Writer/director David Simon has been praised for portraying authentic environments. With The Wire, he transported millions of living-rooms to a Baltimore, Maryland grid they may never otherwise see, let alone understand. Treme carefully delved into post-Katrina New Orleans, and Generation Kill retraced the steps in the Invasion of Iraq.

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In his next series, The Deuce, Simon goes to 1970s Times Square. Before the Disney productions and the glass towered hotels, Manhattan’s grid around Times Square was an epicenter of crime, especially tied to sex and drug trafficking. From 1965 into late 1980s redevelopment, the western section of Midtown featured pornographic theaters, bookstores and live sex shows, as well as an open-air drug and prostitution market. Based on The Deuce trailer (as posted on Vulture), Simon has found a way to make present day NYC reflect the vibes from Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver.

The trailer features Rufus Thomas’ “Push And Pull, Pt. 1,” and shows the overlapping stories from the series. Starring James Franco and Maggie Gyllenhaal, the program also includes Wire alums Lawrence Gilliard Jr. (“D’Angelo Barksdale”), Anwan Glover (“Slim Charles”), Chris Bauer (“Frank Sobotka”), and Gbenga Akinnagbe (“Chris Partlow”).

In 2015, Simon confirmed that Method Man is also involved:

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The Deuce premieres September 10 on HBO.