The pilot version of Hulu’s “Southern Bastards” has expanded its cast with the addition of five new cast members.
Jonathan Tucker (Kingdom, Palm Trees and Power Lines), Amin Joseph (Snowfall, One of Them Days), Ethan Suplee (American History X, My Name Is Earl) ), Derek Luke (Antwone Fisher, Friday Night Lights) has been cast in the pilot, and Aounjanou Ellis-Taylor (The King) is appearing in the pilot, Variety reports. Richard”, “Justified: City Primeval”) are scheduled to make guest appearances.
The new additions join previously announced cast members Kevin Bacon, Erin Kellyman, and Tim McGraw. Full character descriptions can be found below.
Southern Bastards is based on the graphic novel of the same name. The pilot aired on Hulu in October 2025. The official logline says the show “follows a tenacious military veteran (Kellyman) to Crow County, Alabama, in search of her estranged father (Bacon). What she discovers is a hornet’s nest of violent organized crime run by the South’s most winning high school football coach (McGraw).”
Mr. Tucker is repped by Paradigm, Management 360, and Hansen, Jacobson & Teller. Joseph is repped by Entertainment 360, Gersh and Fox Rothschild. Suplee is represented by Paradigm, Nicole Garcia Management, and Hansen, Jacobson & Teller. Luke is repped by Gersh, LINK Entertainment and HillTop Entertainment. Elise Taylor is repped by CAA and TMT Entertainment Group.
Bill Dubuque and Nia DaCosta are credited with a joint story on Southern Bastards, with Dubuque writing and executive producing the television drama. Matt Olmsted will serve as showrunner and executive producer. Reynaldo Marcus Green will direct and executive produce the pilot. Based on the graphic novel, Jason Aaron and Jason Latour will serve as executive producers. POV Entertainment’s Layne Eskridge also serves as executive producer along with Proximity Media and Green’s Ryan Coogler, Sev Ohanian and Zinzi Coogler. Proximity’s Simone Harris and POV’s Kate Berry will serve as co-executive producers. Proximity Media creative executives Hannah Baker and D’Angelo Louis will also oversee the project. This series is produced in conjunction with The Fifth Season.
Character description:
Jonathan Tucker (“Esaw”) – Esaw Goings is a muscular, lean linebacker. He has been suffering from undiagnosed CTE since his playing days. An assistant coach for the Crow County High School football team, he is also Coach Boss’s trusted enforcer and “chief leg breaker” who does the dirty work that keeps Boss’s local empire afloat. Hungry for status and short-tempered, he is an obedient foot soldier who ultimately has absolute loyalty to his boss.
Amin Joseph (“Hardy”) – Hardy Whitworth is a former star football player whose NFL dreams were cut short due to a knee injury. He is currently the Sheriff of Crow County, but acts primarily as a puppet, playing the roles requested by Coach Boss. Although he has good sense and a professional and friendly demeanor, he is morally corrupt as he attempts to cover up the violent crimes that occur under his watch. I hope to get back to his glory days someday.
Ethan Suplee (“Meter”) – Eugene “Meterhead” Maples is a former offensive lineman. More of a sidekick than a mastermind, he is loyal to fellow assistant football coach Esaw Goings, and even assists him as an enforcer for his boss’s organized crime syndicate. He hints at a conscience, but so far he’s a real team player in this criminal organization.
Derek Luke (“Uncle Lou”) – Uncle Lou is sharp, charismatic, and singularly focused on monetizing the talents of his nephew, star football player Demetrius. A former tour manager with a hustler’s instincts, he sees soccer as both an opportunity and a business. Protective and pragmatic, he plans to control the money so his nephew can focus on the game, unfazed by his boss’s stature.
Aunjanou Ellis Taylor (“Vernetta”) – Roberta’s active but worried mother. Furious that the military would treat her daughter this way, she urges her daughter to seek help from her father, despite Roberta’s attempts to deflect. She manages to put as much distance between herself and Crow County as possible until her daughter’s journey of revenge draws her back to her hometown.
