Mahershala Ali Joins 'True Detective' Season 3 in Leading Role

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Not only is True Detective not dead, but the show has landed some true star power!

Mahershala Ali has signed on for the long-anticipated (and uncertain) third season of the HBO anthology crime series. Network president, Casey Bloys, revealed the news during Wednesday's summer Television Critics Association press tour. Television Critics Association press tour.

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“I will tell you that I have read five scripts for the third season and I think they’re terrific. We have a deal with Mahershala Ali to play the lead," Bloys told reporters. "Right now we’re talking to directors. When we find a director that we want to [work with], it will be a go for that. We’re much closer to True Detective than on Night Of.”

During the briefing, Bloys also addressed some of the criticism regarding season two, which was much less of a critical darling than their previous Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson-helmed debut season.

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"The only thing you can react to is scripts. The scripts I think are really great," he said. "I didn’t oversee season two. I don’t really know. I know they talked about perhaps it was rushed into production. I can tell you we are taking our time with the scripts. You have been asking us about True Detective for two years. We’re taking our time."

After the announcement was made, Ali took to Instagram to post about his casting, writing simply, "Season 3."

Given Ali's considerable acting chops, and his freshly-won Best Supporting Actor Oscar for Moonlight at this year's Academy Awards, one thing we can be sure of is that the wait will be well-worth it.

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Last year, Bloys confirmed to reporters that True Detective was not dead, while not giving any indication as to when the series would be back.

“It's not dead,” Bloys told reporters. “I talked to [creator] Nic [Pizzolato] about it. Both Nic and HBO were hoping for a third season. I don’t think Nic has a take.”

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Watch the video below to hear Ali talk about his banner year.

Reporting by Philiana Ng.

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