“It’s an Expansion of the World”: ‘Dark Winds’ Is Going West in Season 4

Dark Windshas spent three seasons exploring the American Southwest. For season four, they’re going even farther west, out to the West Coast. In a new interview withThe Hollywood Reporter,Dark WindsshowrunnerJohn Wirthdiscusses the show’s trip to Los Angeles — and whatTony Hillermanbook the new season will adapt.

In the interview, Wirth reveals that the fourth season will adapt Hillerman’s novelThe Ghostway, which partially takes place in LA. The show’s trip to California will continue Wirth’s gradual expansion of the show’s world, which has taken place over the course of its three seasons: “One of the things I try to do every season is expand the world ofDark Winds, even if it’s a small thing, like in season two I wanted to see how rich white people live in comparison to how typical Navajo people live and these worlds bump up against each other…then in season three,we go to the borderso we have a completely different environment, different world, it looks different, the people are different, there are different cops. InThe Ghostway, part of the story takes place in Los Angeles, so it’s an expansion of the world in a different way in season four.” Of course, Los Angeles has changed a lot since the show’s 1970s timeframe, so Wirth discussed where they’ll find the right ambiance: “You can’t find it in Los Angeles. We’ll find it somewhere.”

What Happened in Season 3 of ‘Dark Winds’?

Much ofDark Winds' third season dealt with the fallout of season 2’s finale, in which Joe Leaphorn (Zahn McClarnon) discovered that local millionaire B.J. Vines was responsible for his son’s death, and subsequently left Vines in the desert to die. FBI agent Sylvia Washington (Jenna Elfman) came to town to investigate Vines' death, and latched on to Leaphorn as a suspect; however, Joe’s wife Emma (Deanna Allison) provided him with an alibi. Joe was also forced to confront his own past traumas, but his failure to process them resulted in his separation from Emma. He and partner Jim Chee (Kiowa Gordon) also investigated a mysterious murder that initially seemed to be the work of a legendary monster, but was in fact nothing more than a shady archaeologist covering up his crimes. Meanwhile, their former colleague Bernadette (Jessica Matten) has left the reservation for a new job with the Border Patrol, only to get embroiled in a drug-smuggling conspiracy.

First published in 1984,The Ghostwaydoes not feature Leaphorn, and is a solo adventure for Jim Chee. In it, he investigates a shootout at a local laundromat that leaves one man dead; as he digs deeper into the truth, he runs afoul of a deadly criminal organization. Previous seasons have typically loosely adapted Hillerman’s noves, however, so Leaphorn is sure to be an integral part of the new season.