You've probably seen the grainy footage. It feels like a fever dream or a leaked police surveillance tape from the deep corners of Flatbush. But that's exactly why people lost their minds over it. When the money and violence cast first hit YouTube back in 2014, nobody knew if they were watching a movie, a documentary, or a crime in progress. It was chaotic. It was loud. Honestly, it was a masterpiece of "do-it-yourself" filmmaking that bypassed Hollywood entirely.
The show didn't have a massive budget. It didn't have a fancy distribution deal with Netflix or HBO at the start. It had a camera, a neighborhood that looked exactly like it does on a Tuesday night, and a group of people who knew the streets better than any scriptwriter in a Los Angeles office ever could. If you're looking for the names and the stories behind the faces that made "Money and Violence" a cultural phenomenon, you're in the right place.
The Visionary Behind the Chaos: Moise Verneau
At the center of everything is Moise Verneau. He isn't just an actor. He’s the creator, the writer, the director, and the guy who basically willed this whole project into existence because he was tired of seeing "hood movies" that felt fake. In the show, he plays Rafe.
Rafe is the moral compass of a world that doesn't really have a North Star. He’s calculated. He’s the kind of guy who thinks three steps ahead while everyone else is just trying to survive the next ten minutes. Verneau’s performance is subtle, which is weird because the show is anything but subtle. He brings this quiet gravity to the screen that makes you realize why the rest of the money and violence cast follows his lead. Verneau famously used his own money to fund the first season, shooting on the fly and editing the footage himself. That’s why it feels so intimate; there was no middleman telling him to tone it down.
Breaking Down the Main Money and Violence Cast
You can't talk about this show without talking about Miz. Played by Rene "Ray" Guercy, Miz is the wild card. If Rafe is the brain, Miz is the muscle and the mouth. He’s loud, impulsive, and occasionally hilarious, providing that dark humor that keeps the show from being too depressing. Guercy wasn't a trained actor when he started. None of them really were. But that’s the secret sauce. When Miz is arguing about street ethics or getting into a confrontation, it doesn't feel like he's hitting marks on a floor. It feels like you’re eavesdropping on a conversation you shouldn't be hearing.
Then there’s Kane, played by Nana "Kojo" Boakye.
Kane represents the younger generation, the ones caught between the old rules and the new greed. His trajectory throughout the series is one of the most heartbreaking because you see the potential for something else, but the gravity of his environment just keeps pulling him back down.
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And we have to mention Shane, played by Jamal Woolard. Now, if that name sounds familiar, it should. Woolard is the most "established" name to join the money and violence cast, famous for his portrayal of The Notorious B.I.G. in the biopic Notorious. Bringing him into the fold for later seasons added a level of professional polish, but he fit right in because he’s a Brooklyn native who understands the cadence of the dialogue. He didn't feel like a "guest star" dropped in for ratings; he felt like he belonged in that world.
The Women Who Hold the World Together
While the show is often viewed through the lens of male ego and street warfare, the female cast members are essential. They aren't just background characters or "love interests" in the traditional, boring sense. They are the ones dealing with the fallout of the men's choices.
- Audrey (played by Jessica "Juju" Heyliger): She brings a necessary groundedness to the screen. Her interactions with Rafe show a side of his character that isn't just about business.
- China (played by Jackie "Jackie-O" Quiles): She represents the hustle from a different angle, showing that the "money" part of the title isn't exclusive to the guys in the barbershop.
Why the Casting Worked When It Shouldn't Have
Usually, if you cast a bunch of people who have never been on a film set, you get a disaster. You get wooden dialogue. You get people looking at the camera.
But with the money and violence cast, the opposite happened.
The lack of formal training meant they didn't have any bad habits. They didn't "act" like gangsters; they just were people from the neighborhood. This authenticity is what caught the eye of heavy hitters like Dame Dash. When Dash saw what Verneau was doing, he didn't try to change it. He just tried to give it a bigger platform. He recognized that you can't teach the chemistry these guys had. They moved like a unit because many of them grew up together or at least occupied the same social circles in Brooklyn.
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It’s about the "Brooklyn-ness" of it all. The slang isn't translated for a suburban audience. The locations aren't cleaned up for the camera. When the cast is standing on a corner, they are actually standing on that corner, and the people walking by in the background aren't extras—they’re just neighbors going to the bodega.
The Struggles of Independent Success
It wasn't all smooth sailing. Success brought its own set of problems. When you go from a YouTube sensation to a Tidal-exclusive series, expectations change. Fans started complaining about the wait times between episodes. There were rumors about internal beefs within the money and violence cast, which is almost inevitable when a small project suddenly becomes a big deal.
Verneau has been very open about the difficulties of keeping a cast together when everyone starts getting other offers or when life just gets in the way. Some actors moved on to other projects. Others stepped away from the limelight entirely. But the core group remained loyal to the vision. They understood that "Money and Violence" was a lightning-in-a-bottle moment.
Lessons From the Money and Violence Cast for Creators
If you’re a filmmaker or a writer, there is so much to learn from how this cast was assembled and utilized.
First, stop waiting for permission. Moise Verneau didn't wait for a casting director to find him. He found his own stars.
Second, lean into your geography. Brooklyn is as much a character in the show as Rafe or Miz. The cast interacts with their environment in a way that feels lived-in.
Third, value authenticity over "polish." A "perfect" actor might have delivered the lines with better diction, but they wouldn't have had the right rhythm.
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What Happened to Everyone?
Today, the legacy of the money and violence cast lives on in the "street-vlog-drama" genre that has exploded on YouTube. Shows like The North Pole or various Chicago-based web series owe a massive debt to what Verneau and his crew did.
- Moise Verneau continues to push his Cloud 9TV brand, working on new scripts and staying active in the indie film scene.
- Jamal Woolard remains a staple in urban cinema and hip-hop culture.
- Ray Guercy (Miz) still has a massive following of fans who quote his lines daily.
The show proved that there is a massive, underserved audience that wants to see their reality reflected without the Hollywood filter. It showed that you don't need a $20 million budget if you have a story that people actually give a damn about.
How to Support Independent Urban Cinema
If you want to see more projects like this, you have to support them where they live. Don't just wait for them to show up on your big-name streaming apps.
- Follow the creators directly. Most of the money and violence cast are active on Instagram and YouTube. Their personal channels are often where the real behind-the-scenes "gems" are hidden.
- Watch on official platforms. If a creator moves their content to a specific platform (like Cloud 9TV's own site), pay the subscription. That money goes directly into production for the next season.
- Engage with the community. The reason "Money and Violence" blew up was word of mouth. Share the links. Comment on the videos. The algorithms notice when people are talking about a specific cast.
- Look for local screenings. Occasionally, Verneau and the crew hold independent screenings in New York. There is nothing like watching these episodes in a room full of people who actually "get" the references.
The story of the money and violence cast isn't just about a show; it's about a shift in how media is made. It’s about the democratization of storytelling. You don't need a gatekeeper anymore. You just need a story, a crew, and the guts to put it out there for the world to see. Check out the early episodes on YouTube if you haven't seen them in a while; the raw energy is still there, even a decade later.