Giancarlo Esposito and Skeet Ulrich, stars of the new AMC/AMC+ series “Parish,” share leading roles in what is expected to be a high-octane drama premiering Sunday, March 31.
Esposito and Ulrich will serve in prominent dignitary roles for the latest episode of the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) – the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix on Sunday, March 24, at Circuit of The Americas (COTA) just outside of downtown Austin, Texas.
Esposito landed the role of Grand Marshal and will provide the traditional “Start Your Engines” command to the NCS drivers for the first permanent road course event of the young season. Ulrich will then take the reins from Esposito as the Honorary Pace Car Driver, where he will be behind the wheel of one of the Toyota Camrys that will pace the 40-car field to the green flag for the start of the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at 2:30 p.m. CT.
“I play a driver on TV in ‘Parish,’ but in real life, I am an OLD SCHOOL street racer!” Esposito said. “There are no rules but to GO FAST! I can’t wait to be on the track at NASCAR!”
“As a longtime fan and family member of NASCAR, I am honored to be here representing AMC/AMC+ and ‘Parish’ and all my friends and family who have been at the heart of this great sport for decades!” Ulrich said.
The duo will be celebrating the premiere of “Parish,” the highly anticipated six-episode crime thriller that debuts March 31 on AMC and AMC+. Esposito, an Emmy® and SAG® Award nominee and Critics Choice® Award winner, not only stars in the new series, but also is the executive producer of the project.
In the series shot on location in New Orleans, Esposito stars as Gracian “Gray” Parish, a family man and proud owner of a luxury car service. After his son is violently murdered and his business collapses, an encounter with an old friend from his days as a wheelman resurfaces old habits, sending Gray on a high-stakes collision course with a violent criminal syndicate. Ulrich plays the role of an old acquaintance to Gray. “Parish” is based on the hit U.K. series “The Driver,” created by Danny Brocklehurst and Jim Poyser. It’s produced by AMC Studios, in association with A+E Studios and Thruline Entertainment.
Esposito is well known by television audiences for his iconic portrayal of drug kingpin ‘Gustavo “Gus” Fring’ in AMC’s critically acclaimed series “Breaking Bad,” for which he won the 2012 Critics Choice® Award and earned an Emmy® nomination the same year.
Esposito reprised his role of Fring on AMC’s hit series, “Better Call Saul,” which earned him two Emmy® Award nominations (2019, 2020) as “Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series” as well as a 2023 Critics Choice Award® win for “Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.” The sixth and final season of the series included Esposito’s television directorial debut for episode 606. The episode received a 2023 NAACP Image Award nomination for “Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series.”
Esposito also returned as ‘Moff Gideon’ in the critically acclaimed Disney+ Star Wars universe series “The Mandalorian” for which he was nominated for a 2020 Emmy® for “Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series” and a 2021 Emmy® for “Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.” He also was nominated twice for a NAACP Image Award (2020, 2022) for “Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series” for the EPIX Series “Godfather of Harlem.” Esposito has appeared in more than two dozen motion pictures, including hits “Malcolm X,” “Do The Right Thing,” “The Usual Suspects” and “Trading Places.”
Ulrich has enjoyed television roles in several prominent series, including ‘FP Jones’ on CW’s hit show “Riverdale.” He previously made his mark in the award-winning Steven Spielberg TNT miniseries “Into The West,” two seasons on the CBS drama “Jericho,” and a starring role in Dick Wolf’s iconic franchise “Law & Order: Los Angeles” as detective ‘Rex Winters.’
On the film side, Ulrich starred alongside Matt Dillon, Laurence Fishburne and Jean Reno in the box-office hit “Armored” and got his breakout role in Wes Craven’s hit horror film “Scream.” His past film credits include Jim Brooks' critically acclaimed “As Good As It Gets,” Ang Lee's Civil War-era drama “Ride With The Devil” and two “Scream” sequels.
Esposito and Ulrich are expected to be on hand and interacting with the NASCAR community throughout the March 22-24 race weekend that also features the Xfinity Series (NXS) and CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (NCTS). The NXS Focused Health 250 and NCTS XPEL 225 will be paired as a race doubleheader on Saturday, March 23, which also includes NCS qualifying.
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