New Jack Hustlers

Synopsis

Dupri Lyles is a drug kingpin in Harlem and the owner of Marlene's Lounge. He's the founder of the ruthless Dollar & Cents Crew, consisting of his righthand man, Royce; Nyla, his ride-or-die chick; Armstrong, his muscle; and Blaze, his diamond teeth-wearing hitman and shooter. A young drug dealer named Kermit, working for the Dollars & Cents crew under his cousin Free Bird, rats out the operation and steals two kilos of cocaine, causing Dupri to shut down his empire after two raids by the D.E.A. 

Dupri has Armstrong murder Free Bird and orders Blaze and Nyah to find and kill Kermit. Dupri goes underground to push a highly new and potent product called Nuclidisan, its street name Nuke, onto the New York City streets to rebuild his empire. He orders the execution of Nickels, a high-level drug dealer, after he refuses to work with him and silently takes over the streets. His wealth grows exponentially after becoming the leading supplier of Nuke. 

Former New City Detective and now undercover D.E.A. Agent Scotty Appleton, who is still working the streets as an undercover, watches Nuke decimate poor communities like the crack epidemic. Scotty's friend and former partner, Nick Peretti, now a consultant with the A.T.F., meets with Scotty and advises him to consider retiring. Scotty presents a deal to Peretti: if he goes undercover with him to take down the New Jack Hustlers flooding the streets with Nuke, he'll put in his retirement papers. Peretti reluctantly agrees after promising his wife that he will only work as a field technician in the van. Special Operations Director Elliot Stone, Scotty's former and current boss at the D.E.A., forms a task force known as New Jack Hustlers to dismantle the secretive New Jacks.

A young rookie female police officer, Simone Dorsey, captures Scotty's attention when she interrupts his undercover drug transaction with Kermit, who is on the run for stealing from Dupri. Stone offers Simone the opportunity to go undercover with the New Jack Hustlers's task force. Simone views this opportunity as a chance to advance her career and positively impact the community. Stone places her in the nightlife as a bartender at the Attic bar in Harlem.

Boogie, a gangster in town from Philadelphia, is in search of the individual who killed his cousin Nickles and took over his territory. Royce informs Dupri of Boogie's $20,000 bounty for information leading to the killer. Dupri becomes known to law enforcement and street hustlers as the Dark Knight because he operates in the shadows, and no one has ever seen him. 

Dupri visits the Attic bar with Royce and spots Simone working undercover as a bartender named Autumn. He is immediately captivated by her wit, charm, and beauty. Simone attends a party at Marlene's in honor of Dupri's late mother. The two have an instant connection. Boogie shows up threatening party attendees and increases the reward to $30,000 for information regarding the murder of Nickles.

Stone feeling that the case is moving slow orders the shakedown of local drug dealers, hoping someone will give up information on the Dark Knight. Scotty and Peretti warn him that the Dark Knight could shut down his operation if he feels the heat from law enforcement. Stone proceeds with the raids and orders Scotty to arrest Kermit for drug trafficking. Kermit is brought in and offered a deal to become an informant to help find the Dark Knight. Kermit tells them that he was being nosy and saw Free Bird's boss, a man wearing diamond teeth.

While working the streets as an undercover addict, Kermit becomes aware that there are no drug houses or hand-to-hand drug transactions, and everything is mobile and in constant motion. Scotty, Peretti, Stone, and Simone are surprised that the Nuke operation is an underground delivery service. Dupri receives information that the police are looking for a man with diamonds in his teeth and realizes that Kermit is an informant. He instructs Blaze to remove the diamond teeth and prioritize finding Kermit.

Nyah, feeling the reins tightening on Dollars & Cents and fighting to get her daughter out of child protective services because of a previous drug charge, decides to skip town with her baby girl and Aunt Eillen after tying up some loose ends. She sees Kermit during a stakeout but doesn't report him to Blaze after seeing him with his 11-year-old special needs brother. Nyah catches up to Kermit alone and warns him to leave town before Blaze finds him. Kermit tells Scotty about his encounter with Nyah and is taken off the streets by Stone.

Feeling Boogie is becoming a nuisance to his empire, Dupri has him killed. Scotty and Peretti visit an old, highly respected Cash Money Brothers affiliate, Kareem Ackbar, working at his soup kitchen to see if he has heard who could be pushing the Nuke. Kareem informs them that he's no longer involved in the game and has no idea what's happening in the streets. Scotty and Peretti press a high-ranking dealer named Rich Kid, and he tells them the Dark Knight operates in the shadows.

Dupri gets word that Nyah is about to skip town and kidnaps her and her daughter. Kermit, defying orders from Stone, hits the streets and gets captured by Blaze and Armstrong. Dupri has Nyah and Kermit locked up at the Atlantic high-rise, a four-teen-story apartment building that makes the old Carter apartment building look like a luxury resort. 

Scotty and Peretti meet with Stone and tell him an informant told them Kermit and Nyah are hostages in the Atlantic. Stone orders them to stand down until they have evidence because wrongful death lawsuits by tenants in the Atlantic have caused tension between them and law enforcement. Scotty and Peretti go rogue and survey the Atlantic using a high-tech drone. They spot Kermit and tell Stone they're going in and to send SWAT. They enter, and a gunfight ensues, with Blaze, Armstrong, and gangsters occupying the grounds and hallways. Armstrong and Royce are killed, along with most of the gangsters. The hostages get freed, and Kermit informs them that Dupri is the Dark Knight.

Simone attempts to arrest Dupri but gets kidnapped by Royce and his frontman. Scotty and Peretti rush to Dupri's high-rise apartment in search of Simone and a gun battle ensues.