# Wicked City (2015)

> Two detectives hunt a serial killer through the cocaine-fueled rock and roll excess of 1982 Sunset Strip.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/55904

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 8
- Episode runtime: 44 min
- Status: Canceled
- Genres: crime, drama
- Created by: Steven Baigelman
- Network: ABC
- Cast: Erika Christensen, Ed Westwick, Taissa Farmiga, Anne Winters, Karolina Wydra, Gabriel Luna, Evan Ross, Jaime Ray Newman
- TMDB rating: 6.5/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4428124/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: moderate
- Complexity: accessible
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: gritty, seedy, neon-lit, tense, melancholic

## What critics say

Critics and audiences found the canceled ABC crime series a stylish but underwhelming take on the 1980s Sunset Strip murder mystery, with its premise outpacing its execution.

## Synopsis

Wicked City (2015) is an American crime drama created by Steven Baigelman for ABC, a single-season limited series of eight episodes. Detectives Jack Roth (Jeremy Sisto) and Paco Contreras (Gabriel Luna) investigate a murder spree in the rock and roll, cocaine-fueled nightlife of the Sunset Strip. Their case pulls them through clubs, parties and the lives of young women drawn into the scene, including Betty Beaumontaine (Erika Christensen) and Kent Galloway (Ed Westwick), whose connections blur the line between victims and suspects. Each episode peels back another layer of glamour to reveal the violence and corruption underneath. The engine is a procedural hunt, with the partners racing a killer who seems to know the Strip as well as they do. Set in 1982 Los Angeles, the show evokes the neon, excess and sweaty decadence of the era, with a gritty, mournful tone. Fans of Miami Vice, Vice and Hunter will find resonance in its period atmosphere and police investigation. The series was canceled with its story unfinished, leaving its central mystery open.

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