Has True Detective gone full horror?
The first season had supernatural undertones, but Night Country director Issa López has taken it to another level

HBO's "True Detective" was one of the network's greatest crime shows. Now Mexican director Issa López has taken the fourth series in a very different direction, appearing to shift the tone much more towards horror.
Long gone are the murky bayous of Louisiana and the bro energy of Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson. Season four of "True Detective: Night Country" is a distinctly more sinister beast.
The action has moved to the town of Ennis in Alaska and the Tsalal Arctic Research Station 150 miles from the Arctic Circle, during a winter when the sun never rises and the scientists who run the polar lab go missing. Chief of police Liz Danvers (Jodie Foster) and rookie cop Evangeline Navarro (Kali Reis) are the all-female duo who try to solve what soon becomes a series of gruesome murders.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
'Ghosts of the past are a bit more literal'
While the first season had supernatural undertones, it never fully embraced them like the latest series. López sets out her approach early, when a herd of reindeer hurtle off a cliff in the opening scene. And when the investigative duo find corpses, they are not just your run-of-the-mill cop show bodies, said Phillip Maciak in New Republic. "Six men, in the nude, frozen together like a giant novelty ice cube for a Hieronymus Bosch-themed cocktail."
This week's episode four "ramped up" the supernatural, said Time. The "ghosts of the past are a bit more literal", with dead people appearing to come to life with messages for the living. "That doesn't mean they're beyond a reasonable explanation," said Time.
At least one of the characters was diagnosed with schizophrenia, and it is clear that the water in the town has been tainted, offering some answers to why the people of Ennis keep seeing the dead. Or perhaps the series will be left open-ended.
An 'uncertain ending'?
López is an unashamed horror fan. "The Thing", a tale of Antarctic researchers being stalked and taken over by an invisible extraterrestrial force, "blew her mind", said Alan Siegel at The Ringer. "It's such a perfect movie, with that uncertain ending," she told Siegel.
When researching "Night Country", she also watched "The Silence of the Lambs". "Let's not pretend for a second that people are not going to watch this and think of Clarice," she said, referring to Foster's famous role in the 1991 psychological thriller
"Just as López intended, 'Night Country' is an ice-encrusted, sci-fi-tinged horror story," said Siegel. "As the season progresses, the dread never thaws. It builds and closes in on Ennis." And this "inescapably ominous, pitch-black tundra is an ideal setting for a show trying to curdle blood".
It remains to be seen if Foster's Danvers can find the light.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
What are your retirement savings account options?
The explainer The two main types of accounts are 401(k) plans and individual retirement accounts (IRAs)
By Becca Stanek, The Week US
-
7 tranquil hotels worth the trek
The Week Recommends Find serenity off the beaten path
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US
-
'From his election as pope in 2013, Francis sought to reform'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US
-
18 slang words and phrases we can thank (or blame) Gen Z for
In Depth Younger Americans have put their stamp on our language with these neologisms
By David Faris
-
Inside the contested birth years of generations
The Explainer Battles over where Gen Z ends and Gens Alpha and Beta begin remain ongoing
By David Faris
-
10 upcoming albums to stream in the hazy spring
The Week Recommends Ring in the end of the cold weather with some new music
By Justin Klawans, The Week US
-
Museum exhibitions across the globe are in artful bloom this spring. These are 5 to experience.
The Week Recommends See treasures from ancient Japan, Versailles and the Forbidden City
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US
-
25 things Andrew Tate has said about women
IN DEPTH The accused rapist and sex trafficking influencer has a long and well-documented history of commercializing his misogyny for an audience of susceptible young men
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
10 concert tours to see this spring
The Week Recommends As winter comes to an end, check out a variety of live performances
By Justin Klawans, The Week US
-
Movies to watch in March, including 'Mickey 17' and 'The Woman in the Yard'
The Week Recommends The much-anticipated 'Parasite' follow-up, a new Jaume Collet-Serra horror and a bizarro parenthood trial
By Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, The Week US
-
Will Amazon destroy James Bond?
Talking Point Broccoli family yields control of franchise to tech giant, sparking fears of corporate 'Americanisation' of beloved British icon
By The Week UK