The Wire

According to Michael Kenneth Williams, he secretly struggled with a cocaine addiction during the third season. He never missed a day of work nor was he ever late. He also suffered with an identity crisis due to his popularity as Omar.

Many of the minor characters are played by real-life police officers, politicians and former criminals. In fact, many of the former criminals who act on the show were previously arrested by the real-life cops who act on the show.

The character of Avon Barksdale is loosely based on Melvin Williams. Williams was a notorious drug kingpin in Baltimore who was brought to justice by Ed Burns. Williams joined the show as the deacon in season 3.