Matthew McConaughey arrives on the red carpet of The 90th Oscars® at the Dolby® Theatre in Hollywood, CA on Sunday, March 4, 2018. Credit/Provider: Scott Diussa / A.M.P.A.S. Copyright: A.M.P.A.S.
Preview:
Matthew McConaughey is reuniting with ‘True Detective’s Nic Pizzolatto for a new show.
Cole Hauser will co-star.
Netflix has landed the project.
Matthew McConaughey and ‘True Detective’ creator Nic Pizzolatto have long talked about how much they enjoyed collaborating, and while it seems that the latter is well out of the ‘Detective’ world now, he has created a new show, which has McConaughey circling a lead role.
Much of what the show itself will be about remains under wraps for now –– the only real detail seems to be that McConaughey and Hauser would play brothers.
And the fact that Skydance Sports is producing the show would indicate that it’ll have a sporting theme.
Those details will emerge in time –– and the project is still listed as just in development.
Where else can we see Matthew McConaughey and Cole Hauser?
Cole Hauser as Rip Wheeler in Paramount Network’s ‘Yellowstone’ season 5. Credit: Paramount Network.
McConaughey starred in this March’s ‘The Rivals of Amziah King’, and he’ll be seen this fall in ‘The Lost Bus’, a true-life tale about a bus driver who saved kids during the Camp Fire in California.
Directed by Paul Greengrass, it’ll premiere at the Toronto Film Festival next month.
The actor is also attached to star in a Mike Hammer adaptation, which coincidentally has Pizzolatto writing that script and Hauser also circling a role.
And then we have ‘Brother from Another Mother,’ another sibling series, this one for Apple, in which McConaughey stars with one other good friend –– his ‘True Detective’ co-star Woody Harrelson. The show appears to be going through some creative difficulties on its road to the screen, swapping showrunners and re-shooting some scenes.
As for Hauser, he got a big career boost with ‘Yellowstone’ and will be reprising his role as Rip Wheeler in the latest spin-off, ‘The Dutton Ranch’.
When will the new McConaughey/Hauser/Pizzolatto show be on screens?
Since the deals are still being figured out, we wouldn’t expect this one to be in production much before the end of the year or early 2026 so we’ll be waiting for the show.
Matthew McConaughey in season 1 of ‘True Detective’. Photo: HBO.
Now, according to The InSneider, Nicolas Cage could become the latest award-winning movie star to play the main role, this time for the fifth season of the crime series.
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With Issa López, who ran the successful fourth season –– which saw Foster’s grizzled cop dealing with a mysterious murder in the frozen wastes of Alaska –– back to run the show, we’ll have to wait and see whether Cage actually ends up starring.
Created by Nic Pizzolatto, the first ‘True Detective’ season saw McConaughey and Harrelson as cops tackling a murder that had cult ties in the south Louisiana bayous and backroads, while the second took place in the fictional city of Vinci, California, where detectives from three different police departments investigating a death tied to corrupt politicians and a powerful businessman.
That season starred Farrell, Rachel McAdams and Vince Vaughn, but didn’t meet the same critical reception.
Things were a little better for Season 3, which saw Mahershala Ali as detective Wayne Hays, investigating a crime involving missing children that spans three decades.
And the fourth, which saw Lopez taking over the reins and Foster joined by the likes of Kali Reis, Christopher Eccleston, Fiona Shaw and John Hawkes for the frosty mystery set as Alaska plunges into a long period of darkness, has been scoring awards all over the place.
Exact plot details for the fifth have yet to be specified. If he does take the role, chances are Cage will be a police officer, but we could also see him playing a criminal.
Where else can we see Nicolas Cage?
‘Nicolas Cage’ (Nicolas Cage) greets ‘Javi Gutierrez’ with a ‘Palm Hold Fist’ salute as he arrives in Mallorca, Spain. Photo Credit: Katalin Vermes/Lionsgate.
Cage was last seen in Western pic ‘Gunslingers’ and has a few projects in the way.
He’s playing NFL legend John Madden in the movie about part of his career, which is now shooting.
