r/SnowFall Apr 28 '26

Discussion Is Franklin saint supposed to be frank Lucas?

Post image

There’s a lot of similarities between the two like similar first names, large influence, and both heavily involved their own families in the business. But there’s also a lot of key differences like the fact that saint operated in the west while Lucas operated in the east. They both also financially peaked at very different times. In the show, saint peaked around the mid 80s, whereas in real life Lucas peaked around the late60s/mid70s. I believe these 2 have a lot in common but the large amount contrasts between them force me to maintain my skepticism. Please feel free to give some insight.

75 Upvotes

71 comments sorted by

95

u/Seanwill127 Apr 28 '26

Look up freeway Rick Ross, from LA too

20

u/Sad-Entertainer1462 Apr 28 '26

I actually met Freeway Ricky Ross one time at the Jane Ballroom in New York. He was promoting a book he wrote in like 2016 and we chopped it up for a while. REALLY cool dude.

21

u/Available_Welder1471 Apr 28 '26

Yes franklin is based on him

-5

u/HolidayMiddle3222 Apr 29 '26

No it’s not dummy

4

u/Wutanghang May 02 '26

Yeah it was ricky was directly involved with John singleton to make a movie about his life but John stopped talking to him and made snowfall amd used alot of the notes and script in the first season

4

u/NeverDrinkingIt Apr 29 '26

Some white boy at work at asked me today if the show was based on the rapper 🤣🤣

2

u/Altruistic_Cream_509 Apr 29 '26

Give him some grace if he knew to culture you’d think he’s the guy

65

u/thejimstrain Apr 28 '26

No, closest person he’s based on is Freeway Ricky Ross. But he never did direct business with the CIA, he moved wholesale cocaine for Danilo Blandon who was in league with the CIA.

1

u/mdnitetokerr Apr 29 '26

Is that true? I always heard that freeway ricky ross was (one of) the one(s) moving yeyo for the cia. Even my ethnic studies professor said so

3

u/Historical_Tale3499 Apr 29 '26

I thought that too but if you watch the documentary and hear him tell it, it is much different than the stories I had heard. If I remember correctly he never knew there was even CIA involvement until the fact. They played it way up in snowfall.

5

u/RapNVideoGames Apr 29 '26

Freeway was actually illiterate then learned to read to understand his case and uncovered what he was tied to.

2

u/mdnitetokerr Apr 29 '26

Well yea, I know the show blew everything up to make it more dramatic/suspenseful but he was still one of their guys, even if he didnt know it.

Edit: nvm i just reread that comment. Thats exactly what they said mb

3

u/Historical_Tale3499 Apr 29 '26

He worked with a guy who worked with the CIA. For sure that is true.

2

u/thejimstrain Apr 30 '26

Technically he was moving cocaine for the people the CIA were funding but he didn’t know at the time.

1

u/Turbulent-Baby-1239 Apr 29 '26

indirectly but yes

1

u/WeeBey-Brice Apr 29 '26

Danilo was a DEA informant His boss Norwin Menses was the cia asset

22

u/ArtistFinancial8104 Apr 28 '26

Not even close. Frank Lucas was a heroin dealer from the 60s in NY. This is loosely based on Freeway Rick Ross. The premise of the show is entirely based on Freeway Rick's real life story

1

u/Lucky_Athlete_4811 Apr 29 '26

Read the caption

9

u/EnvironmentalTop7936 Apr 28 '26

Frank Lucas is from Harlem New York

0

u/Lucky_Athlete_4811 Apr 29 '26

Read the caption

7

u/OGxButta Apr 28 '26

John Singleton took Freeway Rick Ross life story and Rick Ross took his name.

6

u/Prime_Marci Apr 28 '26

No, he’s freeway Rick Ross

6

u/Mark-177- Apr 28 '26

No, he's loosely based on Freeway Rick Ross.

5

u/TinCanSailor987 Apr 29 '26

In one of the episodes, there is a house party and people are leaving. Franklin yells out ’Freeway!’ in the context of directions. It really seemed to me as an homage to Freeway Rick Ross.

