True Detective season 3 was not originally supposed to star Mahershala Ali
By Shawn Lealos
Mahershala Ali is starring in True Detective season 3 on HBO, which premieres this month, but that was not always the case.
It seems almost hard to believe that the Oscar-winning actor from Moonlight had to actually fight to convince creator Nic Pizzolatto to let him star in the series.
True Detective season 3 stars Ali as a former police detective during three stages of his life, including his younger days where he investigated the disappearance of two young children.
How did Mahershala Ali change True Detective?
More from True Detective
- Who plays Hoyt on True Detective and is he based on a real person?
- True Detective season 3 bringing in Walking Dead actor, could he hold the key to the mystery?
- True Detective season 3, episode 3 recap: The Big Never
- True Detective premiere ratings down despite superior start to season 3
- True Detective season 3, episode 2 recap: Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Ali said that the original script for this season of True Detective had his character as a white police officer.
Pizzolatto offered Ali a supporting role but that was not good enough for the actor. He saw something bigger he could offer and went to work on the show’s creator to explain his vision.
According to the actor, he sent photographs of his grandfather — who was a police officer — in full uniform. Ali said that he wanted to convince Pizzolatto that this was very serious for him and he had something that he wanted to bring to the story that wasn’t in the original script.
Ali said that he convinced Pizzolatto of his vision and it just took a little “fine-tuning” of the script.
Ali said that the changes were not big. Instead, he just wanted to show an idea that Wayne was a black cop and that it would slightly change the dynamic of the original story.
True Detective season 3 is almost here
The best news is that early reviews of True Detective season 3 calls it a “return to form” for the show that was critically acclaimed in its freshman season but a disappointment in its second year.
The season starts in 1980 when two kids disappear and Ali’s Vietnam-vet turned police detective Wayne Hays starts an investigation with his partner Roland West (Stephen Dorff). This then intertwines with Hays life in 1990 when the case is reopened and then in 2015 when Hays is an old man haunted by the past.
Next. Game of Thrones: Oddsmakers set betting odds on different outcomes. dark
True Detective season 3 premieres on January 13 at 9 p.m. EST on HBO. Stay with Show Snob for all the coverage of True Detective, including recaps of every episode and don’t forget to follow us on Facebook & Twitter for more on your favorite shows!.