, abusive language, ...

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The Best Classic Gangster Movies of All Time

Classic gangster films set the gold standard for crime dramas, blending gripping storytelling with unforgettable performances. These movies have shaped the genre and remain essential viewing for any fan.

Top 5 Must-Watch Classic Gangster Films

The Godfather (1972) – Francis Ford Coppola’s masterpiece redefined the mob genre with its epic storytelling and iconic performances by Marlon Brando and Al Pacino.
Goodfellas (1990) – Martin Scorsese’s fast-paced, gritty tale of Henry Hill’s rise and fall in the mob is a cinematic tour de force.
Scarface (1983) – Al Pacino’s portrayal of Tony Montana in this violent, rags-to-riches story is both thrilling and cautionary.
Casino (1995) – Another Scorsese classic, starring Robert De Niro and Sharon Stone, based on the true story of Las Vegas in the 1970s.
Once Upon a Time in America (1984) – Sergio Leone’s sprawling epic follows Jewish gangsters in early 20th-century America, blending crime and nostalgia.

Modern Gangster TV Shows That Will Hook You

Television has embraced the gangster genre with gripping series that deliver long-form storytelling and complex characters. These shows keep viewers on the edge of their seats.

Top 5 Must-Stream Gangster TV Series

Peaky Blinders (2013–2022) – Set in post-WWI Birmingham, this British series follows the Shelby crime family with sharp writing and Cillian Murphy’s standout performance.
Breaking Bad (2008–2013) – While not strictly a gangster show, Walter White’s descent into the drug trade shares many themes with classic crime dramas.
Boardwalk Empire (2010–2014) – Martin Scorsese’s HBO series explores Prohibition-era Atlantic City, featuring Steve Buscemi as corrupt politician-turned-gangster Nucky Thompson.
Gomorrah (2014–2021) – This Italian series offers a raw, unflinching look at the brutal Neapolitan mafia, praised for its authenticity and tension.
Animal Kingdom (2016–2022) – A modern crime family drama about the Cody clan in Southern California, blending family dynamics with violent underworld dealings.

Whether you prefer the slow-burn intensity of The Godfather or the rapid-fire action of Peaky Blinders, the gangster genre offers something for every viewer. These films and shows not only entertain but also provide a deep dive into the psychology of power, loyalty, and betrayal. For the ultimate binge-watching experience, start with the classics before exploring the fresh takes on modern television. Happy watching!