True Detective: Night Country Showrunner Teases Connections to Previous Seasons

Issa López hints at both literal and figurative connections to previous seasons.

By Patrick Cavanaugh

For better or worse, all three seasons of HBO's True Detective have featured standalone storylines that don't directly connect to one another, but according to showrunner of True Detective: Night Country Issa López, the upcoming fourth entry into the series could be changing that, as she teased some direct nods to the show's past. While it is assumed that all three previous seasons took place in same world, there weren't any elements that confirmed that fact, though there also weren't any details that contradicted one another. In Night Country, López hinted that there were connections to the more supernatural glimmers from Season 1 of the series. True Detective: Night Country premieres on HBO in January 2024.

"There are Easter eggs throughout that you will find and there's a big, big thing in Episode 6 that you will discover in time," López shared at an HBO press event, per Entertainment Weekly. "It is its own story, but it's still connected. The spiral is there, the way that there are those dark and ancient gods (perhaps yes, perhaps not) working behind the scenes. It is the same universe."

The first season focused on two detectives trying to uncover the origins of cult-like murders, while Season 2 focused more on corruption and coverups in local government. Season 3 echoed the events of Season 1, in that the storyline spanned decades and focused on the bizarre disappearance of two children in the Ozarks. While the new season will feature connections to other seasons, López confirmed we shouldn't expect the new storyline to feature a time-spanning story seen in previous stories.

"HBO, you guys are incredible in the way that you trust a crazy Mexican," López joked. "They were like, 'You can do it. Whatever you want.' Which is terrifying, it's the worst thing."

She added, "I'm not going to follow the format and I'm not going to follow the way it's shot. I do follow the idea and the aesthetic of this world behind them, and I constantly go back to show you the universe, the world where it's set, which is so unique. This corner of the north, forgotten by the world, Alaska. That I kept. And then the other thing that I thought was brilliant was two characters in a car trying to decipher the workings of the universe and their souls."

The new season is described, "When the long winter night falls in Ennis, Alaska, the eight men who operate the Tsalal Arctic Research Station vanish without a trace. To solve the case, detectives Liz Danvers (Jodie Foster) and Evangeline Navarro (Kali Reis) must confront their pasts and the dark truths lying underneath the Arctic ice."

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True Detective: Night Country premieres on HBO in January 2024.

Are you looking forward to the new season? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

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