List of True Detective episodes

True Detective is an American anthology crime drama television series created and written by Nic Pizzolatto, that premiered on January 12, 2014, on HBO. The series focuses on police investigations and on the effect they have on troubled detectives that carry them out. Each season is structured as a self-contained narrative with different sets of characters and settings. A fourth season, created by Issa López, premiered on January 14, 2024. ^[1]

As of February 18,2024, ^[update] 30 episodes of True Detective have aired, concluding the fourth season. In February 2024, the series was renewed for a fifth season. ^[2]

Series overview

Season	Episodes		Originally aired		Average viewers (in millions)
			First aired	Last aired
1	8		January 12, 2014 (2014-01-12)	March 9, 2014 (2014-03-09)	2.33 [3]
2	8		June 21, 2015 (2015-06-21)	August 9, 2015 (2015-08-09)	2.61 [3]
3	8		January 13, 2019 (2019-01-13)	February 24, 2019 (2019-02-24)	1.25 [3]
4	6		January 14, 2024 (2024-01-14)	February 18, 2024 (2024-02-18)	0.654 [3]

Episodes

Season 1 (2014)

Main article: True Detective season 1

In 2012, two former homicide investigators with the Louisiana State Police's Criminal Investigations Division, Rustin "Rust" Cohle (Matthew McConaughey) and Martin "Marty" Hart (Woody Harrelson), are summoned for questioning by detectives Maynard Gilbough (Michael Potts) and Thomas Papania (Tory Kittles), about the Dora Lange murder investigation of 1995; they have not seen nor spoken to each other since an altercation concerning Martin's wife Maggie Hart (Michelle Monaghan) over a decade prior. With many of the old files destroyed in Hurricane Rita, the two men are asked to recount the history of their working relationship, personal lives, and the Dora Lange murder investigation, as well as a series of other related individual cases as new evidence suggests that the perpetrator remains at large.

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	U.S. viewers (millions)
1	1	"The Long Bright Dark"	Cary Joji Fukunaga	Nic Pizzolatto	January 12, 2014 (2014-01-12)	2.33 [4]
2	2	"Seeing Things"	Cary Joji Fukunaga	Nic Pizzolatto	January 19, 2014 (2014-01-19)	1.67 [5]
3	3	"The Locked Room"	Cary Joji Fukunaga	Nic Pizzolatto	January 26, 2014 (2014-01-26)	1.93 [6]
4	4	"Who Goes There"	Cary Joji Fukunaga	Nic Pizzolatto	February 9, 2014 (2014-02-09)	1.99 [7]
5	5	"The Secret Fate of All Life"	Cary Joji Fukunaga	Nic Pizzolatto	February 16, 2014 (2014-02-16)	2.25 [8]
6	6	"Haunted Houses"	Cary Joji Fukunaga	Nic Pizzolatto	February 23, 2014 (2014-02-23)	2.64 [9]
7	7	"After You've Gone"	Cary Joji Fukunaga	Nic Pizzolatto	March 2, 2014 (2014-03-02)	2.34 [10]
8	8	"Form and Void"	Cary Joji Fukunaga	Nic Pizzolatto	March 9, 2014 (2014-03-09)	3.52 [11]

Season 2 (2015)

Main article: True Detective season 2

California Highway Patrol officer Paul Woodrugh (Taylor Kitsch) discovers the dead body of a city manager who was involved in a major land deal. Given the ambiguous jurisdictional nature of the crime scene, two other officers, Vinci Police Department Detective Raymond Velcoro (Colin Farrell) and Ventura County Sheriff's Office CID Antigone "Ani" Bezzerides (Rachel McAdams), along with Woodrugh are assigned to investigate the murder. The crime soon involves Frank Semyon (Vince Vaughn), a career criminal who was involved in the land deal and whose life savings were stolen when the murder took place. The three detectives, plus Semyon, quickly realize a larger conspiracy at play involving the victim's ties to the city of Vinci's deepening corrupt proliferations.

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	U.S. viewers (millions)
9	1	"The Western Book of the Dead"	Justin Lin	Nic Pizzolatto	June 21, 2015 (2015-06-21)	3.17 [12]
10	2	"Night Finds You"	Justin Lin	Nic Pizzolatto	June 28, 2015 (2015-06-28)	3.05 [13]
11	3	"Maybe Tomorrow"	Janus Metz	Nic Pizzolatto	July 5, 2015 (2015-07-05)	2.62 [14]
12	4	"Down Will Come"	Jeremy Podeswa	Nic Pizzolatto & Scott Lasser	July 12, 2015 (2015-07-12)	2.36 [15]
13	5	"Other Lives"	John Crowley	Nic Pizzolatto	July 19, 2015 (2015-07-19)	2.42 [16]
14	6	"Church in Ruins"	Miguel Sapochnik	Nic Pizzolatto & Scott Lasser	July 26, 2015 (2015-07-26)	2.34 [17]
15	7	"Black Maps and Motel Rooms"	Daniel Attias	Nic Pizzolatto	August 2, 2015 (2015-08-02)	2.18 [18]
16	8	"Omega Station"	John Crowley	Nic Pizzolatto	August 9, 2015 (2015-08-09)	2.73 [19]