There’s also satirical drama ‘The Prince’, and while he’ll be heard as Spider-Noir in ‘Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse’ (due in 2027), he’s also playing the live-action version of the character for a series that will hit next year.
When will ‘True Detective’ Season 5 be on screens?
While HBO has not yet set a premiere date, the show is expected to return in 2027.
(Left) Matthew McConaughey in season 1 of ‘True Detective’. Photo: HBO. (Right) Stacy Keach as Mike Hammer in ‘Mike Hammer, Private Eye’. Photo: The Kushner-Locke Company.
Preview:
Matthew McConaughey is in talks to play Mike Hammer.
‘True Detective’s Nic Pizzolatto will write the script.
It’ll be based on Mickey Spillane’s and Max Allan Collins’ Mike Hammer franchise.
According to Deadline, McConaughey is in talks to star in a new adaptation of the Mike Hammer detective novels, with Pizzolatto writing the script.
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Skydance acquired the rights to Mickey Spillane’s and Max Allan Collins’ Hammer franchise with plans to develop and produce the bestselling book series into a movie
Stacy Keach as Mike Hammer in ‘Mike Hammer, Private Eye’. Photo: The Kushner-Locke Company.
Mike Hammer as a character was created by the American author Spillane.
He debuted in the 1947 book ‘I, the Jury’ as a no-holds-barred private investigator whose love for his secretary Velda is outweighed only by his willingness to kill a killer.
Hammer’s best friend is Pat Chambers, Captain of NYPD Homicide, and the ‘tec was a World War II army veteran who spent two years fighting jungle warfare in the Pacific Ocean theater against Japan.
With more than 250 million copies of Hammer books sold globally, it often is recognized as the most popular American mystery/thriller series of all time. Hammer is credited with inspiring numerous other characters including Dirty Harry, Jack Reacher and James Bond, who Ian Fleming famously referred to as “the British answer to Mike Hammer.”
There were also comic books, and Collins took over writing the character in 2008 with the series of novels ending this year.
Hammer has not had a chance for any feature film treatment thanks to a long-winded rights dispute. Spillane passed away in 2006, one month after the death of his manager Jay Bernstein. Bernstein’s estate claimed ownership of the character. Ken F. Levin spent several years in court before the rights came back to the author’s estate and a clear title could be delivered for a movie deal.
What else has Matthew McConaughey been working on?
Matthew McConaughey in season 1 of ‘True Detective’. Photo: HBO.
McConaughey’s movie career has been a little quieter of late –– he hasn’t appeared on the big screen in person since 2019’s crime caper ‘The Gentlemen.’ He did, however, lend his voice to animated sequel ‘Sing 2’ (2021) and the various short films around it.
And this year will see him starring in two films –– Apple Original Film’s ‘The Lost Bus,’ about a bus driver who helped to rescue stranded kids during the 2018 Camp Fire in California.
His other most recent movie, ‘The Rivals of Amziah King,’ which sees him playing a foster parent reuniting with one of his former charges, debuted at the SXSW Film Festival this past March.
Finally, there is the planned reunion with ‘True Detective’ co-star Woody Harrelson –– he played detective Marty Hart to McConaughey’s detective Rust Cohle –– in a new Apple TV+ series which will see the old friends playing brothers.
Reuniting with Pizzolatto, who created the much-talked about first season of ‘True Detective’, makes sense, and there’s a chance Pizzolatto could return to that world, since the actors have expressed a desire to revisit the roles.
“I actually have another story for Cohle and Hart that, who knows, maybe we’ll do it one day,” he began, adding that he didn’t feel beholden to continuing the inaugural season’s storyline: “But no, there is pressure, but I don’t really feel or respond to pressure that way. I get pressure [from] myself and beyond that it doesn’t exist so much for me and pressure tends to more revolve around, am I discharging my duty correctly for me?”
When will the Mike Hammer movie investigate the inside of theaters?
With no director attached yet, and no actual distributor (though Skydance may well release it via Paramount Pictures if its merger goes through), there’s zero sign of a release date at this point.
(L to R) Jodie Foster and Kali Reis in HBO’s ‘True Detective: Night Country.’ Photo: Michele K. Short/HBO.
