Conversations with MR. MERCEDES

Q&A with Jack Bender, Brendan Gleeson, Harry Treadaway, Scott Lawrence, Holland Taylor and Kelly Lynch of MR. MERCEDES. Moderated by Jenelle Riley, Variety. Mr. Mercedes is based on the best-selling novel by Stephen King. David E. Kelley (“Big Little Lies,” “Boston Legal,” and “Ally McBeal,”) wrote and adapted for television and Jack Bender (“Lost,” “Under the Dome,” “Game of Thrones”) directed multiple episodes. Mr. Mercedes stars Brendan Gleeson (“Harry Potter”) as Detective Bill Hodges, Harry Treadaway (“Penny Dreadful”) as Brady Hartsfield, Kelly Lynch (“Magic City”) as Deborah Hartsfield, Jharrel Jerome (“Moonlight”) as Jerome Robinson, Scott Lawrence (“Avatar”) as Detective Peter Dixon, Robert Stanton (“Mercury Rising”) as Anthony “Robi” Frobisher, Breeda Wool (“Unreal”) as Lou Linklatter, Justine Lupe (“Francis Ha”) as Holly Gibney, and Ann Cusack (“Nightcrawler”) as Olivia Trelawney, with Mary Louise-Parker (“Weeds”) as Janey Patterson, and Holland Taylor (“The Truman Show”) as Ida Silver. Mr. Mercedesfollows a demented killer Brady Hartsfield (Treadaway) who taunts a retired police detective Bill Hodges (Gleeson) with a series of lurid letters and emails, forcing the ex-cop to undertake a private, and potentially felonious, crusade to bring the killer to justice before he is able to strike again. Stephen King describes Mr. Mercedes as his first hard-boiled detective tale. The novel was published by Scribner in June 2014 and became an immediate No. 1 New York Times Bestseller upon its release. Shortly after the release of the novel, King announced that Mr. Mercedes was the first of a projected trilogy. The second novel, “Finders Keepers,” was published by Scribner in June 2015, and the third novel, “End of Watch,” was published by Scribner in June 2016.