True Detective‘s original creator didn’t love Night Country. But HBO and a whole lot of viewers certainly loved it. The drama’s fourth season set a ratings record for the show. Now the network wants to see if it can do even better. HBO has renewed True Detective for a fifth season. It will return under Night Country showrunner Issa López, who has also signed a new longterm deal at the network.
HBO has announced its bringing True Detective back for another installment of supernatural-tinged mystery. And it’s not messing around with what what worked in season four. López, who served as writer, director, showrunner, and executive producer on Night Country, will once again head up the show.
It’s easy to see why HBO wanted her back. Her Alaskan tale of murder was a big hit for the network. The series’ fourth season was the most watched in history. It pulled in 12.7 million viewers over all platforms.
Her work on season five is part of her new overall multiyear deal with HBO. The next True Detective story sounds like it will be her immediate focus at the network. “From conception to release, Night Country has been the most beautiful collaboration and adventure of my entire creative life,” said López in a press release. “HBO trusted my vision all the way, and the idea of bringing to life a new incarnation of True Detective with Casey (Bloyes), Francesca (Orsi) and the whole team is a dream come true. I can’t wait to go again.”
It’s not clear when True Detective season five will begin pre-production or when it will debut on HBO. There was a four year gap between seasons two and three, and another five before Night Country. But considering how rushed season two felt after little more than a year between season, waiting for what López does next might not be the worst thing.