Why Mark Ruffalo’s Task Is the HBO Crime Drama You Should Be Watching

Mark Ruffalo leads Task, HBO’s crime drama from Brad Ingelsby, the creator of Mare of Easttown. Set in the working-class suburbs of Philadelphia, the series follows an FBI task force pursuing a string of violent robberies while the man behind them, played by Tom Pelphrey, struggles with his own family and circumstances.

The premise may sound familiar. The reason Task stands out is the people at its center, and the collision course Ingelsby builds between them.

The series premiered on HBO and HBO Max on September 7, 2025, with Ruffalo joined by Pelphrey, House of the Dragon star Fabien Frankel, Emilia Jones and a strong ensemble cast.

For anyone who enjoyed Mare of Easttown, Task is an obvious series to put on the list. But you don’t need to have seen Ingelsby’s earlier show to appreciate what he’s doing here.

Task comes from the creator of Mare of Easttown

HBO’s Sunday-night drama slot has produced some of television’s most acclaimed series, including The Sopranos, Six Feet Under, Succession and Game of Thrones.

Ingelsby’s Mare of Easttown belongs in that conversation, too. The 2021 series earned 16 Emmy nominations, with Kate Winslet winning Outstanding Lead Actress, and finished with a 95% score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Its success also created an interesting challenge for Ingelsby. A second season of Mare of Easttown was discussed, but the creator eventually became more interested in telling a different story.

In an interview with TheWrap, Ingelsby explained that he and Winslet had considered where Mare’s life could go next. The difficulty was that her journey had already been so emotionally powerful that he struggled to imagine a continuation that could match it.

That eventually led him to Task.

“We kicked the tires on Mare of Easttown Season 2 a little bit,” Ingelsby said.

Instead of returning to Mare’s world with another mystery, he wanted to explore a very different kind of crime story, one centered on Tom Brandis, a man whose faith has been shaken and who is trying to find his way out of a personal abyss.

The result became Task.

What is Task about?

At the heart of Task is Tom Brandis, played by Mark Ruffalo, an FBI agent based in Philadelphia who leads a task force investigating a series of violent robberies.

The criminals are led by Robbie, played by Tom Pelphrey, an unsuspecting family man whose life puts him on a collision course with Tom and his team.

HBO’s premise describes the story as taking place in Philadelphia’s working-class suburbs, where an FBI agent assembles a task force to stop a series of violent robberies led by a seemingly ordinary family man.

That setup naturally invites comparisons with Heat, Michael Mann’s crime classic about an obsessive detective and the professional criminal he’s determined to catch.

For Ingelsby, however, the connection is deliberate.

Heat was one of his major influences, while Mare of Easttown provided the character-driven foundation for Task. He wanted to move away from the traditional whodunnit structure and instead create tension from two characters moving inevitably toward each other.

That’s what he admired about Heat: the audience can want the criminal to escape while simultaneously wanting the detective to catch him. Those desires cannot be satisfied at the same time.

Ingelsby brought that same idea to Task. Tom and Robbie occupy very different worlds, but the story keeps pushing them toward the same unavoidable confrontation.

The contrast between them is also important. Tom is a man of faith who has lost his faith. Robbie, by comparison, does not believe in God and places his faith in what he can see, feel and touch, particularly his children and his brother.

Their opposing worldviews give the crime story a more personal dimension.

Mark Ruffalo leads a strong Task cast

Ruffalo anchors the series as Tom Brandis, with Tom Pelphrey playing Robbie.

The main cast also includes:

• Fabien Frankel as Anthony Grasso
• Emilia Jones as Maeve
• Thuso Mbedu as Aleah
• Raúl Castillo as Cliff
• Alison Oliver as Lizzie
• Owen Teague as Peaches
• Silvia Dionicio as Emily
• Martha Plimpton as Kathleen McGinty

The full ensemble is one of the show’s major strengths, with the FBI investigation existing alongside Robbie’s family, friends and criminal connections.

Ruffalo has described Tom as one of the most intense characters he has played. The character arrives in the story in poor physical and emotional shape, having gained weight and fallen into an increasingly disordered routine.

Ingelsby explained that Tom’s appearance reflects the aftermath of tragedy. With the family’s anchor gone, Tom has become adrift both as a parent and in the way he eats and drinks.

Ruffalo didn’t actually gain the weight for the role. Instead, he wore padding beneath his clothes.

That decision also helped preserve the possibility of returning to another physically demanding role: Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Ruffalo noted that the role was not certain at the time, but said that playing the Hulk was his bread and butter and that there is nowhere to hide inside that suit.

Is Task worth watching?

Yes. If you’re looking for a character-focused crime drama, Task deserves a place near the top of the list.

The critical response has been particularly strong. Rotten Tomatoes currently lists Season 1 at 96% from critics, with the consensus praising Ruffalo and Pelphrey while describing the series as a bleak but gripping crime story.

The response also highlights what separates Task from a conventional police thriller. Rather than relying entirely on the investigation, the series spends considerable time exploring the people caught on both sides of it.

The Wall Street Journal praised the way information is gradually revealed, describing the series as a strong argument for the seven-, eight- or nine-part television format. The review emphasized the show’s ability to distribute its mysteries in small pieces without sacrificing momentum.

IndieWire similarly argued that the similarities between Task and other crime dramas don’t diminish its impact, pointing instead to the show’s ability to create a world that feels compelling enough to fully immerse the viewer.

The Los Angeles Times highlighted another quality: while many crime dramas settle into bleak nihilism, Task ultimately aims for something more hopeful.

That combination of crime, family drama, faith and moral uncertainty is central to what Ingelsby is trying to accomplish.

And while Task clearly shares DNA with Mare of Easttown, it isn’t simply a replacement for that series. Ingelsby deliberately moved away from another murder mystery and built the new show around the tension between two men whose lives are heading toward the same collision.

That makes Task particularly appealing for viewers who like crime dramas where the investigation matters, but the characters matter just as much.

How to watch Task

Task is available on HBO and HBO Max in the US. UK viewers can watch the series weekly on Sky Atlantic or stream it through NOW.

Season 1 premiered on September 7, 2025. The first season consists of seven episodes, with the finale airing on October 19, 2025.

If Mare of Easttown showed what Brad Ingelsby could do with a small-town mystery, Task demonstrates how that character-first approach can work within a larger FBI crime story.

With Mark Ruffalo and Tom Pelphrey at the center, the series has plenty of crime and suspense. What gives it staying power, though, is the question underneath the investigation: what happens when two damaged men, driven by completely different beliefs, are pushed toward the same unavoidable confrontation?