Premiering on Max January 14th, ‘True Detective: Night Country’ offers a very different spin on the usual mystery story, one that draws upon the eternal clash between modern progress and native lands, between parents and children, and between the forces of right and wrong, even as the main characters sometimes cross those lines.
Built around a typically excellent performance by Jodie Foster, in what might be her most iconic law enforcement role since Clarice Starling of ‘The Silence of the Lambs’, the new ‘True Detective’ pivots away from creator Nic Pizzolatto’s seasons of the show to focus instead on a stranger mystery –– time might have been a flat circle in the first season, but here it is frozen in ice.
Does ‘True Detective: Night Country’ find the light in the darkness?
(L to R) Kali Reis and Jodie Foster in HBO’s ‘True Detective: Night Country.’ Photo: Michele K. Short/HBO.
As mentioned, this will feel very different to past ‘True Detective’ seasons. While the show has generally re-invented itself with each iteration (from the Louisiana-set first to the California-inflected second and Ozarks-featuring third), incoming showrunner Issa López maintains what worked about particularly the first and third seasons while imbuing the fourth with her own particular viewpoint and energy.
And filming in Iceland –– standing in for the fictional Alaskan town of Ennis –– gives the new season a distinctly different look too, its dark, snowy night-time setting upping the stakes for the officers and locals as they try to figure out what exactly is going on in this frosty, close-knit community.
‘True Detective: Night Country’ : Script and Direction
(L to R) Kali Reis and Jodie Foster in HBO’s ‘True Detective: Night Country.’ Photo: Michele K. Short/HBO.
In addition to running the show (and having a hand in all the scripts alongside writers Alan Page Arriaga, Namsi Khan, Chris Mundy, Katrina Albright and Wenonah Wilms), López directs all six episodes of this new season.
And the result is a hauntingly consistent look for the story, which makes full use of the gloomy, doomy landscape against which the mystery takes place. This is a haunting and haunted place, which makes for a fascinating backdrop for a neo-noir. The writers’ minds are full of conflict and survival, and subplots about protests against a local mining operation and the strange case of the frozen lab staff give the narrative plenty of weight.
Jodie Foster in HBO’s ‘True Detective: Night Country.’ Photo: Michele K. Short/HBO.
Foster, in a very rare TV performance (she’s primarily been a director on the small screen) and, in concert with López’ writing, her Liz Danvers is a fine creation, weather-beaten and careworn, not afraid to bend the rules to do her job and with little time for the fantastical theories others suggest as to what happened to the victims in her cases.
She’s also dealing with her step-daughter, Leah (Isabella Star LaBlanc), a young woman caught between her native heritage, her anger at the world and her own new romance. Their dynamic is complicated and truthful, and while it sometimes slips into expected teen-parent cycles, it’s always involving.
But while this is often the Jodie Foster show, that’s not to say that the rest of the ensemble doesn’t match up to her level. Kali Reis is the intense, torn trooper Evangeline Navarro, once a close colleague of Danvers whose relationship with her after a particularly tragic case, is now frostier than the air they breathe. Reis brings a damaged vulnerability to the role, cloaked in a steel attitude towards her job and those who would hurt her family. She certainly gets her moments to shine.
John Hawkes in HBO’s ‘True Detective: Night Country.’ Photo: Michele K. Short/HBO.
While Reis might be less familiar to some, there is also a host of “it’s-that-person” character actors to bring smaller parts to life with their usual care and attention. John Hawkes plays Hank Prior, one of Danvers’ direct colleagues, whose approach to law enforcement is decidedly more macho. He oozes toxic masculinity (which Hawkes portrays perfectly despite his wiry frame), his manner nevertheless hiding his own damage, yearning for love he can’t quite make work.
Then there’s Christopher Eccleston (best known for the likes of ‘Doctor Who’ and ‘The Leftovers’), as Danvers’ superior, with whom she has a complicated relationship. He’s a perfectly-judged mix of authority figure and ridiculous doofus. Fiona Shaw, meanwhile, is Rose Aguineau, who lives on the outskirts of town and appears to see visions of the dead. It’s a role that Shaw fully engages with.
