Boardwalk Empire is an American television series from premium cable channel HBO, set in Atlantic City, New Jersey during the Prohibition era. It stars Steve Buscemi as Nucky Thompson. The show was adapted by Emmy Award-winning screenwriter and producer Terence Winter (of The Sopranos) from a book about historical criminal kingpin Enoch L. Johnson by Nelson Johnson, titled Boardwalk Empire: The Birth, High Times, and Corruption of Atlantic City.
The pilot episode, directed by Martin Scorsese, was produced at a cost of $18 million. On September 1, 2009, HBO picked up the series for an additional 11 episodes. The series premièred on September 19, 2010. The series was renewed for a third season, which premièred on September 16, 2012. On October 2, 2012, HBO announced that the series was renewed for a fourth season.