The Cast Is Made up of Baltimoreans
To add to the realism of The Wire, David Simon plucked many of the cast members from Baltimore. Jay Landsman, who plays Dennis Mello and not the character based on him, is a retired Baltimore homicide detective.
Landsman wasn’t the only cast member to call Baltimore home before the show. Melvin Williams, a former heroin trafficker and the inspiration behind Avon Barksdale, began appearing on The Wire during the show’s third season as The Deacon. Baltimorean actress, author, and rapper Felicia “Snoop” Pearson appears as a character of the same name on The Wire. Pearson also wrote a memoir called Grace After Midnight detailing her troubled childhood and her prison time for second degree murder.
