HBO boss takes responsibility for ‘rushed’ ‘True Detective’ season 2
Here is something that you don’t see everyday: A network executive trying to take complete ownership of something that happened with a show. Specifically, we are talking about HBO president Michael Lombardo, and his behavior that he feels caused the second season of “True Detective” to become such a disappointment to critics and viewers alike.
Speaking to The Frame, Lombardo mentions that the biggest flaw in the plan for season 2 was simply an issue of him pressuring creator Nic Pizzolatto to create a series of scripts before he was ready to do so, which led to something that was far more unfocused than it needed to be:
“When we tell someone to hit an air date as opposed to allowing the writing to find its own natural resting place, when it’s ready, when it’s baked — we’ve failed … And I think in this particular case, the first season of True Detective was something that Nic Pizzolatto had been thinking about, gestating, for a long period of time.
“I became too much of a network executive at that point. We had huge success. ‘Gee, I’d love to repeat that next year.’ Well, you know what? I set him up. To deliver, in a very short time frame, something that became very challenging to deliver. That’s not what that show is. He had to reinvent the wheel, so to speak. Find his muse. And so I think that’s what I learned from it. Don’t do that anymore.”
Lombardo also mentioned that he learned from this to no longer greenlight something without a script, which is why a third season may not have been ordered yet. Pizzolatto is still under contract through the network to do a deal, and we do think something else from him will come in time. Even if you hold season 2 of “True Detective” more against him than Lombardo, he’s still done enough with the first season that it makes you believe he can do it again. Even some of the best do stumble sometime; our main hope is that if there is a third season, it comes with a slight change of tone rather than being so dreary and super-serious.
What do you think: Will more time heal wounds, and allow Pizzolatto the chance to do something better? Share below. (Photo: HBO)