"Underbelly NZ: Land of the Long Green Cloud" features 12 regular cast members, with others who recur through the series. Dan Musgrove stars as the drug dealer, Marty Johnstone, also known as 'Mr. Asia', and Thijs Morris plays his right-hand man, Andy Maher. On the police side, Detective Constable Ben Charlton, the narrator of the series, is played by Jamie Irvine, and Holly Shanahan portrays his colleague, Detective Constable Caroline Derwent. Other members of the regular cast include Andrew Laing as DSS Laurie Mackenzie, Calvin Tuteao as Diamond Jim Shepherd, Damien Avery as Det. 'Goose' Gosling, Richard Knowles as DS 'Ding' Bell, Edith Poor as Bonnie Marie Jones, Gary Young as Chinese Jack, Joel Tobeck as Gary Majors, and Stelios Yiakmis as Big Ari. The recurring cast includes:   The series was generally well received in New Zealand. Chris Philpott of Stuff.co.nz called it "an interesting, albeit familiar, story focusing on a riveting character on a fascinating journey, that was performed and produced to an extremely high standard." However, some criticised the show for emphasising style over substance, sacrificing character development for a fast-paced story.