TVLine’s Performer of the Week: Mark Ruffalo

THE PERFORMER | Mark Ruffalo

THE SHOW | HBO’s Task

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THE EPISODE | “Vagrants” (Oct. 5, 2025)

THE PERFORMANCE | We’ve seen Mark Ruffalo play a big, green, invulnerable superhero on the big screen before. But in HBO’s spellbinding crime drama, he’s been incredibly vulnerable as rumpled, haunted FBI agent Tom Brandis. He’s nominally the hero of this story, but he’s no superhero. He’s just a man who wants to do his job and take care of his family, and that humble humanity was front and center this week as Tom came face-to-face with the man he’s been pursuing all season long.

Tom followed a lead that led him right to kidnapper Robbie’s doorstep, and he was smart enough to play dumb, with Ruffalo deliberately bumbling around to look as non-threatening as possible to Robbie, stalling him until backup could arrive. (Tom has been out of the field for a while, but his instincts are still right on.) Robbie saw through his ruse, though, and forced Tom to drive him away at gunpoint, and the long drive let the two men get to know each other — and learn how much they have in common. Ruffalo tapped into Tom’s spiritual side as a former priest, calmly counseling Robbie and opening up about his family and his faith as a way to connect with his captor. (Tom Pelphrey was fantastic in these scenes, too, his sad eyes spelling out Robbie’s deep regret.) Tom tried to offer Robbie a way out (“you could still go home”), but the two men ended up in the woods, and with Tom facing certain death, he begged to be able to speak to his kids first, Ruffalo weaving in subtle notes of Tom’s own regret about the things he never got to say.

Tom was spared in the end, and a beautiful look of wistful gratitude crossed Ruffalo’s face as Tom walked up to families enjoying the lake, blissfully unaware. The episode wrapped up with a tense standoff between Tom and Robbie, guns pointed at each other — and we can honestly say we don’t want either of them to pull the trigger. Ruffalo might not be playing a giant green punching machine this time, but his finely calibrated work as Tom this week packed a serious gut-punch just the same.

Scroll down to see who got Honorable Mention shout-outs this week…

HONORABLE MENTION: Rory Alexander

Tender resignation, thy name is Rory Alexander, who in Outlander: Blood of My Blood’s Season 1 finale made beauty out of Murtagh’s pain, as he made his peace with forever being Brian and Ellen’s third wheel. Murtagh’s agony at being in love with his best friend’s girl has been a throughline of the season, driven home by the longing Alexander has brought to so many of his scenes. But Murtagh had come to a realization by the time he and Ellen were alone in the cabin, and everything about Alexander radiated a grateful, if painfully achieved, peace. Murtagh was bashful but resolute as he told Ellen he’d find his happiness in hers with Brian, Alexander making his character’s slight embarrassment clear with a ducked head and quick glances at the woman he’d thought was his future. The exchange was sweet. It made us ache. And Alexander completely sold it: This is the Murtagh we know will support the Frasers until his dying breath. — Kimberly Roots

HONORABLE MENTION: Jeanne Tripplehorn

The Lowdown gave Jeanne Tripplehorn space to crack her character wide open as she unleashed grief-coated anger on Ethan Hawke’s Lee. After calling him out for disrespecting her family, the actress layered Betty Jo with saucy mystery, as the characters slugged tequila and waxed poetic about their broken hearts. Tripplehorn transfixed us as she sensually whispered into Lee’s ear before storming the karaoke stage. When the two lubricated new friends (frenemies?) headed back to Betty Jo’s, the actress kicked her sex appeal into high gear, but not before pulling a loaded gun on Lee — as a joke! Terrifying for Lee, a hoot for us. The entire circus came to a head when B.J. revealed one heck of a shocker about the paternity of her daughter. It may have been an emotionally unstable rollercoaster ride for Betty Jo, but thanks to Tripplehorn’s prowess, we had our arms raised to the sky on a ride we didn’t want to get off. — Nick Caruso

Which performance(s) knocked your socks off this week? Tell us in the comments!

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