Here’s What Years Dark Winds Is Set In

The acclaimed crime thriller Dark Winds has been a sleeper success for AMC, building an audience on positive word-of-mouth. A period piece story that isn’t restricted by its time period, here’s what years the first two seasons of Dark Winds take place in.

When Does Dark Winds Take Place?

The first season of Dark Winds is set in the year 1971 according to press materials for the series. Though no explicit year is given to the second season, it is presumed to take place several months after the events of the first, given the age of Sally Growing Thunder’s baby boy, who was born at the end of the first season. This would place Season 2 in either late 1971 or early 1972.

This time period is close to when Dark Winds’ literary source material, the Leaphorn & Chee novels written by author Tony Hillerman, were first published. The first novel in the series, The Blessing Way, was published in 1970, with most of the stories set in the contemporary period when they were published through the ’70s and ’80s. It is currently unknown when the upcoming third season of Dark Winds will be set, though it will reportedly take place approximately six months after the events of the previous season, most likely putting it firmly in 1972.

The series follows Joe Leaphorn and his deputy Jim Chee as they investigate various violent crimes in and around the small town of Kayenta in Navajo County. From bank robbers hiding out on the reservation to a domestic terrorist paid off by a shadowy benefactor, Leaphorn and Chee face constant danger with their jobs. A third season is currently in production and is expected to premiere on AMC sometime in early 2025.

The first two seasons of Dark Winds are currently available to stream on AMC+.