Season 3 (2019)

Main article: True Detective season 3

The story takes place in the Ozarks over three separate time periods. In 1980, partner detectives Wayne Hays (Mahershala Ali) and Roland West (Stephen Dorff) investigate a macabre crime involving two missing children. In 1990, Hays and West are subpoenaed after a major break in the case. In 2015, a retired Hays is asked by a true crime documentary producer to look back at the unsolved case. ^[20]

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	U.S. viewers (millions)
17	1	"The Great War and Modern Memory"	Jeremy Saulnier	Nic Pizzolatto	January 13, 2019 (2019-01-13)	1.44 [21]
18	2	"Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye"	Jeremy Saulnier	Nic Pizzolatto	January 13, 2019 (2019-01-13)	1.19 [21]
19	3	"The Big Never"	Daniel Sackheim	Nic Pizzolatto	January 20, 2019 (2019-01-20)	1.06 [22]
20	4	"The Hour and the Day"	Nic Pizzolatto	Nic Pizzolatto & David Milch	January 27, 2019 (2019-01-27)	1.45 [23]
21	5	"If You Have Ghosts"	Nic Pizzolatto	Nic Pizzolatto	February 1, 2019 (2019-02-01)(online) February 3, 2019 (2019-02-03)(HBO)	0.88 [24]
22	6	"Hunters in the Dark"	Daniel Sackheim	Graham Gordy & Nic Pizzolatto	February 10, 2019 (2019-02-10)	1.25 [25]
23	7	"The Final Country"	Daniel Sackheim	Nic Pizzolatto	February 17, 2019 (2019-02-17)	1.32 [26]
24	8	"Now Am Found"	Daniel Sackheim	Nic Pizzolatto	February 24, 2019 (2019-02-24)	1.38 [27]

Season 4: Night Country (2024)

Main article: True Detective season 4

In Ennis, Alaska, detectives Liz Danvers (Jodie Foster) and Evangeline Navarro (Kali Reis) investigate the disappearance of eight men who operate the Tsalal Arctic Research Station and vanish without a trace. ^[28]

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	U.S. viewers (millions)  [29]
25	1	"Part 1"	Issa López	Issa López	January 14, 2024 (2024-01-14)	0.565
26	2	"Part 2"	Issa López	Issa López	January 21, 2024 (2024-01-21)	0.678
27	3	"Part 3"	Issa López	Story by : Issa López Teleplay by : Issa López and Alan Page Arriaga	January 28, 2024 (2024-01-28)	0.602
28	4	"Part 4"	Issa López	Namsi Khan and Chris Mundy and Issa López	February 4, 2024 (2024-02-04)	0.722
29	5	"Part 5"	Issa López	Katrina Albright & Wenonah Wilms and Chris Mundy & Issa López	February 9, 2024 (2024-02-09)(online) February 11, 2024 (2024-02-11)(HBO)	0.371
30	6	"Part 6"	Issa López	Issa López	February 18, 2024 (2024-02-18)	0.983

Ratings

True Detective : U.S. viewers per episode (millions)

Season		Episode number								Average
		1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
	1	2.33	1.67	1.93	1.99	2.25	2.64	2.34	3.52	2.33
	2	3.17	3.05	2.62	2.36	2.42	2.34	2.18	2.73	2.61
	3	1.44	1.19	1.06	1.45	0.88	1.25	1.32	1.38	1.25
	4	0.565	0.678	0.602	0.722	0.371	0.983	–		0.654

Audience measurement performed by Nielsen Media Research ^[3]

References

1. Nemetz, Dave (September 27, 2023). "True Detective Season 4 Lands HBO Premiere Date — Watch a New Trailer". TVLine . Retrieved September 27, 2023.
2. Goldberg, Lesley (February 22, 2024). "'True Detective' Renewed for Season 5 With Issa López at the Helm". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 22, 2024.
3. For the first season, see "True Detective: Season One Ratings". TV Series Finale. March 12, 2014. Retrieved February 8, 2022.

   ---

   For the second season, see "True Detective: Season Two Ratings". TV Series Finale. August 11, 2015. Retrieved February 8, 2022.

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   For the third season, see "True Detective: Season Three Ratings". TV Series Finale. February 26, 2019. Retrieved February 8, 2022.

