True Detective creator Nic Pizzolatto spoke to HitFix to celebrate the season 1 finale, and for the first time we’re hearing some clues about season 2.
When asked what we can expect from the sophomore season (which HBO hasn’t officially green lit, but it’s a safe bet), Pizzolatto offered a couple of hints: It’s about “hard women, bad men and the secret occult history of the United States transportation system,” he said.
He added that the reaction to season 1 has taught him one thing about what he needs to continue doing to captivate viewers: “I realize I need to keep being strange. Don’t play the next one straight.”
We don’t know much else about True Detective season 2 except for the following things:
1) Matthew McConaughey won’t be back. The actor confirmed this at the 2014 Oscars last week. It’s not necessarily a surprise because the series is an anthology, meaning the show will have new characters and stories every season. Chances are that Woody Harrelson won’t be back either. Or anyone else for that matter.
2) The story may be set in Southern California. Pizzolatto hinted at this in an interview with BuzzFeed when he said he’s been “reading about the last 40 years of Southern California government.” With the new location will also come new colors. “South Louisiana was green and burnished gold,” he noted.
We’ve also heard that the show will use a few directors for season 2. This is a departure from season 1 which was entirely under the direction of Cary Joji Fukunaga. Time will tell if this is a good decision or a bad one. Viewers have been so captivated by the story, thanks in part to all eight episodes being under the direction of one person, because it offered a cohesive feel.
The entire first season was penned by Pizzolatto, who will do the same for season 2.
True Detective season 1 wrapped last night on HBO and brought the story to an appropriate conclusion. Though Hart and Cohle weren’t able to nab all the bad guys, they did get the one who they’ve believed was the biggest threat. While Rust wished they were able to grab them all, Marty reminded him that “that ain’t the kind of world it is. But we got ours.” Check out our recap for more details.