HBO is giving us a first look at Task, the gritty new crime drama from Mare of Easttown creator Brad Ingelsby—and if the trailer’s any indication, things are about to get real messy in the Philly suburbs.
Set to premiere this September on HBO and streaming on Max, Task follows an FBI agent (Mark Ruffalo) who’s tapped to lead a ragtag task force assembled to shut down a string of violent home invasions plaguing working-class neighborhoods outside Philadelphia. But the twist? The man behind the robberies isn’t your typical criminal—he’s a seemingly ordinary family man, played by Tom Pelphrey (Ozark, Love & Death), whose quiet life hides some dangerous secrets.
South African breakout star Thuso Mbedu (The Woman King, The Underground Railroad) also features prominently in the seven-episode series, which explores themes like drug abuse, fractured families, and moral ambiguity under the surface of a community on the edge.
Joining the cast are Emilia Jones (CODA), Jamie McShane, Sam Keeley, Fabien Frankel (House of the Dragon), Alison Oliver (Saltburn), Raúl Castillo, Silvia Dionicio, Phoebe Fox, and Martha Plimpton. Mireille Enos also appears in a recurring role.
The trailer, scored by Guns N’ Roses’ “Patience,” teases a suspense-filled story with plenty of character drama and emotional gut punches—very much in the spirit of Mare of Easttown, with that signature Brad Ingelsby tension baked in.
Ingelsby serves as showrunner and executive producer alongside directors Jeremiah Zagar (We the Animals) and Salli Richardson-Whitfield (Winning Time, American Fiction). Mark Roybal, Paul Lee (for Wiip), Ruffalo, David Crockett, and Ron Schmidt also executive produce, with Nicole Jordan-Webber and Jeremy Yaches of Public Record co-executive producing.
Episodes will release weekly starting this September on HBO and stream on Max.