The Brink
Promotional poster
Genre	Political satire
Created by	Roberto Benabib Kim Benabib
Starring	Jack Black Tim Robbins Pablo Schreiber Aasif Mandvi Maribeth Monroe Eric Ladin Geoff Pierson Esai Morales
Composer	David Robbins
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	10
Production
Executive producers	Roberto Benabib Jerry Weintraub Jay Roach
Producers	Dave Holstein Jack Black Tim Robbins
Camera setup	Single-camera
Running time	30 minutes
Production companies	Jerry Weintraub Productions Everyman Pictures Little City Iron Works
Original release
Network	HBO
Release	June 21 (2015-06-21) – August 23, 2015 (2015-08-23)

The Brink is an Americancomedy television series created by brothersRoberto Benabib and Kim Benabib.^[1] It focuses on a geopolitical crisis inPakistan. Before cancellation, the show was conceived so that each season would follow a different crisis somewhere in the world involving the same main characters. The pilot episode was written by the Benabib brothers and directed byJay Roach.^[1]

The series premiered on June 21, 2015 on the Americancable television networkHBO.^[2]The Brink was initially renewed for a second season while the first season was still airing.^[3] HBO later reversed its order and cancelled the series after just one season.^[4]

• Jack Black as Alex Talbot, a lowlyForeign Service Officer assigned to theEmbassy of the United States, Islamabad^[1]
• Tim Robbins asUnited States Secretary of State Walter Larson^[1]
• Pablo Schreiber asLieutenant Commander Zeke "Z-Pak" Tilson, a drug-dealingUnited States Naval Aviator^[1][5] on theGerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier USSUlysses S. Grant^[6]
• Aasif Mandvi as Rafiq Massoud, a Pakistani employed by the U.S. Embassy.
• Maribeth Monroe as Kendra Peterson,^[1] Walter's assistant
• Eric Ladin asLieutenant Glenn "Jammer" Taylor, Zeke'sbackseater
• Geoff Pierson asUnited States Secretary of Defense Pierce Gray
• Esai Morales asPresident of the United States Julian Navarro^[7]

• Mimi Kennedy asCIA Director Susan Buckley
• Jaimie Alexander asLieutenant Gail Sweet, apublic affairs officer on theGrant whom Zeke has impregnated
• Melanie Chandra as Fareeda Massoud, Rafiq's younger sister
• Mary Faber as Ashley, Zeke's pharmacist ex-wife and drug supplier
• Meera Syal as Naeema, Rafiq's mother
• Joey Martin as Captain Stephens
• Carla Gugino as Joanne Larson, Walter's wife,United States Department of Defensegeneral counsel and aspiring federal judge^[8]
• John Larroquette as Robert Kittredge, theevangelicalUnited States Ambassador to Pakistan
• Rex Linn asRear Admiral (upper half) McBride, commander of theGrant carrier battle group
• Iqbal Theba as General Umair Zaman, a Pakistani general who stages a military coup
• Rob Brydon as Martin^[9]
• Michelle Gomez as Vanessa^[9]
• Bernard White as General Haroon Raja,Director General of Inter-Services Intelligence and Umair's half brother
• Iris Bahr asIsraeli Foreign Minister Talia Levy

The Brink received mixed reviews from critics.Rotten Tomatoes gave the first season a rating of 53%, based on 36 reviews, with an average rating of 5.7/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "The Brink avoids disaster thanks to the game efforts of a talented cast, but they - and viewers - deserve political satire with a sharper bite."^[20]Metacritic gives the first season a score of 52 out of 100, based on reviews from 30 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".^[21]

IGN reviewer Amber Dowling gave the entire first season an 8.0 out of 10 'Great' score, saying that "after a rough first couple of episodes the actors settled into their characters and viewers grew more comfortable with the tone. Quick and surprising plot twists coupled with strong on-screen pairings eventually resulted in a fun summer romp with plenty of potential."^[22]

In India, the series aired within 24 hours of the US premiere on June 22, 2015, onHBO Defined HD.^[23] In Australia, the series premiered on July 7, 2015, onShowcase.^[24] In Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Middle East and North Africa, the series premiered on November 11, 2015, on Orbit Showtime Network (OSN).

• Official website
• The Brink atIMDb

• 2010s American black comedy television series
• 2010s American political comedy television series
• 2010s American satirical television series
• 2015 American television series debuts
• 2015 American television series endings
• American English-language television shows
• HBO original programming
• Television shows set in Pakistan
• Works about diplomats

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from March 2025