When Task first landed on our screens last year, it was set up to be a surefire hit, especially seeing as it was written by Mare of Easttown writer Brad Ingelsby, who knows a thing or two about crafting an expertly done drama.
While there hasn’t been any connection between the two HBO shows until now, that’s all set to change after a major casting announcement for season 2.
It’s now been confirmed that Julianne Nicholson will be joining the cast of Task season 2. But who will she be playing? Well, she won’t be just any other character and come in for a new role, she’ll be reprising her previous Mare of Easttown role of Lori Ross.
For fans of Mare of Easttown, they’ll remember that Nicholson’s Lori was the best friend of Mare (Kate Winslet) and while they had known each other since they were kids, their friendship had reached a new level of repair after the finale saw Mare arrest Lori’s 13-year-old son Ryan (Cameron Mann) for the murder of teenage single mother Erin McMenamin (Cailee Spaeny).
At the moment, it remains to be seen how Lori will slot into Task’s second season and whether or not her inclusion will provide Mare of Easttown fans with any further answers or closure about what happened after the moments of that dramatic finale.
It was a role that awarded Nicholson her first ever Emmy, with the actress currently starring in Paradise and recent roles also including Hacks and Dope Girls.
Series writer Inglesby has always been forthright about the fact that the two shows do exist in the same universe, so it makes sense that someone from Mare of Easttown would appear in Task.
Inglesby previously told The Hollywood Reporter: “They exist in the same world, so it wouldn’t surprise me one bit if Mare [Kate Winslet] walked into a Wawa that Tom [Mark Ruffalo] was in. I don’t have a story in mind that’s a crossover, but I love the idea of their worlds intersecting.”
As for how Lori’s story will crossover with Ruffalo’s Tom, we’ll just have to be patient, but it was just earlier this year that hope was renewed for a continuation for Mare of Easttown. Although it was initially billed as a limited series for HBO, the critical acclaim for the 2021 series was widespread.
Although Winslet had previously said that the series is “done and dusted, finished”, Winslet did more recently reveal that when the topic of Mare of Easttown came up whilst she was in London editing her directorial debut Goodbye June, there were “conversations” about another season.
She told Deadline: “They were proper conversations around a timeframe when it could be possible. And so I think we probably will do it, and that’s the first time I’ve felt that.” Winslet said that it “wouldn’t actually be this year, I reckon it would end up being 2027 to film it. There’s a strong likelihood it would film sometime in 2027.”
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So could Task season 2 be paving the way for more Mare of Easttown? Quite possibly. The series synopsis for Task season 2 reads: “Tom Brandis (Mark 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.”
It’s set to be a star-studded cast for season 2 though, as Nicholson joins previously announced cast members Mahershala Ali, Harry Melling, Adam Nagaitis, Aminah Nieves and Edgar Ramirez.
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Task season 1 is available to stream on HBO Max and NOW – sign up for Sky TV.
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