Beyond the core cast, there is a tapestry of bro-style hunters and some compelling native characters, who appear to offer clues to what is really going on.
‘True Detective: Night Country’: Final Thoughts
Kali Reis in HBO’s ‘True Detective: Night Country.’ Photo: Michele K. Short/HBO.
Bold and melancholic, with some wonderfully pitched performances and well-realized detail, the new run of ‘True Detective’ is a more than worthwhile addition to the show’s canon. It’s great to see Jodie Foster given another meaty role to get her teeth into, and she’s aided by a top-notch ensemble.
It’s certainly not going to be comfort watching, but then do you expect that from a ‘True Detective’ tale?
‘True Detective: Night Country’ receives 8 out of 10 stars.
Fiona Shaw in HBO’s ‘True Detective: Night Country.’ Photo: Michele K. Short/HBO.
What’s the story of ‘True Detective: Night Country’?
In Ennis, Alaska, the sun sets on December 17 and won’t rise again until after the New Year. On the third day of night, police chief Liz Danvers (Jodie Foster) is called to the scene of a strange maybe-crime: the Tsalal Arctic Research Station, home to eight scientists who spend their days investigating arctic biology, geology, and the impacts of climate change.
But when Danvers arrives, all eight are missing. They’ve left behind their access passes, their cell phones, an uneaten sandwich; it’s as if the entire group has simply vanished into thin air. To solve the case, Detectives Danvers and Evangeline Navarro (Kali Reis) will have to confront the darkness themselves and dig into the haunted truths that lie buried under the eternal ice.
Who is in ‘True Detective: Night Country’?
Jodie Foster stars in the series as Danvers, with Kali Reis as Navarro. The cast also includes Fiona Shaw, Isabella Star, Christopher Eccleston, John Hawkes, Finn Bennett, Anna Lambe, Aka Niviâna and Joel Montgrand.
Christopher Eccleston in HBO’s ‘True Detective: Night Country.’ Photo: Michele K. Short/HBO.
Other Movies Similar to ‘True Detective: Night Country:’
The hits keep coming for Marvel –– and in this case, it’s not a success like the box office launch of ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’. The company has had a real struggle getting its planned ‘Blade’ movie to screens and is facing yet another delay.
This time, the issue is the Writers Guild of America strike. The union’s members downed tools and began picketing on May 2nd after failing to work out a new contract with the studios and other companies such as Netflix.
Under the terms of the strike, writers in the union cannot work on movies and TV series that are signatories to its contract –– and that includes both Disney and Marvel.
So, according to The Hollywood Reporter, team Marvel has chosen to press pause on production of the movie, which had been due to begin next month in Atlanta.
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Blade: the story so far
Despite all the excitement over the announcement that Oscar winner Mahershala Ali would play the character during Marvel’s 2019 Comic-Con panel, the progress has been slow.
‘Mogul Mowgli’ director Bassam Tariq was hired to make the movie, only to depart over scheduling issues –– and given a shift in writers to Michael Starrbury, also seemed to indicate problems with the script.
‘White Boy Rick’s Yann Demage came aboard in November last year, but Pizzolatto’s hiring signaled that the movie was still having issues –– mostly, apparently, with tone. ‘Blade’ was never going to be quite the usual Marvel quip-fest, choosing instead to go a slightly grittier route.
But treading that line has apparently been trickier than anyone imagined.
Blade from Marvel Comics. Photo courtesy of Marvel.com.
Originally crafted by Gene Colan and Marv Wolfman as a human who was immune to vampire bites, he was later changed to Eric Cross Brooks, whose mother is murdered by the bloodsucker Deacon Frost as she gives birth. The attack passes on vampire enzymes to her child, who becomes a Dhampir – a mix of both human and vampire.
Gifted with speed, strength, and the ability to walk in the daylight (hence his other name, the Daywalker), his mission is to hunt down and destroy vampires. In his time, he’s crossed paths with many notable Marvel characters in the comics, including Spider-Man and the Avengers. He’s also battled living vampire Morbius, who had his own movie out earlier this year, starring Jared Leto.
Yet Blade is probably most famous for the trilogy of movies released by New Line in 1998, 2002 and 2004, starring Wesley Snipes as the gruff, sword-swinging character.
