True Detective Season 4 Rounds Out Its Cast, Including A Doctor Who Veteran

The cast of "True Detective: Night Country," the upcoming fourth season of the popular HBO anthology series, continues to grow, with the new lead duo of Jodie Foster and Kali Reis now being joined by Christopher Eccleston, John Hawkes, Fiona Shaw, Finn Bennett, and Anna Lambe, according to Variety.

"Night Country" follows detectives Liz Danvers and Evangeline Navarro, played by Foster and Reis, respectively, as they investigate the disappearance of six men from an Arctic research station. No, this isn't some improbable crossover where they've stumbled upon the crime scene from John Carpenter's "The Thing;" that was the Antarctic.

Eccleston is known for his roles in "The Leftovers," "28 Days Later," and "Doctor Who," where he played the Ninth Doctor. His "True Detective" character is described as "the regional Chief of Police and a political animal with a long history tying him to Liz Danvers." For his part, Hawkes — a "Deadwood" alum who received an Oscar nomination for his performance in "Winter's Bone" — is being tapped to play "a police officer with old grudges hiding under a quiet surface."

Shaw, who embodied Harry Potter's aunt for nine years, can currently be seen as the adoptive mother of Diego Luna's title character in the "Star Wars" series "Andor." In "True Detective: Night Country," she's set to play "a survivalist with a past full of secrets." Bennet is playing "Liz Danvers' protégé and apprentice— both for better or worse," while Lambe is playing "a young nurse with little patience for anybody that messes with her family."

We first reported last year that HBO was courting fresh writers for the fourth season of "True Detective." Creator Nic Pizzolatto remains on board as an executive producer, along with season 1 alumni Matthew McConaughey, Woody Harrelson, and Cary Joji Fukunaga. However, in addition to writing and directing, Issa López ("Tigers Are Not Afraid") will be steering the ship as the new showrunner, with Alan Page Arriaga also writing — and executive producing with Oscar winner Barry Jenkins ("Moonlight").

The cast of "True Detective: Night Country" is shaping to be very intriguing indeed, and with Pizzolatto and HBO having mutually agreed to part ways after the return to form of season 3, López, Foster, and company could be just the breath of fresh Alaskan night air the series needs. Variety's report furthermore indicates that HBO has brought in Daazhraii Johnson and Tagnak Rexford to "lead an Iñupiaq advisory council to consult on Alaska Native culture featured in the show."

Here's the official synopsis for "True Detective: Night Country:"

When the long winter night falls in Ennis, Alaska, the six men that operate the Tsalal Arctic Research Station vanish without a trace. To solve the case, Detectives Liz Danvers (Foster) and Evangeline Navarro (Reis) will have to confront the darkness they carry in themselves, and dig into the haunted truths that lie buried under the eternal ice.

"True Detective: Night Country" is in pre-production now and does not have a premiere date yet, but we'll keep you posted.