   ---

   For the fourth season, see "True Detective: Season Four Ratings (Night Country)". TV Series Finale. February 7, 2024. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
4. Kondolojy, Amanda (January 14, 2014). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'Real Housewives of Atlanta' Wins Night, 'True Detective', 'Ax Men', 'Shameless' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on November 4, 2015. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
5. Bibel, Sara (January 22, 2014). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'Real Housewives of Atlanta' Wins Night, 'Keeping Up With the Kardashians', 'Shameless', 'True Detective', 'Girls' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on November 4, 2015. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
6. Kondolojy, Amanda (January 28, 2014). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'Real Housewives of Atlanta' Wins Night + 'Live From the Red Carpet', 'Curse of Oak Island', 'Sister Wives' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on November 4, 2015. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
7. Kondolojy, Amanda (July 17, 2015). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'The Walking Dead' Tops Night + 'Real Housewives of Atlanta', 'Keeping Up With the Kardashians' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on November 4, 2015. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
8. Bibel, Sara (July 17, 2015). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'The Walking Dead' Wins Night, NBA All Star Game, 'Real Housewives of Atlanta', 'True Detective', 'Shameless' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on November 4, 2015. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
9. Kondolojy, Amanda (February 25, 2014). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'The Walking Dead' Wins Night, + 'Talking Dead', 'Real Housewives of Atlanta', 'True Detective' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on November 4, 2015. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
10. Bibel, Sara (March 4, 2014). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'The Walking Dead' Wins Night, 'Talking Dead', 'True Detective', Oscars Red Carpet, 'Girls' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on November 4, 2015. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
11. Kondolojy, Amanda (March 11, 2014). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'The Walking Dead' Wins Night, 'Talking Dead', 'The Real Housewives of Atlanta', 'True Detective' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on November 4, 2015. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
12. Bibel, Sara (June 23, 2015). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'True Detective' Wins Night, 'Ballers', 'Naked and Afraid', 'The Last Ship' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on June 23, 2015. Retrieved June 23, 2015.
13. Kondolojy, Amanda (June 30, 2015). "Sunday Cable Ratings: BET Awards Tops Night + 'True Detective', 'Ballers', 'Naked and Afraid' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on July 3, 2015. Retrieved June 30, 2015.
14. Bibel, Sara (July 8, 2015). "Sunday Cable Ratings: Shark Week Wins Night, 'True Detective', ' Ballers', 'The Last Ship', 'Botched', 'Falling Skies' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on July 9, 2015. Retrieved July 8, 2015.
15. Bibel, Sara (July 14, 2015). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'Naked and Afraid XL' Wins Night, 'True Detective', 'Basketball Wives', 'Ballers', 'The Strain' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on July 14, 2015. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
16. Bibel, Sara (July 21, 2015). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'Naked and Afraid XL' Wins Night, 'True Detective', 'Ballers', 'The Strain', 'The Last Ship', 'Tut' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on July 24, 2015. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
17. Kondolojy, Amanda (July 28, 2015). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'I am Cait' Tops Night + 'Naked & Afraid XL', 'Rick & Morty', 'True Detective', NASCAR, 'Ballers' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on July 31, 2015. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
18. Bibel, Sara (August 4, 2015). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'Rick and Morty' & 'Naked and Afraid XL', Win Night, 'True Detective', 'The Last Ship', 'Ballers', 'The Strain', 'Ray Donovan' & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on August 6, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
19. Kondolojy, Amanda (August 11, 2015). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'True Detective' Tops Night + 'Naked and Afraid XL', 'Rick & Morty', 'Ballers', & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on August 13, 2015. Retrieved August 11, 2015.
20. "Starring Mahershala Ali and Created by Nic Pizzolatto, "True Detective" Returns for Third Season Jan. 13, Exclusively on HBO". The Futon Critic. December 12, 2018. Retrieved December 13, 2018.
21. Metcalf, Mitch (January 15, 2019). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 1.13.2019". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on January 15, 2019. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
22. Metcalf, Mitch (January 23, 2019). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 1.20.2019". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on January 23, 2019. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
23. Metcalf, Mitch (January 29, 2019). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 1.27.2019". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on January 30, 2019. Retrieved January 29, 2019.
24. Metcalf, Mitch (February 5, 2019). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 2.3.2019". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on February 7, 2019. Retrieved February 7, 2019.
25. Metcalf, Mitch (February 12, 2019). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 2.10.2019". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on February 13, 2019. Retrieved February 13, 2019.
26. Metcalf, Mitch (February 20, 2019). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 2.17.2019". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on February 21, 2019. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
27. Metcalf, Mitch (February 26, 2019). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 2.24.2019". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on February 26, 2019. Retrieved February 26, 2019.
28. Andreeva, Nellie (September 27, 2023). "'True Detective: Night Country' Gets Premiere Date & Trailer As HBO Chief Explains Delay Of Latest Iteration Starring Jodie Foster, Kali Reis". Deadline. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
29. "True Detective: Season Four Ratings (Night Country)". TV Series Finale. January 18, 2024. Archived from the original on January 22, 2024. Retrieved January 18, 2024.

External links

• Official website
• True Detective at IMDb