True Detective season 3 fans convinced of first season connection after huge reference in episode 2

'It’s a fun way to tie things in'

The third season of True Detective is being called a return to the form with viewers noticing a huge reference to the HBO anthology show’s first season.

Mahershala Ali heads up the cast of the latest run that focuses on the case of a missing brother and sister in 1960s Arkansas.

The second of two episodes to have aired appears to tie this season to the first. In one of the timelines – 2015 – viewers saw documentary producer Elisa Montgomery (Sarah Gadon) interview the 70-year-old Wayne Hays (Ali) about the case he worked on 35 years before.

As part of the interview, she reels off more recent cases that bear similarities to the case – one of which featured “crooked spiral” iconography.

While a throwaway line, many viewers highlighted that this symbol appeared in season one – specifically, etched into the back of Dora Lange as part of a vision Matthew McConaughey’s character Rust Cohle saw.

Executive producer Soctt Stephens has since revealed this is nothing but a loving reference to the show’s first season.

“I guess it’s set in the same fictional world everything is set in, right? The reference is kind of a nod to the [first season]. The stuff in season one was based on the same sort of paedophilia stories that are mentioned by the documentary crew. That’s kind of the connective tissue.”

He continued: “It’s just a fun way to tie things in.”

True Detective is broadcast in the UK on Sky Atlantic

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