The second season of True Detective , an American anthology crime drama television series created by Nic Pizzolatto , began airing on June 21, , on the premium cable network HBO. The season's story takes place in California and follows the interweaving stories of officers from three cooperating police departments; when California Highway Patrol officer and war veteran Paul Woodrugh Kitsch discovers the body of corrupt city manager Ben Caspere on the side of a highway, Vinci Police Department detective Raymond "Ray" Velcoro Farrell and Ventura County Sheriff's Office Criminal Investigation Division Sergeant Antigone "Ani" Bezzerides McAdams are called to assist in the following investigation.
Career criminal Francis "Frank" Semyon Vaughn attempts to legitimize his business with his wife Jordan Reilly by investing in a rail project overseen by Caspere, but loses his money when Caspere is killed, prompting him to start his own investigation.
In January , Pizzolatto signed a two-year contract extension with HBO, effectively renewing the series for two additional seasons. Pizzolatto hired fellow novelist Scott Lasser to help break stories for the second half of the season.
Ahead of True Detective ' s second season, the press publicized rumors that creative differences had fueled personal hostility between Pizzolatto and Fukunaga; the former denied the rumors, while the latter declined to comment.
To deliver, in a very short time frame, something that became very challenging to deliver. The success of True Detective , and its subsequent renewal, fueled casting rumors in the press. California was selected as the setting for the second season. Producers were urged to avoid filming in Los Angeles and, instead, focus on the other regions of the state to "capture a certain psycho-sphere ambiance".
