Mark Ruffalo leads HBO's new compelling crime drama
- The Real Perspectives
- Sep 7
- 2 min read
Updated: Sep 9
Reel Perspectives
September 7, 2025
Mark Ruffalo stars in HBO's latest original drama series, "Task," which premiered with the first of seven weekly episodes on September 7. New episodes will be released every Sunday through October 19, 2025. Set in the working class suburbs of Philadelphia, the series follows FBI agent Tom Brandis, played by Ruffalo, as he leads a task force to put an end to a string of violent robberies led by an unsuspecting family man (Tom Pelphrey).
Created and executive produced by Brad Ingelsby, best known for HBO's Emmy award-winning mini series "Mare of Easttown", the series takes its time exploring the personal lives of the characters to painstaking effect. Ruffalo, best known for portraying MCU's Mike Banner/The Hulk, doesn't turn green when angry. Here, he's a middle aged FBI agent and former priest with a drinking problem who's trying to unsuccessfully recruit people into the FBI while dealing with his own personal drama before he's called back to head up a task force with young, inexperienced agents.
Robbie Prendergrast, played by Pelphrey, is a fully fleshed-out character who isn't just your typical bad guy. He's a family man who shares the house he lives in with his niece Maeve, who feels burdened and underappreciated. The interpersonal relationships between Robbie and Maeve, Tom and his strained relationship with his daughter, Tom's task force, and Robbie's family and friends are what make the series pulse with depth and complexity as Ingelsby takes his time crafting each character's personality, where there are no cookie-cutter caricatures but characters we actually care about with painful family secrets.
In addition to Ruffalo and Pelphrey, rounding out the fantastic cast are Emilia Jones, Jamie McShane, Sam Keeley, Thuso Mbedu, Fabien Frankel, Alison Oliver, Raúl Castillo, Silvia Dionicio, Phoebe Fox, and Martha Plimpton.
"Task" delivers the emotional grit and character nuance you can expect from an Ingelsby production, with executive producers Jeremiah Zagar, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, Mark Ruffalo, David Crockett, and Ron Schmidt, along with production companies Wiip and Public Record. With exceptional performances by Ruffalo and Pelphrey, and a terrific ensemble cast, the series is must-see drama on Sunday nights.
The first episode of "Task" is available on HBO and HBOMAX.
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