It's no secret that the writer behind True Detective Season 4 was inspired by the Dyatlov Pass and another historical incident. If you're wondering what the similarities are between the two, you've come to the right place. We'll be discussing these things here.
Is True Detective Season 4 Based on a True Story?
The first three seasons of True Detective gave us a glimpse of how horrible some humans can be. We've had our fill of political assassinations, kidnapped children, and dealings with the occult. In True Detective Season 4, however, things take a more mysterious turn.
To explain further, let's take a look at the official synopsis of True Detective Season 4:
“When the long winter night falls in Ennis, Alaska, the eight men who operate the Tsalal Arctic Research Station vanish without a trace. To solve the case, Detectives Liz Danvers and Evangeline Navarro will have to confront the darkness they carry in themselves, and dig into the haunted truths that lie buried under the eternal ice.”
Although the series of events in True Detective Season 4 are fictional, showrunner Issa López gained inspiration from two real-life events.
True Detective Season 4 was Inspired by the Story of the Mary Celeste
López spoke to Vanity Fair and shared a couple of real-life events that inspired her to create True Detective Season 4: Night Country.
The first is the Mary Celeste ship that was discovered in December 1872 floating near the Azores Islands.
What's weird about this event is that all crew members on board the ship were never found despite the missing lifeboats. The last log also revealed that they've been missing for 10 days.
To this day, the case remains a mystery and none of the men were ever found.
Connections between True Detective Season 4 and the Dyatlov Pass Incident
True Detective Season 4 was inspired by the events of the Dyatlov Pass Incident.
Back in 1959, a group of experienced Russian hikers were found dead in the cold wilderness of the Ural Mountains.
For years, the incident has always been blamed on an avalanche. But like other people, López doesn't think this is the case.
In an interview with Vanity Fair, López shared:
"An avalanche doesn’t explain a lot of the details I think," she said. "Even if it did, I prefer the strange, incomplete answer. I think there is a fascination with puzzles that are still missing a couple of pieces, and that obsess us, and make us angry, and make us not stop thinking about them."
How Connected is True Detective Season 4 to Dyatlov Pass Incident?
Since these two events remain a mystery, there's no way to know what truly happened. Despite this, López promises that True Detective Season 4 has an ending.
"I took the risk of putting everything on the table. [The character or characters who] committed the deed are right there in front of you through the entire series."
We'll have to wait until more episodes get released.
You can watch more episodes of True Detective Season 4 on Max.
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