True Detective was initially conceived as a novel, but later, as it began taking definite form, the creator felt it was better suited for television. Engineered as an anthology, each season of True Detective introduces new cast ensembles, characters, settings, and self-contained narratives.

The show's first season is set in Louisiana and follows a pair of Louisiana State Police homicide detectives (McConaughey and Harrelson), and their pursuit of a serial killer over the course of seventeen years