Vic Mackey

Victor Samuel Mackey
The Shield character
Vic Mackey, portrayed by Michael Chiklis
First appearance	"Pilot" (episode 1.01)
Last appearance	"Family Meeting" (episode 7.13)
Created by	Shawn Ryan
Portrayed by	Michael Chiklis (both series and video game)
Information
Nickname(s)	Vic
Gender	Male
Occupation	Detective (Season 1 - Season 7) ICE agent (Season 7)
Title	Analyst
Spouse(s)	Corinne Mackey (ex-wife)
Children	Cassidy Mackey (daughter) Matthew Mackey (son) Megan Mackey (daughter) Lee Sofer (son)

Victor Samuel "Vic" Mackey, played by Michael Chiklis, is a fictional character and the protagonist of the highly acclaimed FX crime drama series The Shield, which ran for seven seasons. Mackey was a corrupt and brutal detective in the Los Angeles Police Department; he stole from drug dealers, routinely beat suspects and committed murder on at least three occasions. While two of the victims were violent gangsters, one was a fellow cop who was secretly working to expose Vic and his unit. Mackey saw his tactics as a means to an end. He is a devoted father and also saw himself as a family man.

Little is known about Mackey's early life, although his surname is probably of Irish origin (he occasionally wears a shamrock T-shirt). He also once mentioned that his father was a bricklayer (however, this may have been a joke). In season five, he told Lt. Jon Kavanaugh that he had been a police officer for at least 14 years. In one of the DVD commentaries for season four, Michael Chiklis mentions that the main characters on the show are from the same areas as the actors who play them, which would imply that Mackey is a native of the Boston, Massachusetts area. In support of this theory, during the season one episode "Cherrypoppers", Vic approaches a suspect outside of an underage sex show and, as a ruse, asks if the man remembers him from Boston.

Vic Mackey's morality is a classic example of selfish consequentialism. Mackey feels that his actions are justified if they produce the best consequences for himself and those close to him. While he had a solid status as a family man, he committed adultery with several women, including his fellow officer Danielle "Danny" Sofer. Mackey's personality is often viewed as narcissistic or machiavellian (in fact his surname, Mackey, sounds like the beginning syllables of "Machiavelli", which may or may not be coincidence), believing that the ends justify the means. However, this ultimately led to his downfall, which he narrowly avoided until the very end of the series.