Nic Pizzolatto Needs a Writing Partner for True Detective Season Three

By Reuben Levine | Sep 24, 2015

True Detective creator Nic Pizzolatto is under an absurd amount of pressure.

Carrying the weight of True Detective on your shoulders can’t be an easy undertaking, especially after the reception to season two. As the only writer (usually) on the show, Pizzolatto makes him solely responsible for the direction that series takes. Sometimes this is good, and other times it’s not. What season two proved to use more than anything, however, is that Nic Pizzolatto needs a permanent writing partner.

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Most series are written fighter with a group of writers. It allows for a space for constructive criticism and for more ideas to grow. Some shows choose to go a different route, including Game of Thrones, which is predominately written by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss. Though even when it comes to HBO’s monster hit Game of Thrones, other writers are sometimes involved.

Nic Pizzolatto being the only writer on True Detective fits the idea of the show perfectly. A noir series shrouded in secrecy that exists in a vacuum. When looked at in a certain light, it’s not difficult to romanticize Pizzolatto’s sole dedication to his creation. He used to work in a normal writer’s room type scenario, but apparently that didn’t work out.

At least a single new permanent writer could go a long way to fixing True Detective’s issues.

True Detective season two had co-writers on two episodes. Scott Lasser, an author, contributed an unknown amount of work to “Down Will Come” and “Church in Ruins.” At least with the former we found the addition of a new writer apparent and welcome. Nic Pizzolatto has trouble juggling his own storylines, which is understandable since they tend to be very complex. At least a single new permanent writer could go a long way to fixing True Detective’s issues.

But would Nic Pizzolatto ever hire an outside voice? From everything we’ve learned so far, it feels as if Pizzolatto is very protective of True Detective. While running his own show he doesn’t have to deal with the input of other people like when he was working on The Killing or Luck. Still, it was shocking to see another name as writer on those two episodes in season two. Maybe that means he’s coming around to the idea.

Either way, it’s in True Detective season three’s best interest for Pizzolatto to branch out just a little bit.

Next: Lera Lynn talked about being on True Detective in new interview.

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