George R.R. Martin, Robert Redford to make Dark Winds series for AMC

The Hollywood Reporter has it that George R.R. Martin, Robert Redford and others will be executive producing Dark Winds, a new AMC series based on Tony Hillerman’s Leaphorn & Chee books, about a pair of Navajo tribal police officers working in the American southwest in the 1970s.

Other executive producers include Tima Elmo, Vince Gerardis and Zahn McClarnon, who will also act in it. Sci-fi fans may remember McClarnon as Akecheta from the second season of Westworld, in addition to other credits. Kiowa Gordon will play the other lead character. Chris Eyre, another executive producer, will direct the pilot, while the whole thing is created by Graham Roland.

The first season, which will have six episodes, will see Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee investigate a grisly double murder that forces them to challenge their own spiritual beliefs and come to terms with their traumatic pasts. “We’re thrilled by the prospect of authentically telling this story with a group of remarkably talented individuals,” said Dan McDermott, president of original programming for AMC Networks and AMC Studios. “This is a rich and deeply unsettling psychological thriller set in a world we know viewers will appreciate experiencing for themselves. The series order is the product of several months in a writers’ room staffed entirely by Native American writers, and it is a series that will be brought to life by those storytellers, with a cast led by Zahn McClarnon and featuring Native American actors, filmed largely in and around Native American lands, with the full support and blessing of The Navajo Nation. We are so excited about telling this captivating and entertaining story while rendering this vibrant, rich, wonderful culture and community on AMC+ and AMC.”

"I read my first Tony Hillerman novel in 1986 while filming in New Mexico and was immediately hooked. Hillerman is a master storyteller, his writing is full of mystery and suspense, set amidst a background that blends traditional oral stories of Native American culture and landscape. I am happy to partner with George R.R. Martin and AMC on this project, and am especially grateful for the collaboration with President Nez and The Navajo Nation."

Martin, who lives in the American southwest, made a statement as well:

"Tony Hillerman was one of the greats, as every mystery reader knows. Down here in the Southwest, Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee are as iconic as Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Philip Marlowe, and Travis McGee. When my friends Robert Redford and Chris Eyre asked me to help bring Leaphorn and Chee back to television, I could not agree fast enough. We have great source material in Tony’s novel Listening Woman, a great pilot script from Graham Roland, a great director in Chris… and what a pair of leads, with Zahn McClarnon as Leaphorn and Kiowa Gordon as Chee! Our plan is to shoot in New Mexico, in and around Santa Fe and on the Navajo reservation, and we are bringing in as many Navajo and other Native Americans as possible, as writers, directors, cast, and crew, to capture all the magic and mystery and wonder of the Land of Enchantment. Thanks to AMC for making it possible. Tony Hillerman wrote a lot of amazing books, and it is our dream to adapt as many of them as we can."

Notice how Martin just casually mentions that he’s friends with Robert Redford? Quality name-dropping there.

Will Dark Winds distract George R.R. Martin from The Winds of Winter?

Martin has been getting involved with a lot of projects of late, including an adaptation of Roger Zelazny’s Roadmarks and of Nnedi Okorafor’s Who Fears Death, both for HBO. And that’s not to mention all the Game of Thrones prequel series in development. But lest you worry that all this stuff will distract him from writing The Winds of Winter…well, it probably will, but no more than usual. At this point, Martin is a big name in the industry, and shows want to credit him as an executive producer not because he’ll actually be contributing to the series but because having him in the credits can help get it made in the first place. Much the same could be said of Robert Redford.

Back to Dark Winds, McClarnon said he was “honored” be be asked to star and produce. “To have the support and to be a part of a team which is led by two iconic visionaries as George R.R. Martin and Robert Redford is something to which I’ve always aspired. I believe as Indigenous people we are in a new era of progress in TV and film representation.”

Finally, Navajo Nation president Jonathan Nez also issued a statement:

"We are excited to welcome Chris Eyre, AMC Studios, and the industry’s top executives for the production of Dark Winds, part of which will be filmed on the Navajo Nation. I also welcome my friend, Robert Redford, back to our Nation once again. This week, the Navajo Nation lifted more COVID-19 restrictions to welcome visitors and tourists back to Diné Bikéyah. We look forward to welcoming the film crew and we hope this will serve to draw more interest from production companies and draw more tourists to boost our economy and contribute to the ‘Buy Navajo, Buy Local’ initiative. Thank you to everyone involved in this great venture with the Great Navajo Nation!"

Season one will include six episodes and is expected to premiere on AMC in 2022.

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