Why Dark Winds Can Never Fully Adapt The Leaphorn & Chee Books After Season 5 Renewal

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Zahn McClarnon as Jim Leaphorn wearing a Navajo Police uniform in Dark Winds

Published Feb 22, 2026, 12:29 PM EST

Even though Dark Winds has already been renewed for season 5, Zahn McClarnon reveals why the source material can never be fully adapted.

McClarnon plays Joe Leaphorn in the critically acclaimed AMC series based on Tony Hillerman's Leaphorn & Chee books. Season 4 is adapting The Ghostway, a novel that takes part of the story to Los Angeles, and the show still prominently features Leaphorn despite him not being in this particular novel. With season 5 being renewed ahead of the season 4 premiere, the series does not seem to be slowing down anytime soon, meaning there is plenty of time to adapt more of the books.

In an interview with ScreenRant's Tatiana Hullender for Dark Winds season 4, McClarnon explains that despite the show's success and promising future, some elements from the novels will not be adapted because there are parts of the Diné culture that can never be shown on television. He emphasizes that the series is not a documentary, and if viewers are interested in learning about these aspects of the culture, they must be experienced in person on a Navajo reservation with the Navajo people. Check out McClarnon's comments below:

Oh, yeah. There's a lot that I want to explore with Joe. I think we're going to touch on some of those aspects this season. I wish I could tell you what they were, but that would be a spoiler. But I think there's a lot more to explore with Joe, certainly.

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.

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. 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.

While there are plenty of crime drama series, part of what sets Dark Winds apart is its representation and exploration of Navajo culture. As the show has gone on, it has not lost sight of this, with Sean Morrison writing in ScreenRant's Dark Winds season 4 review that the new season "once again features the series' trademark focus on Navajo culture mixed with dark supernatural elements." Nevertheless, there are cultural elements that can be incorporated in the books in a way that would not be respectful for television, and it is this kind of authenticity that has made the representation generally well-received.

At the same time, there are still specific Leaphorn & Chee books that McClarnon wants to adapt in future seasons. Despite the challenges of Dark Winds adapting The Ghostway, the show has proven that it can tackle the source material, even when some creative liberties need to be taken. This is largely because there are numerous novels that feature either only Leaphorn or Jim Chee, whereas both characters are in every season of the AMC show.

Kiowa Gordon plays Chee in Dark Winds while Jessica Matten plays Bernadette Manuelito. The series was created by Graham Roland, with Vince Calandra as the season 1 showrunner, and John Wirth as the showrunner in all subsequent seasons. The late Robert Redford was an executive producer, and A Song of Ice and Fire author George R.R. Martin continues to be, and both had cameos in the season 3 premiere.

Dark Winds releases new episodes at 9:00 p.m. ET on AMC and AMC+.