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Amazon Prime Video's Criminal: Everything we know about Charlie Hunnam and the cast, plot, and possible release date

Sons of Anarchy's Charlie Hunnam is getting back into crime with the upcoming show Criminal on Amazon Prime Video

Features by Chris Arrant, Editor-in-Chief

Published on Tue Jun 11 2024

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The upcoming Amazon Prime Video series Criminal starring Sons of Anarchy's Charlie Hunnam promises to be one of the most riveting bits of TV in our very near future. While breaking the law and committing crimes is something widely frowned upon, in the world of fiction we are eternally engrossed with the idea of characters tempted - just as we are every day - sometimes making the wrong choice, and paying the consequences.

Anticipated to debut in 2025, Criminal is based on the beloved crime comic series Criminal by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips. First published by Marvel Comics in 2006, it soon jumped to Image Comics - the home of the Walking Dead - and blossomed into a series of stories that have gone on for nearly 20 years now.

As casting has begun on Amazon Prime Video's Criminal, we are diving into what we know of the show's cast, creative team, plot, and even speculation on the release date of the show.

What is Criminal's release date?

Hold your horses - there's no release date for Criminal. It's not even begun filming yet. But based on how development is going, we expect Amazon Prime Video's Criminal to debut sometime in 2025.

Who is in the Criminal cast?

Like assembling a posse of all-stars to pull off a heist, Amazon Prime Video has been assembling a Criminal cast by recruiting from the ranks of other notable crime series such as Sons of Anarchy and Deadwood.

Here's who we have so far:

Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy) as Leo Patterson
Adria Arjona (Hit Man, Andor) as Greta
John Hawkes (True Detective, Deadwood) as Sebastia Hydeun
Richard Jenkins (Six Feet Under, Dahmer – Monster) as Ivan
Michael Mando (Better Call Saul) as Jeff
Kadeem Hardison (A Different World) as Gnarly
Logan Browning (Dear White People) as Jenny
Pat Healy (Better Call Saul) as Seymour
Gus Halper (Fear the Walking Dead) as Ricky
Taylor Selé (Law & Order: Organized Crime) as Royal
Aliyah Camacho (Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness) as Angie

What is the Criminal creative team?

Criminal's showrunners are Ed Brubaker and Jordan Harper. Brubaker is the writer and co-creator of the Criminal comic book series of which this is based on - and we wouldn't be surprised if his partner Sean Phillips is heavily involved in the show as well.

Brubaker is best known for creating the storyline for which Captain America: The Winter Soldier is based on (and the Winter Soldier variation of Marvel's Bucky, to boot). After a long career in comics, Brubaker has opened the door to a career in TV as writer on HBO's Westworld and the upcoming Batman Caped Crusader animated series.

Harper is a TV veteran, having worked on the hit series The Mentalist, as well as Gotham and High Town.

Captain Marvel's Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden have signed on to direct the first four episodes, after having recently directed two episodes of AppleTV+'s Masters of the Air.

What is the Criminal plot?

If Amazon Prime Video's Criminal follows the plot of the Criminal comic book series, we expect the first season to adapt the first two storylines - 'Coward' and 'Lawless'. In 'Coward,' Charlie Hunnam's Leo Patterson signs up for an armored car heist that devolves into something unexpected - and gets him into even more trouble than one would expect for that kind of felony.

And in 'Lawless,' an as-yet-uncasted second-generation criminal named Tracy Lawless goes AWOL from the military to find out who murdered his brother Ricky (played by Gus Halper), who happens to be Leo's childhood friend.

Where is the Criminal trailer?

Wow, you'd never be good at this whole crime business - Criminal hasn't even begun filming yet, so a Criminal trailer can't be expected until late 2024 at the absolute earliest, but we're expecting more along the lines of a 2025 trailer release.

Where will Criminal be streaming?

Good news! Amazon Prime Video has picked up Criminal to debut exclusivley on that platform.

Will there be a Criminal season 2?

Seriously, you're getting ahead of yourself. Amazon Prime Video hasn't even begun filming Criminal season 1 yet, so a decision on whether to greenlight a second season waits for them to see the show - and probably for you to see the show.

That being said, Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips have done enough Criminal stories in comics to last at least five seasons.

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Chris Arrant: Chris Arrant is the Popverse's Editor-in-Chief. He has written about pop culture for USA Today, Life, Entertainment Weekly, Publisher's Weekly, Marvel, Newsarama, CBR, and more. He has acted as a judge for the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, the Harvey Awards, and the Stan Lee Awards. (He/him)