Godfather of Harlem: Who Is Big Dick Buster? Meet Hank Strong’s Character

Few characters from the first season of Godfather of Harlem had a lasting impact like Big Buster (Hank Strong), because he made all the difference in Bumpy’s (Forest Whitaker) torture rooms without saying a word. Big Buster only made two short cameos in the show, but they made him the fan-favorite punisher. His big muscles and scary appearance are unforgettable for most fans, and many are still wondering who Big Dick Buster is and what happened to him in Godfather of Harlem.

Big Dick Buster was Bumpy Johnson’s “motivator” who would come at Bumpy Johnson’s request to force uncooperative prisoners to speak. He was also the ultimate punisher for rapists. The character is played by the body-builder and actor Hank Strong, also famous for his role as Jericho in The Righteous Gemstones. Buster is based on a real-life henchman for Bumpy Johnson, whom he called upon to punish men that raped women in Harlem.

The show kept everything that Buster did to Bumpy’s enemies offscreen because they sounded too horrific to watch. His physical impression, whenever he entered the room, was enough to frighten Bumpy’s prisoners, not speaking of what he would do to them that always made their bodies pop, literally. So, who was Big Dick Buster to Bumpy Johnson, and why didn’t he appear in the show again after his impressive cameos in the first season?

Who plays Big Dick Buster in Godfather of Harlem?

Big Dick Buster is played by the American Actor, bodybuilder, and former celebrity bodyguard Hank Strong. Strong is one of the most physically imposing actors in the world.

At six feet and six inches in height and weighing 270 lbs, Hank Strong appears like a giant, which makes him unforgettable despite having such little screen time in Godfather of Harlem.

The super-masculine star was naturally suited for the role of Big Buster, having been born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, and knowing the streets of Harlem quite well.

Strong’s performance in Godfather of Harlem was impressive, although he had limited screen time that couldn’t attract sufficient attention for more reviews.

Strong has been in the acting industry since 2015, when he made his debut in the role of Big Guy in the short film Men Are Dogs.

He topped it up by playing Lunkhead in the hit Warner Bros Series Gotham. His performance created a balance in both physical presence and wit to the character making him one of the most dangerous villains in the show.

Despite his physical appearance giving him an unfair advantage in roles that need super-strong characters, Hank Strong brings lots of wits in his acting, being a graduate of New York University and an experienced celebrity bodyguard.

What happened to Big Buster in Godfather of Harlem?

Big Dick Buster was last seen torturing the Fredy’s store guard that raped Bumpy Johnson’s daughter Elise. It is not clear what happened to him since then, but he is presumably alive.

The black guard raped Elise after she was caught shoplifting at the clothes store. Elise blamed the act on a white guard instead, but Bumpy revealed the truth after speaking to Elise privately.

While the incident was the turning point for Elise as it led to her getting clean from heroin addiction, it didn’t end so well for the guard.

The guard begged Bumpy not to kill him, to which he replied that he was going to spare his life but that he would wish for death for the rest of his life.

Bumpy then calls in Big Buster, who is seen unzipping his pants as Bumpy and his henchmen leave the room. The scene ends off-camera with the guard screaming uncontrollably as Buster rapes him.

The same thing happened in the first episode of Godfather of Harlem when the black man hired by Zambrano to kill Bumpy refused to mention the person that hired him to Valbuena, Chance, and Pettigrew.

Big Buster walked into the room, and immediately after Bumpy’s men left the assassin to him, sounds of breaking bones and popping flesh could be heard off-camera before the man screamed Zambrano’s name.

The impression from both scenes is that Buster is Bumpy’s ultimate punisher, used to torture his most dangerous enemies by raping them to insanity.

When Bumpy calls Buster on someone, the person is basically finished because even if they don’t die, the pain, fright, and trauma of Buster’s punishment are enough to make them insane.

Who was Big Buster in real life?

Big Buster is believed to have been “the administrator of rough justice,” whom Bumpy Johnson kept on retainer during his time as the mob boss in Harlem.

Chris Brancato and Forest Whitaker, who co-create the show, said that Margaret Johnson, Bumpy Johnson’s daughter, told them that Buster was kept on a retainer by Bumpy to punish men that raped women in Harlem.

There is little information about the person behind the character, but he is believed to have been a popular figure in Harlem in the period covered by the show.

Big Dick Buster was added to Godfather of Harlem based on information the creators received from interviewing multiple people in their 80s and not just Bumpy Johnson’s daughter.

The real identity of Big Buster is not known, and therefore the physical features portrayed by Hank Strong in the show may not necessarily depict the person’s real-life appearance.

There are no details of how Buster punished the rapists either, so raping them in return may not necessarily be how Bumpy Johnson used the person.

Hank Strong’s appearance and strong-man performance helped imprint the character into legend though, proving that Bumpy Johnson was more than just a Robin Hood. He actually cared about the welfare of the people of Harlem.

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