Trailer, Story Details & Everything We Know

True Detective season 4 is on the way, and all the news so far about the next chapter in the anthology crime drama hints that the long wait for the release date will, as always with True Detective, be worth it. The fourth season of True Detective is the latest in Nic Pizzolatto’s anthology series, although the original creator won’t be involved as a showrunner or screenwriter this time around. Pizzolatto wrote every episode of the first three seasons, each of which focused on different detective characters investigating different cases. Season 4 of True Detective seems to be taking things in a slightly new direction, as Issa López will be writing the new season with Jodie Foster and Kali Reis playing the lead detectives on the intriguing new case with the chilling title, True Detective: Night Country.

In some ways, the new direction is bold, since there was never a guarantee True Detective season 4 would arrive. Airing in 2014, season 1 of True Detective starred Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson as the mismatched detectives looking into a case of a supposed satanic murder that puzzled them for more than a decade. True Detective season 2 featured a larger cast including Colin Farrell, Rachel McAdams, and Vince Vaughn but failed to reach the same acclaim. Then True Detective season 3 arrived, and Mahershala Ali’s chapter was widely considered a return to form for the show. However, following its conclusion in 2019, there was little talk of True Detective season 4 happening — that is until it was confirmed in March 2022.

True Detective Season 4 Latest News

The most recent True Detective season 4 news is somewhat unsurprising, but the release date has unfortunately been delayed. The next season of True Detective season 4 had originally been pegged for a 2023 release date, but HBO has opted to push this back until next year. The True Detective season 4 delay is due to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike, which keeps actors from being able to promote their projects or work on new shows.

The True Detective release date delay for season 4 is one of many across both streaming and broadcast shows, not to mention upcoming movies. After the actors’ union couldn’t come to an agreement with the AMPTP in July, the actors were forced to go on strike, and that has impacted a huge number of productions — including True Detective season 4. Without Jodie Foster and others promoting the upcoming True Detective season 4, it won’t be anywhere near as successful. As a result, a True Detective season 4 delay was considered to be the best option by HBO, and now won’t arrive until 2024.

True Detective Season 4 Is Confirmed

The most important True Detective season 4 news for fans is that the season is confirmed. True Detective season 3 ended in February 2019 and there was some uncertainty if the series would return for a new season. Thankfully, it was announced in March 2022 that season 4 of True Detective is happening with Barry Jenkins as executive producer and Issa López writing the season. Nic Pizzolatto, True Detective creator and writer of all episodes of the first three seasons, was confirmed to not be returning to the show.

True Detective Season 4 Release Date

While no official True Detective season 4 release date was given, it was promised to be released in 2023. However, True Detective won’t return to HBO until January 2024 at the earliest due to the SAG-AFTRA strike. Production for the new season began in November 2022, so a January 2024 True Detective season 4 premiere is still a relatively quick turnaround. Given the long time since True Detective season 3 ended, the delay is relatively short in the grand scheme of the hotly anticipated season 4 too.

True Detective Season 4 Cast

The most exciting True Detective season 4 news is the True Detective season 4 cast, as the previous seasons have included some big names. Season 4 is no different, as the first name added was two-time Oscar winner Jodie Foster. Foster is best known for The Accused, which got the actor her first Academy Award win, and her role as Clarice Starling in The Silence of the Lambs, which got the actor her second win. Foster will be playing Detective Liz Danvers in True Detective season 4, who is the new lead detective of a missing persons case, and Danvers locks horns with every other officer on her team.

Kali Reis joins the True Detective season 4 cast as Foster’s partner Detective Evangeline Navarro. Interestingly, unlike the star-studded team-ups of past seasons, this time the veteran actor Foster is paired with newcomer Reis. Reis doesn’t have many acting credits and is better known as a professional boxer. However, she proved herself to be an incredible writer and actor in Catch the Fair One, in which she plays a former boxer in search of her missing sister. Reis was also featured in Wind River: The Next Chapter with Scott Eastwood.

John Hawkes plays Hank Prior in the True Detective season 4 cast. Hanks is a police officer who holds a grudge and has a mysterious past, which, in typical True Detective fashion, will likely be linked to the case at hand somehow. While Hawkes isn’t a huge Hollywood name, has had major roles, including playing Robert Lantham in Lincoln and Charlie Hayes in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. Other polices officers in the True Detective season 4 cast include Ted Corsaro (Christopher Eccleston), who’s the regional Chief of Police. Eccleston is a part of some huge franchises, as he was the ninth Doctor in Doctor Who and played Malekith in Thor: The Dark World.

Fiona Shaw plays survivalist Rose Aguineau in the True Detective season 4 cast, and Shaw is a shoo-in for the crime thriller. Shaw excels in these kinds of crime dramas, as proven by her role as the head of the Russian Section of MI6 in Killing Eve. Other True Detective season 4 characters include Peter Prior (Finn Bennett), who is Danvers’ apprentice, Kayla Malee (Anna Lambe), a protective young nurse, and Leah (Isabella Star LaBlanc), Danvers’ stepdaughter.

True Detective Season 4 Story Details

Even with the show usually shrouded in so much mystery, there’s already a surprising amount of True Detective season 4 story details. The new season is set in an Alaskan community that is about to enter its polar night period. As the long darkness overtakes the community Detective Danvers and Detective Reis begin investigating the mysterious disappearance of a small crew from a nearby research facility. Previous seasons of True Detective drew from true stories for their mysteries, but it’s unclear if this is based on any real event. This may be the first season of True Detective that deals with supernatural elements, which season 1 teased.

Some True Detective season 4 story news came from first-look images. While they weren’t very revealing when it comes to specifics, it is exciting seeing Jodie Foster back in The Silence of the Lambs serial killer territory. The image also highlights the dark and cold Alaskan setting as it features Foster and her fellow detective played by Reis on a snowy night looking at something with their flashlights. Judging by the looks on their faces, and knowing the reputation of the show, it is safe to assume they have made a gruesome discovery.

Season 1 of True Detective was undeniably the best season based on critical reception and viewership, and that has led to a demand for True Detective to return to that vaguely supernatural and satanic approach. However, in recent True Detective season 4 updates, Pizzolatto bluntly responded to the demand. The True Detective creator explained, “Other than that, I could write a book without those constraints, but again, I’m doing other things and don’t have the time or inclination at present.” Even though Pizzolatto isn’t the lead writer on season 4, given these comments, it’s unclear whether the True Detective season 4 story will return to the tone and themes of season 1.

True Detective Season 4 Trailer

HBO provided a glimpse of the season in its 2023 showcase, but a full True Detective season 4 trailer is now available that showcases how cinematic the season looks, as per usual. Not only does season 4 have a typically True Detective look about it (despite having a completely different setting from ever before), but it’s full of the series’ other trademarks too. The two main detectives are completely at odds with one another, struggling to work around each other’s drastically different methods. Foster’s Liv Danvers is seemingly completely unlikeable and often goes rogue too, playing into the classic detective archetype, and that’s what makes True Detective so great.