Task is an American crime drama television series created and written by Brad Ingelsby for HBO. The series is set in the working-class suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where an FBI agent heads a Task Force to put an end to a string of violent robberies of drug houses. The first season premiered on September 7, 2025; it consisted of seven episodes. The first season cast includes Mark Ruffalo, Tom Pelphrey, Emilia Jones, Thuso Mbedu, Raúl Castillo, Jamie McShane, Sam Keeley, Fabien Frankel, Alison Oliver, Silvia Dionicio, and Martha Plimpton.
Task received positive reviews from critics. The series received six Primetime Emmy Award nominations, including acting nominations for Ruffalo and Pelphrey.
Originally billed as a limited series, however, in November 2025, Task was renewed for a second season. Ruffalo, Plimpton and Dionicio return for the second season. A number of new cast members were added to the show for season two, including Mahershala Ali.
Contents
Premise
Philadelphia-based FBI agent Tom Brandis is put in charge of a task force investigating a string of violent robberies against stash houses run by outlaw motorcycle gangs.
Cast
Main
Mark Ruffalo as Tom Brandis, an FBI agent and former Catholic priest ordered to head up a task force investigating a series of armed robberies, returning to field duty after taking time off due to a family tragedy
Tom Pelphrey as Robbie Prendergrast, a garbage collector for J&W Sanitation who robs "trap houses" operated by drug gangs in the Philadelphia area
Emilia Jones as Maeve Prendergrast, Robbie's 21-year-old niece who has been saddled with the raising of Robbie's young children since the departure of his wife almost a year earlier
Fabien Frankel as Anthony Grasso, a Delaware County detective who joins the task force Tom sets up to investigate the robberies
Thuso Mbedu as Aleah Clinton, a no-nonsense Chester detective sergeant who joins Tom's task force
Raúl Castillo as Cliff Broward, Robbie's friend and co-worker who joins in the trap house robberies
Alison Oliver as Lizzie Stover, an inexperienced PSP trooper on Tom's task force
Owen Teague as Kenny "Peaches" Pollard, Robbie and Cliff's accomplice in the trap house robberies
Silvia Dionicio as Emily Brandis, Tom's adopted daughter and biological sister of Ethan, Tom's adopted son
Martha Plimpton as Kathleen McGinty, FBI Supervisory Senior Resident in Charge and Tom's superior officer
Jamie McShane as Perry Dorazo, one of the national leaders of the Dark Hearts motorcycle gang whose trap houses are the target of most of the robberies
Recurring
Ben Doherty as Sam, Derek's young son
Oliver Eisenson as Wyatt Prendergrast, Robbie's son
Kennedy Moyer as Harper Prendergrast, Robbie's daughter
Stephanie Kurtzuba as Donna
Margarita Levieva as Eryn, Jayson's romantic partner who was previously involved with Robbie's brother Billy
Colin Bates as Shane McReynolds, a mechanic and member of the Dark Hearts
Dominic Colón as Derek 'Breaker'
Robert Berlin as Julius, a Dark Hearts lieutenant
Guest
Isaach de Bankolé as Daniel Georges, a Catholic priest and Tom's longtime friend
Michael Maize as Deric Nance, a Dark Hearts member who runs one of the gang's trap houses in Delaware County
Raphael Sbarge as Michael Dorsey, chief of detectives of the Delaware County Criminal Investigation Division and Anthony Grasso's boss
Mickey Sumner as Shelley Driscoll, the partner of Robbie and Cliff's friend Ray Lyman
Brian Goodman as Vincent Hawkes, one of the 12 national leaders of the Dark Hearts who make up the gang's "Mother Club"
Elvis Nolasco as Freddy Frias, a Dominican drug kingpin in Philadelphia who does business with the Dark Hearts
Coral Peña as Meg Coyle, a counselor at Emily's school
Mireille Enos as Susan Brandis, Tom's wife who was killed by their adopted son Ethan
Jack Kesy as Billy Prendergast, Robbie's deceased brother and Maeve's father, a member of the Dark Hearts who was murdered by Jayson after his affair with Eryn was discovered
Lilli Kay as Frankie Grasso, Anthony Grasso's sister
Andre Russel as Ethan, Tom's adopted son and Emily's biological brother, who is currently incarcerated for the killing of Susan, Tom's wife.
Production
Development
In June 2023, it was announced HBO had greenlit the series, with Brad Ingelsby serving as creator and writer, and Jeremiah Zagar set to direct multiple episodes. In December 2023, it was announced Salli Richardson-Whitfield would also direct multiple episodes and serve as an executive producer. In November 2024, the series's title, Task, was announced. Originally billed as a miniseries, on November 20, 2025, HBO renewed the series for a second season. On June 22, 2026, HBO announced Georgi Banks-Davies, Clare Kilner, and Kitty Green would serve as directors for the second season, joining returning director Richardson-Whitfield.
Casting
After initial choice Michael Keaton had to withdraw due to scheduling conflicts, Mark Ruffalo was announced in June 2023 to star in the series. In December 2023, Tom Pelphrey, Emilia Jones, Thuso Mbedu, Raúl Castillo, Jamie McShane, Sam Keeley, Fabien Frankel and Alison Oliver joined the cast of the series. In March 2024, Owen Teague, Dominic Colón, Margarita Levieva, Raphael Sbarge, Mickey Sumner, Elvis Nolasco, Brian Goodman, Colin Bates, Isaach de Bankolé, Phoebe Fox, Silvia Dionicio and Coral Peña joined the cast in recurring roles. In November 2024, Martha Plimpton and Mireille Enos were announced as part of the cast.
In March 2026, Mahershala Ali was cast as part of the starring cast for the second season. In May 2026, Harry Melling, Adam Nagaitis and Aminah Nieves joined the cast of the second season. In June 2026, Édgar Ramírez was cast for the second season. In July 2026, Julianne Nicholson was announced to be reprising her role from Ingelsby's other series, Mare of Easttown (2021), revealing that these series are set in the same universe. Also in July, it was confirmed Plimpton and Dionicio would return for the second season, reprising their roles. In August 2026, Tim Blake Nelson, Jharrel Jerome, Brían F. O'Byrne, Kevin Dunn, Bethlehem Million, Stephanie Sigman, Alaíde, Rocío Guzmán, and Regina Nava joined the second season, while Andrew Russel was announced to reprise his role as Ethan Brandis. In September 2026, Rose Rollins was cast as a series regular, while Carol Santiago was cast in a recurring capacity.
Filming
Principal photography of season one of began in Delaware County, Pennsylvania and Philadelphia in March 2024. Filming of season two of began in July 2026, with filming occurring in Manayunk, Philadelphia and parts of Delaware County.
Release
Task premiered on HBO on September 7, 2025. Episodes were released weekly; there were a total of seven episodes in season one.
Reception
Critical response
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 96% approval rating, with an average rating of 7.95/10, based on 83 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads: "Mark Ruffalo and Tom Pelphrey are superb in Task, a culturally-specific crime story that's unrelentingly bleak but equally riveting." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, gave a score of 77 out of 100, based on 34 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.