Marvel had targeted a September 6th, 2024, release date, but that is all but certain to shift.
‘Blade’ is just one of the projects being affected by the industrial action. While most of the movies for this year and into next are either shot or in the middle of work, it’ll impact both big screen and small screen work beyond that –– the likes of ‘Game of Thrones’ spin-off ‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight’ –– and the next season of ‘Stranger Things’ have both paused their writing rooms, with the ‘Things’ team putting out a social media post explaining the situation and supporting the strike.
Duffers here. Writing does not stop when filming begins. While we’re excited to start production with our amazing cast and crew, it is not possible during this strike. We hope a fair deal is reached soon so we can all get back to work. Until then — over and out. #wgastrong
On the big screen, we’ll be expecting to see ‘Blade‘ deal with the threat of vampires. But to get there, at least as part of the MCU, the character has had to deal with something far trickier ––development issues.
Despite all the excitement over the announcement that Oscar winner Mahershala Ali would play the character during Marvel’s 2019 Comic-Con panel, the progress has been slow.
‘Mogul Mowgli’ director Bassam Tariq was hired to make the movie, only to depart over scheduling issues –– and given a shift in writers to Michael Starrbury, also seemed to indicate problems with the script.
‘White Boy Rick’s Yann Demage came aboard in November last year, but writing-wise, there is, according to The Hollywood Reporter, another change in the cards on the script front. ‘True Detective’ creator Nic Pizzolatto has been working on a draft based on Starrbury’s for a few weeks now.
He’s writing as quickly as possible, as the movie is scheduled to shoot at the end of this month in Atlanta.
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‘True Detective’ reunion
Pizzolatto’s presence does indeed mark a ‘True Detective’ reunion, since Ali starred as Detective Wayne Hays in the third season of the anthology show (a fourth, starring Jodie Foster is on the way this year, but no longer involves Pizzolatto as showrunner.)
Mahershala Ali in HBO’s ‘True Detective’ Season 3.
Where does Blade fit into the comics?
Originally crafted by Gene Colan and Marv Wolfman as a human who was immune to vampire bites, he was later changed to Eric Cross Brooks, whose mother is murdered by the bloodsucker Deacon Frost as she gives birth. The attack passes on vampire enzymes to her child, who becomes a Dhampir – a mix of both human and vampire.
Gifted with speed, strength, and the ability to walk in the daylight (hence his other name, the Daywalker), his mission is to hunt down and destroy vampires. In his time, he’s crossed paths with many notable Marvel characters in the comics, including Spider-Man and the Avengers. He’s also battled living vampire Morbius, who had his own movie out earlier this year, starring Jared Leto.
Yet Blade is probably most famous for the trilogy of movies released by New Line in 1998, 2002 and 2004, starring Wesley Snipes as the gruff, sword-swinging character.
The MCU version’s story is still so far, a mystery: whether it’ll deal with Blade’s origins is unknown for now, but we can expect plenty of vampire-killing action.
Blade from Marvel Comics. Photo courtesy of Marvel.com.
After years of waiting, fans of HBO anthology series “True Detective” now know exactly when the show will be back for its highly-anticipated third season.
The premium cable outlet announced on Thursday that the season three premiere is scheduled for January 13 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. The eight-episode season will center around what’s being described as “a macabre crime in the heart of the Ozarks,” and will span three different time periods.
Oscar winner Mahershala Ali (“Moonlight“) will play the main character, Wayne Hays, a state police detective from Northwest Arkansas. The supporting cast includes Stephen Dorff (playing Roland West, an Arkansas State Investigator), and Carmen Ejogo (playing Amelia Reardon, an Arkansas schoolteacher with a connection to two missing children in 1980).
Season one of the HBO series, created by Nic Pizzolatto, starred Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson, and was a huge hit with both viewers and critics alike. But the second season — featuring stars Colin Farrell, Rachel McAdams, Taylor Kitsch, and Vince Vaughn — was decidedly less successful, leading HBO at one point to put plans for a third installment on indefinite hold.
