True Detective: Should unknown actors be cast in lead roles?

With the second season of True Detective still months away, fans are left trying to figure out what is next for the show we all fell in love with during it’s inaugural run. One thing that is on the minds of virtually anyone who watched the show is who will be cast in the lead roles for next season, since the show runs with an anthology style formula that allows each season to be it’s own concise story.

Both Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson blew fans and critics away with their performances in season one, but the question has become how does HBO top the pairing in season two? There’s no easy answer and the best solution may be the exact opposite of what fans are fantasizing about.

While we’ve heard just about every A-List actor and actress mentioned as a possibility, from Brad Pitt to Emma Stone and even Kristin Wiig, the fact of the matter is the new season needs to roll with little known actors rather than massive stars that will ruin the series.

It’s not that Brad Pitt is a bad actor and would ruin the series in that regard, but we’re starting to care more about the actors than the story and that could be a problem. It’s nice to have big name movie stars coming to television but when it becomes the main draw to your show, and starts to become a schtick of sorts, then it becomes a problem.

It’s very possible that another pair of big names actors step in and knock their roles out of the park, but if there are any Brad Pitt’s or Emma Stone’s to be found in season two, they should take supporting roles and allow smaller, up and coming actors tackle the main roles.

We see it all the time when franchises reboot as young actors step in and make their mark playing the new Spider-Man or the next Luke Skywalker. So, since True Detective essentially reboots each season, why can’t we have the same thing to make sure the casting methods in True Detective don’t become a characterization of the show and the story remains the main and central focus?