Watch an Exclusive Clip of Ben Kingsley and Jimmi Simpsons Perpetual Grace, LTD

In the upcoming neo-noir thriller Perpetual Grace, LTD, Jimmi Simpson plays a young grifter who might be in a little over his head. The Epix series finds the Westworld actors character, James, trying to scam a pastor, played by Ben Kingsley. But as viewers might expect, given the weighty actor chosen for the role, Pastor Byron Brown is a lot more complicated—and dangerous—than he might first seem.

Simpson is probably best known at the moment for his turn on Westworld as William, a starry-eyed young man who grows into a far more hardened character over time. He also appeared in Black Mirrors fourth season in 2017, in the acclaimed Star Trek-inspired “U.S.S. Callister” installment. Kingsley, of course, has played a number of memorable characters throughout his decades-long career, including, most notably, his Oscar-winning turn as Mahatma Gandhi in 1982s Gandhi. In an exclusive clip, we see one nuance of Kingsleys character firsthand: he has a son, Paul, who sounds less god-fearing than a pastor might wish his progeny to be.

As he describes his son to James, the pastor sounds pained. “As he grew older, he just fucking tormented and plagued us,” Kingsley says in the clip. “He had this shrill, awful laugh. In fact, youd just stiffen around him, even when he was cheerful…Paul hurt people. Thats worse than watching your own boy get hurt, too. Thats the one thing that is.”

”Hes not weak like me and you,” the pastor concludes. “Hes cruel. He never showed the character to want to change.” Pastor Byron says in the clip that he doesnt know where his son is these days—but if the rhythms of TV storytelling hold true, he could well find out before the shows first season ends.

For Simpson, Perpetual Grace, LTD offers a different opportunity from the roles he normally plays: the chance to actually play a series lead. “A lot of the characters I play are [there] to spike the punch of the story,” Simpson told V.F. in an interview last week. “You have this story and everyones brilliant, and then you need something kind of interesting to happen. Thats a lot of the parts that I get. In Perpetual Grace, Im part of the punch. Im part of the nutritional value. That Steve Conrad trusted me to be the straight man of this really kind of revolutionary show means the world.” The series premieres June 2.

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