The first two episodes of new MGM+ crime drama The Westies are now streaming, but strap in — we’ve still got another six installments to go.
The new show follows the real-life Irish-American crime family of the same name, who ran the streets of Hell’s Kitchen for decades from the 1960s. Basically, it’s the perfect warm-up act for MobLand season 2 and The Gentleman season 2, which are both set to return in September.
Led by J.K. Simmons as patriarch Eamonn Sweeney, we’ve got an epic cat-and-mouse game afoot between our shady leads and the FBI, who have been tasked with bringing them to justice.
The trailer set up the high-stakes drama to come, but some fans weren’t entirely happy with the teaser. Scroll through the YouTube comments on the clip below, and you’ll see multiple fans complaining that The Westies looks far too tame for a mobster story.
In a way, they have a point. If you’re tuning in looking for glory through guts and gore, you’re not going to find it. However, that doesn’t mean that intense action sequences are few and far between.
Not only have lead stars Simmons and Tom Brittney (James) seen the comments, they’re the first in line to disagree — and they’ve got pretty good reasoning as to why.
‘There’s some stuff that I’m surprised we could get away with’
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“God, no,” Brittney says when I ask if The Westies felt tame when filming. “I think I saw that comment. Someone sent something to me about going, ‘oh, I think it’s tame.’ And I was like… well, you better watch then.
“We can’t put everything that’s in the show into that trailer because you wouldn’t be able to show it on TV as a teaser. Especially depending on the time that you’re showing it. It’s a brutal one. There’s some stuff in this that I was surprised that they could get away with.”
From a marketing standpoint, it makes complete sense that the best parts of The Westies, which would include the grittiest and most intense fights, won’t be revealed immediately. They wouldn’t even be in the two-episode premiere… think of them as a reward for investing in the new series long-term.
“If I may… don’t watch the trailer. Watch the show,” Simmons adds. We’re both in it. You know it’s gonna be good! So, just watch the show. July 12th. Or you could watch it on the 13th if you want. That’s the beauty. Go crazy. Watch it on the 14th, whatever. Just watch it sometime in the first week, please.”
You heard the man… lock in now, and reap the benefits as The Westies continues to drop on a weekly basis.
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