‘Ballard’ Adds Hamish Linklater to Season 2 Cast in Major Recurring Role

Prime Video’s Ballard has cast Hamish Linklater in a key recurring role for its upcoming second season.

The Bosch spinoff, inspired by Michael Connelly’s bestselling novels, stars Maggie Q as Detective Renée Ballard, who leads the LAPD’s underfunded cold case division.

Alongside her volunteer team and retired detective Harry Bosch (Titus Welliver), Ballard tackles long-forgotten crimes while facing personal trauma, professional obstacles, and dangerous threats to deliver justice for overlooked victims.

Linklater will play Chris Alexander, an ambitious and magnetic figure whose boyish sincerity and sharp intellect make him instantly compelling. Beneath his charismatic exterior lies a calculating mind and a powerful desire for control, making him a formidable presence this season.

The Season 2 cast also includes returning series regulars Courtney Taylor, Rebecca Field, Victoria Moroles, Amy Hill, and John Carroll Lynch. Previously announced additions include Benjamin Bratt, Rosanna Arquette, and Ever Carradine.

Linklater is known for his roles in Mike Flanagan’s Midnight Mass, as Cipher in Gen V Season 2, and as Abraham Lincoln in Apple TV+’s Manhunt.

He recently wrapped Netflix’s The Whisper Man opposite Robert De Niro and Michelle Monaghan, and is set to appear in Flanagan’s upcoming Exorcist film from Universal.

Ballard is executive produced by Michael Connelly, Michael Alaimo, Kendall Sherwood, Henrik Bastin, Jasmine Russ, and Trish Hofmann, with Theresa Snider as co-executive producer for Hieronymus Pictures. Richard Hicks serves as casting director.

Season 1 of Ballard is currently streaming on Prime Video, with no premiere date yet announced for Season 2.