A few weeks after Oscar winner Mahershala Ali signed on, HBO has officially confirmed True Detective season three.
EW reports that the new season will see the show return to its roots with a story set in the Ozarks like the first season, after the critically maligned second season moved to Los Angeles.
Ali will star as in the lead role of Wayne Hays, a state police detective from Northwest Arkansas and HBO has also teased the first plot details.
"The next instalment of True Detective tells the story of a macabre crime in the heart of the Ozarks, and a mystery that deepens over decades and plays out in three separate time periods," the synopsis reads.
Original showrunner Nic Pizzolatto will be the sole writer on season three, except for episode four which he co-wrote with Deadwood's David Milch who also helped to shape the season's story.
Perhaps the most exciting news in HBO's announcement was that Jeremy Saulnier – director of ace crime movies Green Room and Blue Ruin – will direct with Pizzolatto.
"I'm tremendously thrilled to be working with artists at the level of Mahershala and Jeremy. I hope the material can do justice to their talents, and we're all very excited to tell this story," Pizzolatto enthused.
With the season set back in the Ozarks, it opens the door for the potential return of Matthew McConaughey, who has made it clear he'd be willing to return.
True Detective season three's air date has yet to be confirmed.