This new version, though, has fans hopeful that “True Detective” can once again return to its first season heights. They’ll only have to wait a few more months to find out for sure.
“True Detective” may get a third season after all.
Entertainment Weekly reports that creator Nic Pizzolatto has written at least the first two episodes of a potential third season of the anthology crime drama, and that “Deadwood” mastermind David Milch is joining the show to work with Pizzolatto.
A third season seemed up in the air, after a disappointing second season was poorly received by critics and viewers. Last summer, HBO programming chief Casey Bloys said the show was “not dead but there’s no take on a third season yet.”
Well, it seems Pizzolatto has a take on it now. Still, HBO hasn’t ordered a third season yet.
Season 1 of “True Detective” bowed to great reviews and buzz, thanks to acclaimed performances by Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson. But season 2, which starred Vince Vaughn and Rachel McAdams, fell flat. HBO itself claimed that they rushed Pizzolatto into writing it.
With Milch on board, “True Detective” gets a veteran writer and showrunner. But of course, this probably means those “Deadwood” follow-up movies won’t be made anytime soon.
After the disappointing second season of HBO limited series “True Detective,” the premium cable outlet is unlikely to move forward on season three.
That’s the word from a new story in The Hollywood Reporter, previewing the reign of incoming HBO programming chief Casey Bloys. According to THR, sources from inside the network say that HBO is “more likely” to develop a new series from “True Detective” creator Nic Pizzolatto, rather than order an additional season of “TD.” Bloys, who’s taking over from retiring longtime chief Michael Lombardo, currently holds the fate of the series in his hands, per THR.
While that’s not a definitive cancellation, it certainly seems unlikely that more “True Detective” is on the horizon, based on the tepid reaction to (and critical drubbing of) the series’s second season. But despite the setbacks to the show following its buzzy, lauded first season (featuring an instantly iconic performance from Matthew McConaughey), HBO apparently believes in Pizzolatto’s creative vision, and has signed him to an exclusive development deal. Just what may come of that is unclear at this point, but the showrunner has to be happy that he still has an outlet for his work, if not the long-running success of “True Detective” that many fans and critics expected.
Stay tuned to see what’s next for Pizzolatto and HBO.
Who says summer belongs to the blockbusters? HBO has us pumped to sit at home on June 21 for the premiere of “True Detective” Season 2. The second round is set in Los Angeles and follows three cops (played by Colin Farrell, Taylor Kitsch, and Rachel McAdam) and a criminal (Vince Vaughn). All four characters are featured from the noses down in these new posters:
Not sure why we’re being denied eye access but, as each image repeats, “WE GET THE WORLD WE DESERVE.” That could be good. That could be bad. Guessing bad, for now. “True Detective” creator and showrunner Nic Pizzolatto did a little Q&A with HBO, and even though we don’t learn many hard facts about Season 2, here are some excerpts:
HBO: Is there a relationship between the story of season two and the story of season one, or any connection between the seasons?
There’s no relationship between the stories or characters, which was the result of fully committing to something new, but I do think that the seasons have a deep, close bond in sensibility and vision, a similar soul, though this is a more complex world and field of characters.
HBO: Earlier last year, you said that this season was about ‘Bad men, hard women and the secret occult history of the U.S. transportation system.’ Is that still true?
It’s not, I’m afraid. There’s definitely bad men and hard women, but no secret occult history of the U.S. transportation system. That was a comment from very early in the process, and something I ended up discarding in favor of closer character work and a more grounded crime story. The complexity of the historical conspiracy first conceived detracted from the characters and their reality, I felt, and those characters are ultimately what have to shape the world and story. So I moved away from that.
HBO: What’s that music on the trailer? Where’d it come from?
That’s one of several original songs developed with T-Bone Burnett, as original music plays a much greater role this season. The reasons for that are probably best explained by seeing the show, but these songs will be revealed in full at a later date.
Watch the teaser again below. The music alone is reason enough to watch this show.
“True Detective” may get a third season after all.
After the disappointing second season of HBO limited series “True Detective,” the premium cable outlet is unlikely to move forward on season three.
Who says summer belongs to the blockbusters? HBO has us pumped to sit at home on June 21 for the premiere of