AMC's DARK WINDS Season 3 Sees Huge Growth in Viewership

The return of AMC’s Dark Winds for its eight-episode third season attracted 2.2 million premiere night viewers, in Nielsen live+3 ratings. On AMC+, the series continued its trajectory of viewership growth every season, with the season three premiere up more than 50 percent in viewership over season two, and doubling subscriber acquisition over the previous season.

Already renewed for a fourth season, which begins filming in Santa Fe, New Mexico this month, Dark Winds has the rare distinction of achieving a perfect 100-point score on Rotten Tomatoes for each of its first three seasons, in addition to an avalanche of critical praise and fan excitement. 

Starring and executive produced by Zahn McClarnon, who will also make his directorial debut in Season 4, the Dark Winds cast also features Kiowa Gordon (The Red Road, Roswell, New Mexico), Jessica Matten (Rez Ball, Tribal, Burden of Truth) and Deanna Allison (Accused, Edge of America). Dark Winds follows Lt. Joe Leaphorn (McClarnon), Jim Chee (Gordon) and Bernadette Manuelito (Matten) of the Navajo Tribal Police solving mysteries on their reservation as it is besieged by increasingly violent crimes in the 1970s.

The series’ gripping third season, featuring eight episodes, picks up six months after the events of Season 2 and follows Lt. Joe Leaphorn (McClarnon) and Jim Chee (Gordon) as they investigate the disappearance of two boys, with only an abandoned bicycle and blood-stained patch of ground left in their wake. Meanwhile, Bernadette Manuelito (Matten) attempts to settle into her new life 500 miles from home with the Border Patrol, but stumbles across a conspiracy involving human and drug smuggling with far-reaching implications.

Each season also sees a prominent roster of guest stars, which for Season 3 includes Jenna Elfman (Dharma & Greg, Fear the Walking Dead) as FBI Special Agent Sylvia Washington, Bruce Greenwood (The Fall of the House of Usher, The Resident) as Tom Spenser, Raoul Max Trujillo (Mayans M.C., Blue Beetle) as Budge, Tonantzin Carmelo (La Brea, The English) as Border Patrol Agent Eleanda Garza, Alex Meraz (The Twilight Saga: New Moon, The Walking Dead) as Border Patrol Agent Ivan Muños, Terry Serpico (Law & Order SVU, Yellowstone) as Border Patrol Senior Chief Ed Henry, Derek Hinkey (American Primeval, Americana) as Shorty Bowlegs, Phil Burke (Hell on Wheels, Rabbit Hole) as Michael Halsey, and Christopher Heyerdahl (Under the Banner of Heaven, Hell on Wheels) as Dr Reynolds. This season also sees the return of guest star A Martinez (Longmire, Days of Our Lives) as Scarborough Police Department Acting Chief Gordo Sena and Jeri Ryan (Star Trek: Picard, Bosch) as Rosemary Vines.

Based on the iconic Leaphorn & Chee book series by Tony Hillerman, Dark Winds is created by Graham Roland (Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, The Returned, Almost Human, Fringe). John Wirth (Hell on Wheels, Hap and Leonard) serves as showrunner. The series is executive produced by Roland, Wirth, McClarnon, Robert Redford, George R.R. Martin, Chris Eyre, Tina Elmo, Jim Chory, Vince Gerardis and Anne Hillerman.