Plot Synopsis

In this docuseries, Michael K. Williams explores underground economies in America and around the world. Along the way, he meets people who are willing to break the law and risk everything they have just to get by, and reveals his own issues with addiction, crime and poverty. In the series premiere, Williams travels to Newark NJ, where unemployment and lack of hope turns a tradition of joyriding stolen cars into an international criminal operation. In a later episode, Williams meets with fishermen in Hout Bay, South Africa who turn to poaching to survive as a result of less of opportunity in the post-apartheid years. On Friday, July 1, 2016 --- four days before the official series premiere -- Viceland released the entire first episode on its YouTube channel and on its website as a sneak peek.

Season 2 of BLACK MARKET WITH MICHAEL K. WILLIAMS premiered on Monday, January 10, 2022 at 10pm ET/PT on VICE. The new season is an intimate portrait of the conditions from which black markets arise and the cultural reasons behind why they persist. Williams gives the audience unprecedented access into the new era of credit card scamming, how NYC's secret world of boosting and flipping has reshaped mainstream fashion, black market body modifications and more. Through Williams' raw and sincere approach to those he encounters, he ultimately seeks redemption for the individuals looking to thrive in a system that has failed them. In the one-hour season opener, "Scam Likely," toung street genius entrepreneurs evolve from selling drugs to stealing identities and printing credit cards. Tracy Morgan, Rosie Perez and Felicia "Snoop" Pearson narrate the final three episodes of BLACK MARKET following the death of Michael K. Williams. Pearson and Williams co-starred together on THE WIRE.
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On Monday, February 14, 2022 at 10pm ET/PT, VICE premiered "Thirst Trap," the season finale of BLACK MARKET. Drinking water is so poorly managed that this basic resource has emerged as a terrifying black market; the stakes are critical, yet it's barely on most people's radar. Rosie Perez narrates.