Alison Oliver on Task Episode 3: Running for Hours to Nail Breathless Action

HBO's Task sharpens its late-night pursuit in Episode 3, 'Nobody’s Stronger Than Forgiveness,' as the task force led by Tom Brandis closes in on Cliff Broward’s home. Broward, a garbage man-turned-thief, sits at the center of the investigation while two other players—Ray and Shelley—are already inside Broward’s house pursuing their own score. The sequence that follows is a high-stakes confrontation that tests both nerve and resolve, even though the drugs aren’t actually at Broward’s address.

The action unfolds as a tense chess match inside and around Broward’s residence. Ray pushes Tom down the basement stairs, Lizzie Stover (Alison Oliver) chases Ray through dim corridors, and Grasso (Fabien Frankel) and Aleah Clinton (Thuso Mbedu) converge to contain the escalating danger. Ray nearly overpowers Lizzie in a one-on-one struggle, but Grasso arrives at the last moment to intervene and arrest Ray. The drugs at the center of the case aren’t located at Cliff Broward’s house, yet the perilous pursuit propels a sequence that feels earned through planning as much as raw emotion.

Director Salli Richardson-Whitfield explains that the sequence is built like a puzzle: a collection of small pieces that are eventually pushed together to reveal the larger narrative. 'It’s just a huge puzzle and we’re going to put together these little pieces first and this, and this, and then we’re going to push it all together. That’s how we figured out, that’s how we work,' she said. Richardson-Whitfield emphasizes that the action must serve the story, not overwhelm it: 'as much as it’s an action sequence, I make sure — even if my assistant has to remind me — okay, you got the action part, now let’s jump in to the real story in the narrative. I don’t want it to become just an action sequence. I want you to leave there and learn something about these people and about their characters.'

Alison Oliver, who plays Lizzie Stover, carried a particularly grueling aspect of the shoot. Filming Episode 3 required Oliver to run for hours, a night-shift schedule in which she would sprint on camera and off, sometimes seen sprinting out a window in the frame. 'I wanted to be out of breath the whole time because you want to have the idea that she’s been running for ages,' Oliver recalled, describing the on-set rhythm. Fabien Frankel, who plays Grasso, laughed at the image of Oliver sprinting during setup on a different unit, noting, 'Salli shooting another scene, on another unit, and Allie’s fucking sprinting in a circle.' The pair also described the moment when Grasso’s timely arrival helps secure Lizzie’s safety, a beat that underscores the evolving dynamic between the two characters amid the danger.

The episode’s drama also foregrounds Lizzie’s nervousness and the fragility of the stakes she faces as the pursuit spills out of Broward’s house and into the surrounding night. The sequence doubles as character study: viewers glimpse Lizzie’s steadiness under pressure, Grasso’s gallantry, and the personal toll of a case that pushes them to the edge. The actions in the basement, the stairwell chase, and the narrow escape all serve to reveal who these people are under pressure and how their relationships shape their decisions when every second counts.

As the drama unfolds, the show threads the suspense of the pursuit with a delicate balance of character beats. The bar scene that follows the chase carries a sense of growth between Lizzie and Grasso, marking a shift in their relationship that fans of the series will recognize as more than just professional rapport. Oliver and Frankel hint at the chemistry that drives their scenes forward, with the actors speaking to a combination of instinct, timing, and the human cost of the night’s events. The episode’s direction and performances aim to leave viewers with a sense of what these characters endure beyond the adrenaline of a single chase.

Task continues to build its tense, ensemble-driven storytelling in Episode 3, weaving together a carefully choreographed action sequence with the intimate disclosures that define each character. The night shoot—built on meticulous planning and a deep attention to how each movement reveals motive—serves as a microcosm of the season’s broader arc: the line between justice and personal jeopardy is thin, and the people chasing it must navigate it with both skill and humanity.