Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington in American Gangster David Lee/Courtesy of Universal Studios

Scott explains that Lucas apparently felt no regrets about bringing drugs into Harlem, noting that as far as the former kingpin was concerned it was the fault of the users and the addicts. At the same time, Scott concedes that Lucas could be described as a sociopath.

"Yeah, I think that's the best word for it," Scott says. "'Sociopath' is not a pleasant description at all. Sounds cosmetic. But if you actually distill it, it's pretty lethal."

Washington disagrees.

"I wouldn't say that about Frank. I didn't find that to be true. I think… he's a man without a formal education, he's a man who at the age of six witnessed his cousin get murdered by sociopaths in uniform. Elected officials. And that changed his life," says Washington, referring to the fact that Lucas had watched his cousin murdered by the KKK in La Grange, North Carolina. "From a very young age he began to steal, and he worked his way up the line. He came to New York, and the most notorious gangster in Harlem recognized the talent, if you will, in this young kid, and he continued to train him. He was on the wrong side of the tracks, but he was a brilliant student, and became a master of the business that he was in. It's a dirty business. And he's definitely a criminal. He's responsible for the death of many people. So I don't want to just say that he's a product of his environment, but I guess to a degree we all are. But, I think, had he got a formal education, had he gone in another direction, had he had different influences, I think he still would have been a leader or a very successful man."

For Crowe, Frank Lucas's legacy is inextricably linked to the fact that had he not testified against others, the drug wars in Harlem may have continued to rage and police corruption would have proliferated.

"A lot of stuff got cleaned up because of Frank Lucas," Crowe says. "Frank Lucas turned State's evidence and 75 percent of the people in the Special Investigations Unit got busted, because they were on the take. So I think that therein is the key for the friendship that still existed between Richie and Frank. They did a thing together, post Frank's arrest, which bonded them together as men, and that bond still exists today."