It came to an end a few weeks ago, but we're still reeling from the season finale of True Detective. Did it answer all our questions? No. Was it a satisfying end to one of the most critically-acclaimed TV shows? The jury's out. Personally, we loved it and thought it was as good an end as you could imagine for a show of that calibre. It wasn't going to answer all your questions, but it did enough to put a full-stop on it.

With HBO confirming that there'll be a second season and that writing is already underway, it's time to look ahead and see what's what. Here are the facts...

 

 

MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY AND WOODY HARRELSON ARE NOT RETURNING

The awesome twosome will not be cast members for the second season, but they will be staying on as producers of the show. Could we possibly see them in a cameo situation, perhaps? There's been no official word, but we'd like to think so. Showrunner NIc Pizzolatto has been keen to mention that True Detective will follow an anthology-style, much like American Horror Story. This means that actors from previous seasons will pop up in different roles. McConaughey and Harrelson may not be front and centre for Season 2, but they could pop up somewhere in the background?

Brad Pitt's name was mentioned as a possible replacement. This may not be so. We'll explain why further on down.

 

IT WILL NOT BE SET IN LOUISIANA AND IT WILL NOT HAVE THE SAME DIRECTOR

One of the most common praises for True Detective has been its eye-popping visuals and lush scenery. Louisiana's backwater swamps and bayous were just as much a part of the series as McConaughey's Texan drawl. However, it's been confirmed that the show will not take place in Louisiana, nor will director Cory Fukunaga be directing every episode like he did on the first season. It's a simple case of scheduling on his part. No other director has been confirmed, but given the draw the show has, we're guessing they can pick whoever they like to take it on. Who would we like to see? David Fincher. He's done TV already with House of Cards and he's more or less doing something similar with Gone Girl. It's a long shot, but we think he'd fit perfectly into that world.

 

NEXT SEASON WON'T NECESSARILY BE ABOUT A MURDER, SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA'S "TRANSPORT SYSTEM" IS A POSSIBILITY

Showrunner Nic Pizzolatto has spoken about how generic the title of the show is, meaning that it's not necessarily just about two detectives solving a murder. He's said that one season could be a conspiracy thriller, the next could be about a criminal mastermind. In short, he wants the format to be as wide open as possible. In an interview he did with HitFix a few months back, Pizzolatto said that the next season would be about "hard women, bad men and the secret occult history of the United States transportation system." What does that mean? Not a clue. It could be something about Route 66 and how there's a bunch of ghost stories attached to it. It could even be about the supposed General Motors / Streetcar conspiracy theory. Pizzolatto's known for putting insane amounts of detail into his stories so there's a distinct possibility it'll be some truly obscure topic that few people, if any, know about.

 

SCHEDULING IS THE BIGGEST CONCERN

Pizzolatto has said that he's writing the script around "certain" people's schedules, meaning that there's a distinct possibility you may not see Brad Pitt join the cast. If he's working on a film during the production of True Detective Season 2, he's not going to be available. Likewise, McConaughey and Harrelson have said that it was a one-season thing for them. McConaughey called it a "450-page film" and commented that he didn't plan beyond that. It's early days yet, so there's no way of knowing who's in and who's out. It's fun to guess, though!