True Detective is yet to find a worthy replacement, but Apple TV+‘s legal thriller’s season 2 story proves it might be on the right path towards getting there. Over a decade after its release, True Detective season 1 is still considered one of the most compelling detective dramas ever made. The show’s opening season set the bar so incredibly high with its story, character beats, performances, and direction that none of its subsequent seasons have been able to match its brilliance.

While True Detective season 1 remains unmatched, some of the newer installments in the HBO series still stand as unique additions to the crime thriller genre. Owing to True Detective‘s unique storytelling format and ability to deliver several self-contained and rich narratives in the crime thriller genre, it would be fair to say that it can never truly be replaced. However, after looking at an Apple TV+ legal drama‘s season 2 story, it is hard not to see how it could come close to matching True Detective in more ways than one.

Presumed Innocent Season 2 Is Not Adapting Scott Turow’s Original Book Sequels

The Apple TV+ Show Is Adapting A New Book In Its Second Installment

When Presumed Innocent season 2 was first announced, it was hard not to assume that its new installment would serve as a direct sequel with many recurring characters. Presumed Innocent season 1, like the 1990 Harrison Ford movie, is based on Scott Turow’s novel of the same name. Since the novel has two sequels, Innocent and Presumed Guilty, it would have made sense for the show to adapt one of them in the next season. However, surprisingly, as Turow himself confirmed (via The Wrap), the show’s next installment will not be based on any of the original sequels.

Instead, as reports confirm (via Deadline), Presumed Innocent season 2 will adapt Jo Murray’s Dissection of a Murder. The novel follows the story of Leila Reynolds, who lands her first murder case. Like Jake Gyllenhaal’s character from season 1, she finds herself feeling increasingly conflicted when the defendant in a murder case only asks for her help. Things get even worse when her husband turns out to be the prosecutor, gradually revealing how she, too, has her own buried secrets.

Based on the book’s story, Presumed Innocent season 2 will have a new female lead and likely a whole new set of characters and cast members. If the show were to adapt Scott Turow’s Innocent, Presumed Innocent season 2 would have primarily focused on Peter Sarsgaard’s Tommy Molto. However, since the actor announced in the beginning that he was “not doing sequels,“ the show could never have adapted the sequel novel. Innocent is also set two decades after the first, which would have made its adaptation even more challenging.

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Presumed Innocent Season 1 Ending Explained: Who Really Killed Carolyn Polhemus

Presumed Innocent season 1’s ending not only presents the final verdict of the central murder trial but reveals the real identity of Carolyn’s killer.

Owing to these factors, it makes sense that Presumed Innocent is picking on a whole new story and going down the anthology route instead of continuing season 1’s story. Interestingly, this approach makes the show similar to True Detective in more ways than one, paving the way for it to become a worthy replacement for the hit HBO series.

Presumed Innocent’s Anthology Approach Makes It A Great Replacement For True Detective

Presumed Innocent Could Adopt The Same Approach In Future Seasons

By going down the anthology route instead of continuing season 1’s story, Presumed Innocent is emulating True Detective‘s approach. Although Presumed Innocent season 1 was arguably not as brilliant as True Detective‘s first installment, the Apple TV+ show shared many similarities with the HBO series. Both shows focused on complex male characters in their first installments who struggled to solve their respective overarching murder cases without letting their personal demons and complex familial ties derail the investigation.

The first seasons of both True Detective and Presumed Innocent also ended with the protagonists rediscovering themselves in their hunt for justice and finding a semblance of peace in their fractured relationships with their families. Presumed Innocent‘s choice to reboot the narrative with season 2 by introducing a new female lead’s investigative journey surrounding a murder mirror’s True Detective‘s anthology format. While it would still be a little too soon to tout the Apple TV+ show as True Detective‘s replacement, it would be interesting to see how its season 2 would compare to the HBO series’ seasons.