True Detective Season 3: What Does The Ending Really Mean?

11. Edmund Hoyt Was A Red Herring

True Detective Hoyt
HBO

Edmund Hoyt was shaping up to be the Big Bad of Season 3. All the signs pointed to him being the mastermind behind it all: the tease of his photo, the ominous phone call to Wayne Hays, the stunt casting of the great Michael Rooker in the role. It was clear that the Hoyts had taken Julie Purcell, and since he was the head of the family and wanting a showdown with Hays, it was likely he was trying to cover things up.

The pair did have a showdown, but it wasn't as expected. Hoyt, shockingly, was completely in the dark. He didn't know for certain what had happened to Harris James, and really just wanted to find out. He knew even less about the Purcell case. Nic Pizzolatto threw in a number of red herrings this season - planting the idea that Amelia was the killer early on, and the connection to larger paedophile rings too - but perhaps none were bigger than Edmund Hoyt. Rooker played his part brilliantly, and instead of a criminal overlord attempting to hide the truth, we find an angry, older man wanting to discover it.

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Contributor
Contributor

NCTJ-qualified journalist. Most definitely not a racing driver. Drink too much tea; eat too much peanut butter; watch too much TV. Sadly only the latter paying off so far. A mix of wise-old man in a young man's body with a child-like wonder about him and a great otherworldly sensibility.