Elias "Eli" Thompson is a fictional character in the HBO TV show Boardwalk Empire where he was portrayed by Shea Whigham and Ryan Dinning and Oakes Fegley in flashbacks in Season 5.
Eli had a great relationship with both of his parents and his two siblings, unaware that Ethan was an abusive alcoholic who used to beat Elenore and Nucky whenever he was drunk.
Eli overhears Ethan talking to Nucky about the Commodore (John Ellison Conlee) visiting the house earlier that day and the idea of giving Susan a proper burial, which he scoffed at.
The two are later caught by Sheriff Peter Lindsay (Boris McGiver), who feels sorry for them and takes them to his home, where they have a fun and light dinner with him, his wife and their son and daughter.
[10] Eli has married June (Nisi Sturgis) and they have nine children: William, Michael, Patrick, Brian, Dermott, Nora, Kathleen, Ann and Edith.
Eli becomes a member of Nucky's political machine, which includes Chief Clerk of the Fourth Ward Paddy Ryan (Samuel Taylor), Alderman George O'Neill (William Hill), Alderman and Ward Boss Al Boyd (Edward McGinty), Ward Boss Damien Fleming (Victor Verheaghe), Ernie Moran (John Keating), Duncan O'Connor (John Treacy Egan), Mayor Harry Bacharach (John Rue) and his and Nucky's childhood friend Alderman Jim Neary (Robert Clohessy).
Eli congratulates Nucky's protege and WW1 veteran James "Jimmy" Darmody (Michael Pitt) when he returns home to Atlantic City in December 1919 after the war is over.
In his first appearance in the series, Eli celebrates the beginning of prohibition and bootlegging at Babette's Supper Club along with Nucky, Lucy, Jimmy, Paddy and all the other ward bosses.
Later, he investigates the Hammonton hijacking and finds out it was perpetrated by Jimmy, Billy Winslow (Chase Coleman) and Al Capone (Stephen Graham).
Eli and Deputy Halloran kidnap and beat Hans to death before dumping his body into the river, where it is later labelled as the "catch of the day" and seen by Nucky and Bill McCoy (Pearce Bunting).
Before Eli could smother him to death, the victim is wheeled to New York City by FBI Agent Nelson Van Alden (Michael Shannon) and his partner Eric Sebso (Erik Weiner).
At the dinner, Eli gives his speech in front of the aldermen, ward bosses, Mayor Bacharach, the Commodore (Dabney Coleman) and Ethan Thompson (Tom Aldredge).
Joining Eli in this conspiracy is Jimmy Darmody (now back from Chicago), Gillian, Mickey Doyle and the Commodore, who wants to take over Atlantic City once again.
Eli, Jimmy and the Commodore then send Deputy US Attorney George "Solomon" Bishop (Bill Sage), who arrests Nucky at the Ritz-Carlton for election fraud and takes over his office and operations.
After being released from prison, Nucky realizes that Eli, the Commodore, Gillian, Jimmy, Neary, O'Neill, Boyd and Paddy Ryan all betrayed him to take him down.
One day, Eli has a meeting at the Commodore's mansion with Jimmy, Lucky Luciano, Meyer Lansky (Anatol Yusef), Al Capone and Richard Harrow (Jack Huston), where they discuss ideas on how to expand their criminal empire.
Before he could continue his conversation, Eli is arrested by Deputy U.S. Attorney Esther Randolph (Julianne Nicholson) and put in a holding cell until his and Nucky's trials.
During his sentence, his oldest son William "Willie" Thompson (Kevin Csolak) drops out of school to provide for the family by working at the local lumber yard.
One day during one of their bootlegging journeys, Eli, Mickey, Owen and the other warehouse workers are confronted by gangster Gyp Rosetti, (Bobby Cannavale) who tells them to go back as he is taking control of their route.
They all celebrate Emily's birthday before preparing for a meeting with Arnold Rothstein, Wild Bill Lovett, Peg Leg Lonergan, Lucky Luciano, Frankie Yale (Joseph Riccobene) and Waxey Gordon (Nick Sandow) on how to take care of Rosetti.
Eli hears the news and goes to Chalky's place, along with Al Capone and his henchmen, to team up with Nucky to end Rosetti's reign once and for all.
[34] Eli and Nucky go to the Artemis Club (formerly the Commodore's mansion, now a brothel owned by Gillian Darmody) and find several of Rosetti's henchmen dead (all killed by Richard Harrow).
Eli finds out, and Nucky manages to get him out of trouble by framing his roommate Clayton for the murder, causing him to go to prison and for Willie to stay at Temple.
[38] A few days later, Agent Knox/Tolliver, who has now found out about Henry's death and the real cause, confronts Eli and forces him to become an informant for the FBI or he will reveal Willie as a murderer and send him to jail.
[39] After becoming an informant, Eli listens to everything Knox/Tolliver says and secretly tells him everything about Nucky's organization, which Tolliver shares with his boss at the FBI, J. Edgar Hoover (Eric Ladin).
He also meets New York mobster Salvatore Maranzano (Giampero Judica) and Old Rumpus Bell boy Joe Harper (Travis Tope).
They offer a trade deal: Willie is to be given back to them for Luciano and Lansky's friend and associate Bugsy Siegel (Michael Zegen).
He gives Luciano, Lansky, Siegel and their partner Pinky Rabonowitz (Ethan Herschenfeld) control of Atlantic City in exchange for Willie.
Eli opens the package Nucky gave him, which includes thousands of dollars and a razor to shave himself with along with a note telling him to go back to his family.
[49] In a 2014 interview preceding Season 5 for Los Angeles Times, Whigham talked about the fact that Eli is the "Everest" of his career and how he managed to act like him for the show.