The third season of True Detective, an American anthology crime drama television series created by Nic Pizzolatto, was confirmed by HBO on August 31, 2017, and premiered on January 13, 2019.

The story takes place in the Ozarks over three decades,[1] as partner detectives investigate a macabre crime involving two missing children.

The opening theme of the season is the song "Death Letter" written by Son House and performed by Cassandra Wilson from her 1995 album New Moon Daughter.

Series creator Pizzolatto makes his directorial debut, sharing directing assignments with Jeremy Saulnier and Daniel Sackheim.

Pizzolatto also serves as the showrunner and writer of most of the episodes, with the exception of the fourth and sixth, which he co-wrote with David Milch and Graham Gordy respectively.

[3] Talking about the deal, the president of HBO programming Michael Lombardo stated, "I am thrilled to continue our relationship with Nic, as he is one of the most exceptionally talented writers and producers working today.

These proposed changes were made in response to the less favorable reception that the second season received compared to the first, which was in part attributed to the lack of a creative counterpart to Pizzolatto.

[4] The strong artistic input from Cary Joji Fukunaga, who had directed all eight episodes in the first season, was thought to have benefited the show.

[3][5][6] In June 2015, in an interview with Vanity Fair, Pizzolatto had stated, "If I'm making a movie or a show or whatever, I'm expressing something on a personal level or else it doesn't mean anything to me.

[9] In March 2017, it was revealed that David Milch had been recruited to assist Pizzolatto in preparing the third season, and that writing the first two episodes had already been completed.

[10] In June 2017, The Tracking Board reported that Mahershala Ali was in early discussions with HBO to play the lead role of the season.

[11] In July 2017, Bloys told reporters at the press tour of the Television Critics Association that Pizzolatto had written the third season almost in its entirety, and added "When we find a director, we'll be a go on that.

"[12] On August 31, 2017, after director Jeremy Saulnier was confirmed to work alongside Pizzolatto, HBO officially greenlit the third season of True Detective.

With his ambitious vision and Mahershala Ali and Jeremy Saulnier aboard, we are excited to embark on the next installment of True Detective."

[17] Academy Award-winner Mahershala Ali plays the lead role of state police detective Wayne Hays.

In an interview with Variety, Ali revealed that he was originally offered a supporting role, as the main character was supposed to be white, but that he had convinced Pizzolatto that he was suited for the lead.

[18] In November 2017, Carmen Ejogo was added to the cast in the role of schoolteacher Amelia Reardon,[19] followed in January 2018 by Stephen Dorff as detective Roland West.

"[22] Additional casting calls were issued in June 2018 on Backstage, for Asian talent to portray Vietnamese civilians and soldiers.

Saulnier was replaced by veteran director Daniel Sackheim, who would also divide directing assignments on the remaining six episodes with Pizzolatto.

[16] The season was filmed by Random Productions LLC at various locations throughout Northwest Arkansas, including Fayetteville, Bentonville, Lincoln, Rogers and Springdale.

[26] Filming on location also included the use of stunts and pyrotechnics in residential areas, namely car explosions, smoke and loud noises.

[28] Talking about their experience, executive producer Scott Stephens said, "Everything we've needed has been right at our fingertips, from period architecture to abandoned buildings that still evoke the 80s," while lead actor Mahershala Ali added that "[the landscape] is such a character in the story.

Hays and West search their house and find Playboy magazines under Will's mattress, and a hole in Will's closet looking into Julie's room.

At the Purcell house, Hays finds a photo album containing a photograph of Will taken at his first communion, with his fingers interlaced and his eyes closed.

The site's critical consensus reads, "Driven by Mahershala Ali's mesmerizing performance, True Detective's third season finds fresh perspective by exploring real-world events – though it loses some of the series' intriguing strangeness along the way.

In addition to the eight episodes, both formats contain bonus content including the featurettes "Designing the Decades" and "A Conversation with Nic Pizzolatto and T Bone Burnett" as well as deleted scenes and an extended version of the season finale.