Boardwalk Empire: Jimmy Darmody

James “Jimmy” Darmody is a character in Boardwalk Empire.

Favorite BE Characters:
Vote for Jimmy

Jimmy was portrayed by actor Michael Pitt, also known for his roles in:
Funny Games (2007)
Delirious (2006)
Murder by Numbers (2002)

Jimmy was a college student at Princeton who went into military in WWI. His leg was injured while in the war and now, he walks with a limp.

Family:
Father: Commodore Louis Kaestner
(Dabney Coleman)
Mother: Gillian Darmody
(Gretchen Mol)
Wife: Angela Darmody
(Aleksa Palladino)
Son: Tommy
(Connor and Brady Noon)

Associations:
Mentor (S. 1), Enemy (S. 2),
Nucky Thompson (Steve Buscemi)
Friend, Right-hand Man:
Richard Harrow (Jack Huston)
Business: Eli Thompson (Shea Whigham)
Business: Johnny Torrio (Greg Antonacci)
Business: Al Capone (Stephen Graham)
Business: Lucky Luciano (Vincent Piazza)
Business: Meyer Lansky (Anatol Yusef)
Business: Mickey Doyle (Paul Sparks)
Mentor (S. 2), Leander Whitlock (Dominic Chianese)

Other Lovers:
Season One: Pearl (Emily Meade)

In Season One, Jimmy starts out as Nucky’s driver upon his return from the war, but he is soon offered two jobs: Nucky wants him to be the Man Friday of a ward boss. Nelson Van Alden wants him to join the Feds. After meeting Al Capone, Jimmy has plans of his own, although they don’t quite work out the way he thought they would and commits robbery and murder. When it is learned there is a survivor from the incident, he soon finds himself in Chicago working for Johnny Torrio.

In Chicago, Jimmy takes up with a prostitute named Pearl, who introduces him to opium. He and Al Capone deal with Irish gangster Charlie Sheridan, who appears to be amenable to a business arrangement. Later Sheridan sends a henchman, Liam, to Torrio’s brothel. Liam disfigures Pearl’s face with a knife.

Al Capone and Jimmy take Charlie Sheridan and most of his Sheridan gang out under the pretext of making peace. Darmody makes friends with a disfigured war vet and sniper, Richard Harrow, at the Veterans Hospital. Jimmy helps Harrow make a few decisions and introduces him to Odette at Torrio’s brothel. The two scarred war vets form a bond of friendship. Harrow assists him in getting revenge for Pearl by dispatching Liam.

After Nucky makes a visit to Chicago, Jimmy returns to Atlantic City with Richard Harrow. They work for Nucky but Jimmy harbors a growing resentment toward Nucky. The reason why comes to light when Jimmy’s father is revealed to be the Commodore. After recovering from a poisoning attempt on his life, the Commodore makes plans to take Nucky down with Jimmy as his heir apparent.

Suspecting his wife of infidelity, Jimmy brutally beats the man he thinks she slept with but forgives her when Angela’s real lover is revealed.

In Season Two, Jimmy makes his choice to try to “take it all” away from Nucky, even though Nucky warns him not to trust the Commodore. He’s married Angela and moved his family to new digs. When the Commodore unexpectedly has a stroke, Jimmy assumes command. Although the Commodore’s atorney, Leander Whitlock, offers advice, it is really his mother, Gillian, who he turns to when things go wrong, and they go wrong a lot. His tete-a-tetes with his mother, exclude his wife.

Jimmy finds a new business associate in Philadelphia butcher, Manny Horvitz. When Owen makes a bomb that blows up all the bootleg liquor Jimmy and his cronies were planning to sell, he can’t make good on his deal with Horvitz or the rich old men who initially bankrolled him. On Memorial Day 1921, Nucky maneuvers him into an impromptu speech but Jimmy proves to Nucky that he is up to the challenge. What he’s not up to is taking insults from an old man who got rich feeding chipped beef to the troops.  Jimmy informs Manny of a traitor and they both deal with him in “The Age of Reason.”

Nucky’s brother has a bigger ax to grind than Jimmy. Eli wants Nucky dead and, in Peg of Old, Al Capone and Lucky Luciano agree with Eli. Arrangements are made to bring in a hitman from Chicago to do the deed, but the plan fails. Angela finds out about it in Two Boats and a Lifeguard. Nucky decides to step down and Jimmy celebrates his apparent victory. Nucky makes plans to put him out of business.

More Boardwalk Empire characters:

In Battle of the Century, Jimmy does business with George Remus and Waxey Gordon, who wants to kill Manny Horvitz. Jimmy says he doesn’t have a problem with it. Horvitz survives the attempt on his life and believes Jimmy sent the assassin.  The Commodore berates Jimmy in Georgia Peaches for his weak leadership and, once again, Eli Thompson’s plans are put in motion. Jimmy wants to do business with Chalky White but can’t meet the terms. Manny Horvitz plans to kill Jimmy but ends up shooting Angela and Louise.

Flashbacks in “Under God’s Power She Flourishes,” expose the real reason Jimmy left Princeton and joined the military. Devastated at Angela’s death, Jimmy drinks and does drugs. His mother’s callous attitude drives him over the edge and he attempts to strangle her. Despite an impressive display of strength for an old man recovering from a stroke, the Commodore loses his life when he tries to stop Jimmy.

In To the Lost, Jimmy tries to make things right, but is on the losing side of a coin toss.

Body Count:
Murders in the Woods
Lucian D’Alessio
Leo D’Alessio
Charlie Sheridan
Two Masseria Hoods
Parkhurst
Herman/Chaim
The Commodore (Louis Kaestner)

More Season Two Fatalities