It is based on the life of Robert Leuci, called ‘Daniel Ciello’ in the film, an officer of the New York Police Department who chooses, for idealistic reasons, to expose corruption in the force.

[a] The screenplay, written by Lumet and Jay Presson Allen, is based on a 1978 non-fiction book, by former NYPD Deputy Commissioner Robert Daley.

The film stars Treat Williams as Ciello, with a supporting cast featuring Jerry Orbach, Lindsay Crouse and Bob Balaban.

In exchange for potentially avoiding prosecution and gaining federal protection for himself and his family, Ciello wears a wire and goes undercover to expose other dirty cops.

[6] Daley was a former New York Deputy Police Commissioner for Public Affairs who wrote about Robert Leuci, an NYPD detective whose testimony and secret tape recordings helped indict 52 members of the Special Investigation Unit and convict them of income tax evasion.

[9] In order to research the role, the actor spent a month learning about police work, hung out at 23rd Precinct in New York City, went on a drug bust, and lived with Leuci for some time.

Along with The Godfather (1972), this is the only major Hollywood movie to be shot in all five New York City boroughs (Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, Staten Island and Manhattan).

[13] Orion opened the film in a select group of theaters to allow time for good reviews and word-of-mouth to build demand ahead of wider release.

[6] It could not afford television advertising, and relied heavily on print ads, including an unusual three-page spread in the New York Times.

[6] Upon its release, Prince of the City garnered mixed reviews, some of which complained about its excessive length, or unfavorably compared Williams' performance to Pacino's in Serpico, Lumet's previous film about police corruption.

"[14] Janet Maslin of The New York Times praised its "sharply detailed landscape" and states that its "brief characterizations are so keenly drawn that dozens of them stand out with the forcefulness of major performances."

Some law-enforcement officials, however, criticized the film for glamorizing Leuci and other corrupt detectives while portraying most of the prosecutors who uncovered the crimes negatively.

The character is based on Thomas Puccio, the assistant United States Attorney in charge of the Federal Organized Crime Strike Force in Brooklyn, and Robert Daley agrees that he was treated unfairly in the screenplay.

The character, Mario Vincente (played by Steve Inwood) is portrayed as threatening to resign if the U.S. Attorney's office indicts Ciello (Leuci) for past transgressions.