Mahershala Ali is officially heading back to our television screens, and he is bringing his Academy Award-winning talents to one of HBO’s most acclaimed new series. The Moonlight and Green Book star has been tapped to join Mark Ruffalo in the second season of the gritty crime drama Task.
In the show’s sophomore season, Ali will take on the major role of Eddie Barnes, a seasoned and highly respected DEA agent based in Philadelphia. According to the official character description, Barnes and his team will find themselves in a direct, tense conflict with the FBI unit led by Ruffalo’s returning character, Tom Brandis.
The official logline for the upcoming season teases a morally gray and psychologically complex storyline: “Tom Brandis (Ruffalo) takes the helm of a new task force, but the deeper the operation runs, the harder it is to tell who’s the target.”
Created by Brad Ingelsby, the mastermind behind the massive hit Mare of Easttown, Task was a breakout success when its first season debuted. The inaugural season followed Brandis, a former Catholic priest turned FBI agent, as his task force investigated a string of violent trap-house robberies orchestrated by an unsuspecting family man in the working-class suburbs of Philadelphia.
Fueled by a gripping dynamic between Ruffalo and season one standout Tom Pelphrey, the series quickly became a fan favorite and a critical darling, securing a stellar 96% Fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes. Now, Ali will be stepping into the ring as Ruffalo’s new rival.
This exciting casting news marks a major reunion for Ali and the premium cable network. The actor previously anchored HBO’s acclaimed crime anthology True Detective during its third season, earning him an Emmy nomination.
Season 2 of Task is currently in pre-production and filming is set to take place entirely in Southeastern Pennsylvania.
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