How many episodes are there in Duster? Episode count and more

Duster is the newest crime drama premiering on Max on Thursday, May 15, 2025, by J.J. Abrams and LaToya Morgan. The series will mark Abrams' return to television and his reunion with Josh Holloway, whom he directed in the long-running TV series Lost. Holloway leads in the new show as a getaway driver to a crime syndicate who will partner with a young FBI agent played by Rachel Hilson.

The debut season of Duster will have eight episodes, with the first episode, titled Duster, scheduled to premiere on Thursday, May 15, 2025, on Max. Set in the backdrop of the 1970s American Southwest, Holloway's Jim Ellis and Hilson's Nina Hayes team up as an unlikely duo to take down a crime syndicate that may have been the reason why Jim's brother is dead.

---

Episode count of Duster season 1

The first season of Duster will be an eight-episode series, and Max will release a new episode every week starting on the premiere date on May 15, 2025. The weekly release schedule will also follow the same timeslot as the premiere episode, which is 6:00 pm Pacific Time or 9:00 pm Eastern Standard Time every Thursday.

Here's when every episode arrives on streaming:

Episode Number	Episode Title	Release Date
Episode 1	Baltimore Changes Everything	May 15, 2025
Episode 2	Suspicious Minds	May 22, 2025
Episode 3	Meet by the clothes	May 29, 2025
Episode 4	You're No Good	June 5, 2025
Episode 5	Crimunalus Velocitus Super-Sonicus	June 12, 2025
Episode 6	Ravishing Light and Glory	June 19, 2025
Episode 7	K-129	June 26, 2025
Episode 8	66 Reno Split	July 3, 2025

As it's a Max original series, every episode will only be available to watch on Max. A subscription to the streaming platform, which starts at $9.99 per month, is necessary to watch the series.

---

Cast and crew behind the series

Lost star Josh Holloway, who also starred in Yellowstone and Mission: Impossible— Ghost Protocol, leads the cast of Duster as Jim Ellis. He's a getaway driver for a trucking businessman-slash-boss of a growing crime syndicate.

Alongside Holloway is the female lead in the story, Rachel Hilson, who will play FBI agent Nina Hayes. She's the first Black female FBI agent, fresh from Quantico, and is eager to make her mark in the agency. The series will also star Keith David, Greg Grunberg, Camille Guaty, Sydney Elisabeth, Benjamin Charles Watson, and Asivak Koostachin.

J.J. Abrams and LaToya Morgan created and wrote the script for the series, while Steph Green (The Americans) will serve as the director. Writing credits also go to Kendal Lampkin (The Ark) and Lauren Glover (Nancy Drew). Meanwhile, the producers include Abrams, Morgan, Green, Katie McGrath (America Divided), Rachel Rush Rich (Presumed Innocent), and Jamie Feldman (Euphoria).

---

Plot of the show

In the series, Jim Ellis and Nina Hayes will team up to tear down a growing crime syndicate in the Southwest. Nina is a new FBI agent, and her first order of business is to take down Phoenix kingpin Ezra Saxton (Keith David). To help with the case where previous agents failed, she recruits Jim, Saxton's getaway driver and runner.

While Jim is unsure about taking down his boss in the beginning, evidence that ties Saxton to his brother's death is enough to change his loyalty and help Nina take his crime family down. Per the show's synopsis, Jim Ellis, with his Plymouth Duster and Nina Hayes' scheme against the crime syndicate, "goes from awful to wildly, stupidly, dangerously awful."

Adding to the plot is Jim's complicated relationship with his ex, Izzy, who is also the mother of his daughter, Luna. However, Luna doesn't know that Jim is her dad and only calls him "Uncle Jim."

---

Catch the first episode of Duster season 1 on Thursday, May 15, 2025, only on Max.