10 TV Scenes Shot For Real
3. The One-Shot Raid Sequence - True Detective
As incredible as Daredevil's prison break one-r was, the gold standard of single-take action scenes in TV is unquestionably that of True Detective's fourth-ever episode, "Who Goes There."
The episode concludes with Rust (Matthew McConaughey) taking part in a heist at a housing project, leading to a deliciously smooth, six-minute single-take as Rust leads us through a robbery which quickly goes spectacularly wrong.
The scene was shot for real without any tricks, and includes extremely precise cues for broken windows, gunshots, dozens of actors, cars, and even a helicopter (which, in fairness, may or may not be CGI.)
But what really sets this apart from most other one-rs is the sheer pace and intensity of the scene, made all the more impressive given that director Cary Fukunaga actually shot it in a real, occupied housing project. Of the insanely complicated shoot, he said:
"We had ADs [assistant directors] all over the neighborhood because we had to release extras, crowd running background, police cars, stunt drivers. There were actual gun shots and stones being thrown through windows. There were a lot of things to put together."