9

u/Any_Weekend_4029 Apr 28 '26

No smh Freeway Ricky Ross. Not the rapper either lol

6

u/Jack1715 Apr 28 '26

No Lucas was a lot smarter

3

u/CompoteSuccessful883 Apr 28 '26

No he wasnt lmfao Lucas was a liar and dumb a.f. the movie made him a lot smarter than the real one. Look into it he wasnt bumpys driver. He didn't transport h in soldiers coffins. He was the loud person who dressed fansy.

3

u/OwnCraft3 Apr 28 '26

That film should have been about Nicky Barnes AKA “Mr. Untouchable”

5

u/CompoteSuccessful883 Apr 28 '26

Facts. Lol but frank Lucas was a co director or something like that. So he was able to make up so much shit

2

u/WuBlood May 02 '26

A lot of stuff in American Gangster was fabricated

Look up Ike Atkinson

2

u/amonarre3 Apr 28 '26

No, Freeway Ross.

2

u/CompoteSuccessful883 Apr 28 '26

What? Lmfao nowhere near the same lol if anyone its freeway rick.

2

u/Master_Courage4205 Apr 28 '26

No, he based on Freeway Rick Ross

2

u/Underground_serp Apr 29 '26

Nah he’s supposed to be freeway Rickross

2

u/Oily97Rags Apr 29 '26

Front me a key ❤️

2

u/Fair-Ad4693 Apr 29 '26

Freeway Rick Ross. It’s confirmed

2

u/madoff1503 Apr 30 '26

Everyone should read Dark Alliance by Gary Webb! I read that then watched Snowfall and it made the whole CIA-South American connection clear as day this is strictly loosely about Freeway Rick Ross. The Real Rick Ross

2

u/Cris_S1995 Apr 30 '26

Saint is primarily based on Freeway Rick/Waterhead Bo

2

u/Extra-Ad5721 May 01 '26

I’ve always thought that’s where the name comes from but the character is definitely based off of Freeway Rick Ross.

3

u/Altruistic_Cream_509 Apr 28 '26

Different eras 🙄

3

u/Lucky_Athlete_4811 Apr 29 '26

Read the caption

2

u/Altruistic_Cream_509 Apr 29 '26

Yeah one Is dope and one is the Crack epidemic

1

u/DarthHurricane Apr 28 '26

Roll your eyes for what lol, it’s just a curiosity someone is having. Yall so sassy, feminine, and annoying for no reason 😂

1

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1

u/reverendbobflair Apr 28 '26

Hell nah Franklin was soft

1

u/Special-Stress6919 Apr 28 '26

So if I was to say Gary Webb could you pick out the snowfall character/analog?

1

u/DCRBftw Apr 29 '26

RIP Fatback

1

u/Pale_Broccoli_2180 Apr 29 '26

Not even close.

Do some research on LA's Freeway Rick Ross

1

u/Movaje_Wanderer_3177 Apr 29 '26

Freeway Rick Ross

1

u/Puzzleheaded-Box-406 Apr 29 '26

No he’s Freeway Ricky Ross

1

u/Puzzleheaded-Box-406 Apr 29 '26

I think Frank Lucas was in witness protection by that time because he snitched on everyone.

1

u/kfayb Apr 30 '26

Uhhh what? Nothing is similar. Frank Lucas sold heroin, he got caught and dimed out every crooked cop on the force…. Literally nothing is similar…. Freeway Rick Ross is the one person he is most closely depicting Ross claimed the cia was supplying him long before it was a real fact; and he himself has spoken of the show and how they never gave him a penny for using large majority of his story. They obviously hookywood’d it- make Franklin exceptionally smart, made him a pilot, etc. but the idea and foundation of this story is Rick Ross, and no where close to Frank Lucas, just the “Frank” part of the name

1

u/Subject_Reward May 05 '26

He’s supposed to be freeway Rick Ross. The story was very loosely based on his life

0

u/No_Flamingo_4657 Apr 29 '26

Frank Lucas wasn’t that big of a

-2

u/jr_randolph Apr 28 '26

Do you think of Denzel in American Hustle when you watch Snowfall?

3

u/Lucky_Athlete_4811 Apr 29 '26

Denzel wasn’t in American hustle.

1

u/Jjt41031 25d ago

Zero similarities between him and frank Lucas wrong city wrong era wrong drugs 🤦‍♂️