AMC has released the official trailer for Dark Winds Season 4, hinting at a sharp turn into danger as Joe Leaphorn (Zahn McClarnon) and his team are pulled far beyond the Navajo Nation’s borders. Watch the trailer above and read about what’s in store for the new season.
Litigation beyond reservation
The trailer spends little time setting the tone. It begins quietly with Lt. Joe Leaphorn tracking a buck in the wilderness, before the imagery gives way to something far more disturbing. What begins as a disappearance case quickly reveals itself to be the central driving force of season four. The disappearance of a Navajo teenage girl from a boarding school.
As the investigation intensifies, Leaphorn, Jim Chi (Kiowa Gordon), and Bernadette Manuelito (Jessica Matten) find themselves following leads far beyond their familiar locations. The investigation draws them into the harsher and more unfamiliar sprawl of 1970s Los Angeles. There, organized crime and compulsive killers greatly increase the danger. The trailer leans towards a sense of urgency, cutting through the bodies left behind, creating a frantic chase and a sense of time passing.
Season 4 is also a reset of sorts for the core trio. The trailer shows Manuelito returning to the Navajo Tribal Police Department after a break and reuniting with Chee and Leaphorn just as the case begins to spiral.
Also check out our season 1 interview with star and executive producer Zahn McClarnon.
Joe and Emma’s current situation
Emma Leaphorn only appears briefly in the trailer, but the tension in the marriage still feels like part of the show’s DNA. Showrunner John Worth previously hinted in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter that this relationship will continue, but it’s not going to be easy or straightforward.
“This is a TV show, so (unlike in real life) they’re cast members, and unless something major happens that causes one of them to leave the show, they’re likely to have some kind of relationship,” Wirth said. “It’s hard to dramatize a conflict-free relationship on TV. It gets boring quickly. I’m passionate about that marriage and it’s fun to write about it, and it’s fun for other people to write about it on the show.”
Wirth also framed the season 3 split as a natural outgrowth of something Joe was dealing with. “As with any marriage, there is a limit to what is acceptable, and I think Emma has reached a breaking point,” he said. “She was like, ‘I can’t do this anymore.'”
Looking to the future, it was revealed that the aftermath will still be significant in season 4. “There’s a lot to work on in Season 4,” Wirth said. “Do we break up our marriage, fix it, get back together, or start dating again? We have a lot of choices going forward.”
New faces and milestones behind the camera
The new season introduces several notable additions, including Franka Potente, Isabel DeRoy-Olson, Chaske Spencer, Luke Barnett, and Titus Welliver, who hints at deeper entanglements with Los Angeles’ criminal underworld. A. Martinez also returns as police chief Gordo Sena.
Season 4 is another milestone for Zahn McClarnon. He will continue to anchor the series as Joe Leaphorn and serve as executive producer, while standing behind the camera and making his television directorial debut in episode two.
Dark Winds Season 4 premieres on AMC and AMC+ on February 15th.
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