After reports that creator Nic Pizzolatto was working up ideas for a third season of True Detective, things took a step forward with an official HBO green light and the casting of Mahershala Ali in one of the lead roles. The rest of the pieces are now all in place, as HBO has announced Stephen Dorff as Ali's co-lead.
Green Room director Jeremy Saulnier will be handling episodes in addition to Pizzolatto. The story, meanwhile, according to the official synopsis, revolves around "a macabre crime in the heart of the Ozarks, and a mystery that deepens over decades and plays out in three separate time periods." Ali and Dorff are on to play Arkansas state investigators Wayne Hays and Roland West, respectively.
Behind the scenes Pizzolatto is taking on the lion's share of the writing chores, with NYPD Blue/Deadwood's David Milch acting as consultant and co-writing episode 4. Thus far, HBO has not announced when the show will return or how many episodes will comprise the new season, but given that both of the previous season ran to eight episodes, that's the most likely figure.
Dorff can next be seen in Texas Chainsaw Massacre spin-off Leatherface, which debuts on DVD next week.