‘Dark Winds’: Zahn McClarnon Teases Leaphorn Could Lose ‘Everything’ in Season 3

Season 3 of Dark Winds, an intense crime thriller set on Navajo tribal lands in the 1970s, returns with another deep dive into the life of Joe Leaphorn (Zahn McClarnon), a lieutenant on the tribal police force.

McClarnon excels as the lawman who cares deeply not only for his family, but also his people as he doggedly, often in grave danger, attempts to bring the worst of the worst to justice. But this season also deals with something more personal: the fallout from his decision to leave B.J. Vines (John Henry Diehl), the rich mine owner responsible for his son Joe Jr.’s death, to die alone in the middle of the New Mexican desert.

Below, the show’s star gives us a preview of what to expect this season (premiering March 9) as he gets his wish come true: a fourth season on the way!

Season 3’s opening scene is a grim one for Joe Leaphorn. Is this season the toughest yet for the hard-working cop?

Zahn McClarnon: Joe dealt with dark uses in the first two season, but this year is a continued exploration of the ramifications of the Leaphorn family’s tragedy. There are consequences for Joe’s actions last season that affect his mental state and his marriage to Emma [Deanna Allison]. He’s struggling with guilt as he questions his moral compass on some of his choices. There’s a lot of fear and anxiety this season.

Joe’s scenes with his wife talking about those past actions are very moving. Can you say anything about how this could affect that longtime, loving marriage?

To be honest with you, Joe and Emma’s marriage is the heart of Dark Winds to me. Those scenes were an interesting dynamic to go through as an actor in realizing how much Joe loved his wife, Emma. I’ve never experienced that before because I usually don’t play leading men, so it’s been a unique adventure for me this season. Deanna is great, and her character Emma is a strong woman with great intuition who is deeply connected to her work as a midwife to the women on the reservation.

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There are several crime storylines this season. What can you preview?

The show picks up six months after the events of Season 2. Joe Leaphorn and Deputy Jim Chee [Kiowa Gordon] investigate the disappearance of two boys, one Hispanic and the other Navajo, with only an abandoned bicycle and some blood in the area are left in the wake. Scarborough County Sheriff Gordo Sena [the great A Martinez] helps us as well.

Another mystery that Joe and Jim will investigate involves Bernadette Manuelito [Jessica Matten] who left the NTP — the Navajo Tribal Police — to join the border police hundreds of miles south. She stumbles across a conspiracy involving human and drug smuggling.

Bernadette seems to be at crosshairs with her station’s boss Ed Henry (Terry Serpico) in her investigations and the big question is whether she can trust her coworkers. Is she in any danger?

We’ll see. It’s exciting. And we will explore that relationship between Bernadette and her former boyfriend, Jim Chee.

There’s also a very personal storyline when FBI agent Sylvia Washington (guest star Jenna Elfman) who, tasked with discovering who and what killed the late B.J. Vines, begins to suspect Joe Leaphorn was involved, which indeed he was. How is Joe coping?

It puts him on the edge. He possibly could lose his job, his family, everything! Jenna is an amazing actress, I’m just amazed by her talent.

We can throw in one more complication, a legendary monster from Navajo folklore that terrifies Joe. Is it apparent to just him or others as well?  

Does Joe Leaphorn see the monster or doesn’t he? It’s a Ye’iitsoh, part of the creation story of the Navajo people. I wasn’t familiar with it before this season, since tribes have different creation stories. Today, it’s more of a general word for negative energy. I’m very grateful that I get to learn a lot about the Navajo culture on Dark Winds.

How are your Navajo language skills, since you have to speak it on the show?

It’s a very difficult to get the pronunciation, the gutturals correct. What we try to do is give most of the [longer] dialogues to the traditional fluent speakers on the show. I’ve done a big scene this season in Navajoand it takes me a lot of prep to be able sound like I do speak Dene, aka Navajo.

Your mother was Lakota Sioux. Do you speak Lakota?

Yes, I grew up around the language. I can understand and speak some, and I’ve spoken more Lakota than I have Navajo, definitely.

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This season seems to promise not only a tough year for Joe Leaphorn, but a physically tough one for Zahn McClarnon. You’re getting beat up, getting shot at, doing a lot running and crawling around in the dirt.

Yeah. One thing about New Mexico is that there’s a lot of dust and you get it in just about every crevice of your body when out on those beautiful lands. So, yeah, it’s definitely physical regarding crawling around and getting shot at and doing a lot running, but I’m not out there digging ditches or the like. I have many people that support me, from those getting me water and coffee to medics. We’ve got great safety coordinators, which is good — I’ve had a few little accidents on the set.

Sorry. For example?

Last season we were shooting at night and I tripped on a rock and fell and stubbed my pinky and another finger on my left hand, cut them up a little bit, and I just wanted to keep going ’cause it’s so difficult to keep in those emotional states. Everybody wanted to make sure I was okay, and I just wanted to keep working and get through the scene. Those fingers still hurt and I can’t put a ring on one of my fingers.

Do you have a favorite moment from Dark Winds, whether this new season or in the past?

Not a favorite moment. It’s just that I’ve grown to love these people, my other producers and the crew.  Everybody is collaborative and it’s just fun to go to work. We have a mostly native writing room.

You’ve been in a number of fine series with many Native American characters, actors, and lately directors and writers. Is there one closest to your heart?

They all have different things that stand out for me. In Westworld, we did the whole episode in Lakota. The language of my people holds a special kind of place in my heart. I related to Fargo’s Hanzee Dent as an outcast that grew up in white society, because it was very similar to my upbringing. But I’ve got to explore this character in Dark Winds for three seasons and this character has become a part of me. 

You were quite amusing as the lovestruck sheriff on the sweet FX comedy Reservation Dogs. Was that fun for you?

Definitely fun, but it scared the heck out of me. Comedy is difficult to do, but I had a great support team with Sterlin Harjo [the show’s exec producer, director and cowriter].

What else would you like to say about Dark Winds?

It’s a unique show where people can get a glimpse of native culture. There are a lot of universal themes of family, community, and love commitment with a unique cultural lean. I think that’s what makes Dark Winds interesting for audiences.

Dark Winds, Season 3 Premiere, Sunday, March 9, 9/8c, AMC/AMC+