‘True Detective’ Season 3 Gets The Green Light, Grabs ‘Green Room’ Director Jeremy Saulnier
HBO is officially moving forward withTrue Detectiveseason 3, which will starMahershala Ali(Moonlight). Here’s what makes this announcement especially sweet: Ali will be directed byJeremy Saulnier, the filmmaker behindGreen RoomandBlue Ruin. Saulnier and the show’s creator,Nic Pizzolatto, will direct the third season – which will unfold in three different time periods.
Below, learn Detectiveseason 3.
According toThe Hollywood Reporter, showrunner Nic Pizzolatto wrote every episode of season 3, except for one he co-wrote with the creator ofDeadwoodandNYPD Blue,David Milch. Both seasons ofTrue Detectivewere eight episodes long, but the exact episode count for season 3 is currently unknown. We do know Milch co-wrote the fourth episode in the next season, though. Back in March, the news came out that Milchwas workingwith Pizzolatto on the series, but to what extent wasn’t clear.
Season 3 ofTrue Detectiveis set in the Ozarks, where a horrible crime and mystery spanning decades is under investigation. As previously mentioned, the story covers three separate time periods. Ali is playing one of the leads, Wayne Hays, who’s a state police detective from Northwest Arkansas. Right now, he’s the only actor we know of attached to the HBO project.
Pizzolatto hasn’t directed in the past. How many episodes he and Saulnier will direct hasn’t been revealed yet. Following the announcement of season 3, Pizzolatto had this to say:
I’m tremendously thrilled to be working with artists at the level of Mahershala and Jeremy. I hope the material can do justice to their talents, and we’re all very excited to tell this story.
Something important to remember about season 2 ofTrue Detective, which had more than a few critics, is that it was rushed into production. Pizzolatto didn’t have nearly the same amount of time to write season 2 as he did with season 1. According to HBO programming presidentCasey Bloys, the showrunner has written a season that may live up to the high bar set by season 1:
Nic has written truly remarkable scripts. With his ambitious vision and Mahershala Ali and Jeremy Saulnier aboard, we are excited to embark on the next installment ofTrue Detective.
I’d be surprised if even the harshest fans ofTrue Detectiveseason 2 can’t see the bright glimmer of hope for season 3 with Saulnier’s hiring. AfterBlue RuinandGreen Room, it’s fair to say he’s one of the most exciting and promising directors working today. He has an eye for brutal, unflinching violence, an undeniable knack for creating and sustaining almost unbearable tension, and he gets pretty great performances, too, which are all things we expect fromTrue Detective. Season 2 – which was pretty good, in my book – made some people doubt whether this series has legs, but I don’t think a season as high in quality as season 1 should ever be written off as a fluke. How often is a flukethatgreat? Some of the talent behind season 1 –Woody Harrelson,Matthew McConaughey, and directorCary Joji Fukunaga– remain involved as producers on season 3. In addition to directing, Saulnier will executive produce the next season as well.
