Everything You Need to Know About MTV’s New Series ‘Families of the Mafia’
Jersey Shore: Family Vacation isn’t the only MTV series about family. Staten Island is home to some of the most infamous mafia families. Now, MTV is pulling back the curtain on four of them to expose whether or not the next generation will embrace their family‘s legacy or break the generational curse and pursue a different lifestyle.
Here’s everything you need to know about the upcoming MTV series Families of the Mafia.
What to expect from ‘Families of the Mafia’
MTV’s new series Families of the Mafia is a docuseries that will follow four Staten Island families who have connections to some of the most notorious members of the mafia. Families of the Mafia will expose the reality of the growing divide between former-mafia member parents who want better lives for their children.
In a teaser for the series, Karen Gravano explains her desire to keep her daughter out of the mafia lifestyle. Gravano formerly appeared on the VH1 series Mob Wives alongside other famous mafiosos like Drita D’Avanzo, Carla Facciolo, and Renee Graziano.
Gravano’s father was the underboss of the Gambino crime family. In the teaser for MTV’s new series, we hear “Sammy the Bull” Gravano say “you gotta carry my weight, which sickens me.” Out of prison, his focus is now on protecting his daughter and granddaughter from the repercussions of his actions.
“I’m trying to keep my daughter away from the life,” Gravano explains in regards to her relationship with her daughter, Karina. It’s unclear if Karina’s boyfriend, Paulie, is a member of a mafia family or not, but MTV described him as “volatile.” Expect to see their relationship dissected throughout the series, too.
Who are the other mafia families?
Families of the Mafia will also feature the O’Tooles, the LaRoccas, and the Augustines.
The O’Toole family consists of Billy O’Toole, son of “Wild Bill,” an infamous member of the Brooklyn mafia. O’Toole has twins Joe and Taylor, who were raised by his ex-wife, Jess Clare. In the series, fans can expect to see Clare do everything she can to prevent her children from following in their father and grandfather’s footsteps.
The series will also highlight the LaRocca family. Gina LaRocca lost contact with her son Christian “CP” Patterson after her involvement with the drug trade in Staten Island and Brooklyn. CP’s aunt and uncle, Trish and Anthony Gelardi, raised him outside of the mafia madness. Regardless of his upbringing, CP has had run-ins with the law. In the series, his aunt, uncle, and mother strive to prevent CP from following in his father’s mafia lifestyle.
Finally, there’s the Augustine family. Lisa and Dennie Augustine. Lisa and Karen grew up together, but Lisa came from a family outside of the mafia. With her daughter, Dennie, having just graduated from college, the show captures Lisa, who has focused her energies on making sure her daughter doesn’t get caught up with the wrong crowd.
‘Families of the Mafia’ is a spinoff of ‘Made in Staten Island’
MTV’s latest mafia show comes after the short-lived series Made in Staten Island, which mysteriously disappeared from MTV’s programming after only three episodes. Starring many of the same mafia children and their families, fans were curious as to why Made in Staten Island was seemingly canceled.
In an interview with The Wiseguyz Show podcast, Gravano explained the “We are working. We weren’t canceled. We just had a couple of things come up and felt we wanted to add more layers to the show so we’re still working on it. We’ll definitely be back.”
That much is true! These families will return to MTV in Families of the Mafia on April 9.
