Fans of True Detective who were expecting to go a long time before hearing about a fifth season of the popular HBO neo-noir crime series were in for some good news in February 2024. The cable network announced a fifth season just days after the Night Country finale. Though we don’t yet know where the next season will be set, whether it will include any of the characters we’ve met over the years, or if it will have a subtitle like its most recent predecessor, there are some key things we know about the show’s return.
Stick around as we break down everything we know about True Detective Season 5 including what showrunner and writer Issa López has said about the crime series and its future moving forward. We’ll surely be working on the details in the coming weeks and months, but this is as good a place as any to get started…
What Is The True Detective Season 5 Premiere Date?
The first question many fans probably have right now is when can we expect to see True Detective Season 5 on HBO or streaming with a Max subscription? Well, we don’t yet know when the show will return to the airwaves, but it’s safe to say it will be at least 2025 (or later) before we start the next adventure and mystery for the decorated crime show.
And since we don’t know when cameras will start rolling on the next slate of episodes, it’s hard to say when a premiere date will even be announced.
The True Detective Season 5 Cast Has Not Yet Been Announced
Again, we’re very much early in the development stages of True Detective Season 5 (the new season was given the green light days before this writing), so we don’t yet know who will make up the cast the next time around. But considering three of the past four seasons have been headlined by Academy Award-winners like Matthew McConaughey, Marerhsala Ali, and Jodie Foster, it’s safe to say we’ll be seeing some big-time stars anchor the cast the next time around.
We still have a lot of questions after True Detective: Night Country, and another we can add to that list is if we’ll see any of those characters again in the future. The show has referenced characters from previous seasons in the past, and though no one has returned in the flesh, there’s no reason to think that couldn’t happen this time around.
We Don’t Know The Story At The Center Of True Detective Season 5, But It Will Probably Be A New Tale
As mentioned above, each of the first four seasons of True Detective were isolated stories (for the most part) with the only connective tissue being the references to characters, events, and organizations of previous chapters. And while we don’t yet know if that will be true for the show’s fifth season, a post by showrunner Issa López on X seems to imply that we will be starting a “new adventure.” Sharing a tweet by the official True Detective X account, López had this to say:
HERE WE GO!So proud of our Night Country.So excited for the new adventure. So thankful. 🙏🙏🙏🙏 https://t.co/u4FWRwki0EFebruary 22, 2024
The original message to which she was responding had a caption reading “As one mystery ends, another will begin,” which could be taken in a variety of ways. It seems to suggest the next season will keep up the tradition of focusing on new stories, but it could very well be another chapter set in the Arctic Circle.
Issa López Will Once Again Be The Writer And Showrunner For True Detective Season 5
As was the case with True Detective: Night Country, Issa López will once again be serving as the writer, showrunner, and executive producer of the upcoming season, HBO announced in February. However, it is not yet known if she will direct any or all of the episodes during the show’s return at a later date.
López helmed all six episodes of Night Country, her first time doing so on a TV series, and she directed movies like Tigers Are Not Afraid and Efectos Secundarios, so it wouldn’t be outside of the realm of possibility for her to do so again. However, we will just have to wait and see what happens.
Issa López Has Said She’s Tempted To Continue The Alaska Story, But Doesn’t Think She’ll Take That Route
Issa López hasn’t revealed exactly where the show is heading in the future, but based on comments she made during an interview with The Hollywood Reporter following the True Detective: Night Country finale, it sounds like she doesn’t really want to go back to Alaska story. In the chat, she said that while it was “very tempting” to work with those actors and characters again, it didn’t feel like the right direction. In her words:
So it’s very tempting because it was a joy and we miss each other, and it turned out so well, and people loved it. And the constant information that I’m getting from social is they want more of Danvers and Navarro, and also Prior. There’s a lot of love for Prior. It’s very tempting. But I do feel that the characters grew. It’s a lot more boring to do drama about grown people than people that need growth. So I don’t think I’ll do it.
Earlier in the conversation, López said returning to Ennis after concluding the mystery would be a disservice to the character and the story they all told.
It Is Not Yet Known If True Detective Creator Nic Pizzolatto Will Be Involved At All
It is not yet known if Nic Pizzolatto, who created the True Detective franchise, and who later served as an executive producer on Night Country despite not having any say in the direction of the show, will be sticking around in a similar fashion for the upcoming fifth season. Though there have been a lot of supportive critics of Night Country since its release, Pizzolatto has not been one of the champions of the show, taking to his social media channels on multiple occasions to share some since-deleted comments (via Variety) before creating a thread where similarly-minded individuals could share their criticisms on his Instagram.
That being said, it’s hard to say if Pizzolatto will serve as an executive producer once more if he’ll simply walk away from the franchise he helped launch a decade ago. Only time will tell…
Expect to hear much more about True Detective Season 5 in the near future, but in the meantime, check out our rundown of the 2024 TV schedule to see what’s coming out later this year.
