HBO announced today that it has inked an exclusive overall deal with Nic Pizzolatto through 2018, and that a number of new projects are under consideration, including “future incarnations†of True Detective. “I am thrilled to continue our relationship with Nic,†said Michael Lombardo, the president of HBO Programming in a statement. “I look forward to seeing where his unique creative vision will take us next.†Last year, brooding creator Pizzolatto said that he couldn’t imagine doing more than three seasons of the anthology series — and that was before the lackluster second season.Variety reports that after the second season, HBO has been looking into ways to change how the show is run, including giving him a staff of writers, having a new showrunner step in, or just letting him do it by himself again. After all, despite the critical response, the second season of True Detective was still a strong ratings draw for the network, averaging 11 million viewers, versus 12 million viewers the first season. Rust’s ramblings just seem like some wild fever dream now though, don’t they?