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Dark Winds Season 4 was released earlier this month and premiered on February 15, 2026. However, what is interesting is that the show has already been renewed for Season 5, meaning fans have more and more content to consume for the series based on the Leaphorn & Chee books by Tony Hillerman.
The Leaphorn & Chee book series consists of a total of 27 books, meaning there is enough content for several more seasons of Dark Winds.
However, showrunner Zahn McClarnon recently revealed that while there was ample material in the original book series to go on, the creators of Dark Winds would never be able to fully adapt every book in the series, and there is a very interesting reason behind this restriction.
Zahn McClarnon reveals that Dark Winds would never fully be able to adapt the entire storyline of the original book series, and here's why
Zahn McClarnon plays one of the most integral characters in the show, that of Joe Leaphorn. In fact, the character is so integral to the show that Leaphorn gets screen time in Season 4 as well, even though the character does not even appear in the original book the season is based on, The Ghostway.
During the promotion for Season 4, McClarnon got candid in an interview with ScreenRant, opening up about how they would never be able to fully adapt the book series for television due to some cultural restrictions.
"We have to navigate through the cultural aspects of these books, though, because we're delving into the Diné culture. We can't go as far into the culture as the books did, if that makes sense. That's because some things about one's culture are just not supposed to be explored on a television program. We're very aware of that, and we take that extremely seriously, because we have nothing but the utmost respect for the Diné culture.
He even went on to say that if people wanted to know more about the culture, they must make the effort of spending time with people from the Navajo culture instead of learning about them from a television show.
"We're not a documentary, so if people want to explore that culture, they need to spend time with the Navajo people on the Navajo reservation."
Joe Leaphorn is clearly a character that is very close to McClarnon's heart, and he did not shy away from mentioning this in the interview.
"Joe Leaphorn is a dream come true for me, and I pinch myself every day. Just to be an employed actor and to be on a show going into a fifth season is an amazing dream come true. And we've still got quite a few novels left! There are a couple of Leaphorn & Chee books out there that I'd love to delve into."
Although Dark Winds has already been renewed for Season 5, there is no official release date or similar details so far.
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However, all previous seasons of the show are available to stream on Netflix.
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