HBO’s new Sunday-night drama Task centers on an uneasy pursuit: Mark Ruffalo portrays Tom Brandis, a former priest-turned-FBI agent tapped to lead a special task force that must track down Robbie Prendergrast, played by Tom Pelphrey. Robbie is a struggling trash collector and family man who has been robbing gang houses late at night, and the series explores the ripple effects of their collision on children, colleagues and adversaries.
The show’s ensemble cast pulls together familiar faces from film, stage and other premium-TV hits, pairing established stars with rising talent as the narrative alternates between crime procedural and character study.
Ruffalo’s Tom Brandis arrives in Task in a dark place, a man carrying the weight of a personal tragedy who has been reassigned from a cushy Bureau post to head a sensitive operation. The character’s past as a priest and present interest in birdwatching are threaded through the early episodes. Ruffalo is a two-time Emmy winner and four-time Oscar nominee who became widely known for playing Bruce Banner in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. His previous HBO work includes I Know This Much Is True and The Normal Heart; his recent film credits include Mickey 17 and Poor Things.
Tom Pelphrey’s Robbie Prendergrast is introduced as a down-on-his-luck father in the working-class suburbs of Philadelphia whose wife has left, leaving him caring for their children with the help of his late brother’s adult daughter, Maeve. Pelphrey has built a television résumé that includes Ozark, Outer Range, Love & Death and A Man in Full, as well as a turn on Marvel’s Iron Fist.
Emilia Jones plays Maeve Prendergrast, who works at a local arcade and acts as a steadying — and often scolding — presence in Robbie’s household. Jones broke out as the lead in the Oscar-winning film CODA and has since appeared in indie titles such as Cat Person and Reality; she is also set to appear in Edgar Wright’s adaptation of The Running Man.
The criminal side of the series is anchored by the Dark Hearts motorcycle gang. Jamie McShane appears as Perry Dorazo, a higher-ranking member who helped elevate Jayson Wilkes within the group. Sam Keeley plays Jayson, the local chapter leader whose control of the drug trade is threatened as Robbie’s thefts escalate. McShane is a veteran character actor with credits that include Sons of Anarchy, Bloodline, Gone Girl and Netflix’s Wednesday, while Keeley’s credits range from Megan Leavey to the series The English Game and Kin.
On the law-enforcement side of the task force, Thuso Mbedu portrays Aleah Clinton, a young officer who arrives buttoned-up and methodical. Mbedu gained international attention as the lead in Barry Jenkins’s adaptation of The Underground Railroad after starring in South Africa’s Is’thunzi; her feature credits include The Woman King and Mufasa: The Lion King. Fabien Frankel plays Anthony Grasso, the team member with the most experience in Philadelphia gang and drug enforcement. Frankel is best known to HBO audiences as Ser Criston Cole on House of the Dragon and has appeared in Netflix’s The Serpent.
Alison Oliver is Lizzie Stover, a state trooper undergoing a divorce whose initial appearance on the task force is distracted and ill-prepared. Oliver made a high-profile screen debut in Hulu’s Conversations With Friends and has recently worked on stage and in films such as Saltburn. Raúl Castillo plays Cliff Broward, Robbie’s loyal friend and partner on the trash route; Castillo is known for his work on Looking, Atypical and feature films including Army of the Dead and Hustle.
Silvia Dionicio appears as Emily Brandis, Tom’s teenage daughter, whose strained relationship with her father the series gradually reveals to be more tragic and complex than it first appears. Dionicio’s television credits include New Amsterdam, Chicago P.D. and FBI: Most Wanted. Martha Plimpton plays Kathleen McGinty, Tom’s no-nonsense FBI boss and one of his staunchest supporters. Plimpton’s career stretches back to childhood roles in The Goonies and The Mosquito Coast; more recent credits include The Regime and Prime Target.
Task is structured to alternate tightly observed procedural set pieces with character-driven interludes, allowing episodes to trace the personal consequences of the central investigation as clearly as the mechanics of the law enforcement operation. The show’s creators have emphasized the ensemble nature of the cast in public materials, and early coverage has highlighted how the series seeks to chart the interconnected lives of those on both sides of the law.
The series joins a slate of recent HBO productions that pair high-profile movie actors with a roster of television veterans and newcomers. Viewers familiar with the cast will recognize performers from other HBO programs and from awards-season hits, while others will encounter actors whose career arcs are moving from stage and indie film to mainstream streaming drama. Task airs on HBO on Sunday nights.