The wait is finally over for fans of the Navajo Tribal Police. Dark Winds Season 4 officially premiered on Sunday, February 15, 2026, bringing back the gritty crime drama that has earned a perfect 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes for its first three seasons. The new season takes Lt. Joe Leaphorn and his team far from the familiar red rocks of the reservation and into the dangerous streets of 1970s Los Angeles.
With eight episodes set to roll out weekly, viewers are eager to mark their calendars. Here is everything you need to know about when new episodes drop, where to watch them, and what is coming next for the critically acclaimed series.
Dark Winds Season 4 Episode Schedule on AMC and AMC+
New episodes of Dark Winds Season 4 air every Sunday night at 9 p.m. ET/PT on AMC. For those who prefer streaming, each episode becomes available at the exact same time on AMC+. The season follows a weekly release pattern, meaning you will have to wait each week for the next chapter of the investigation.
The full episode release schedule is as follows:
- Episode 1: February 15, 2026
- Episode 2: February 22, 2026
- Episode 3: March 1, 2026
- Episode 4: March 8, 2026
- Episode 5: March 15, 2026
- Episode 6: March 22, 2026
- Episode 7: March 29, 2026
- Episode 8: April 5, 2026
This consistent Sunday night slot has become a ritual for fans of the western noir thriller. The season finale is currently scheduled to air on April 5, 2026.
How to Watch Dark Winds Season 4 Around the World
Viewers in the United States can catch the show live on AMC through their cable provider or stream it on AMC+ at 9 p.m. ET/PT. Because the release is tied to Eastern Time, international viewers will get the episodes at different local times.
For global audiences, the approximate streaming availability times are:
- United Kingdom (GMT): 2:00 a.m. (February 16)
- India (IST): 7:30 a.m. (February 16)
- Australia (AEDT): 12:00 p.m. (February 16)
- Singapore (SGT): 10:00 a.m. (February 16)
- Japan (JST): 11:00 a.m. (February 16)
- South Africa (SAST): 4:00 a.m. (February 16)
If you are just catching up, all three previous seasons of Dark Winds are currently available to stream on AMC+ and through The AMC Collection on Netflix .
A New Case Takes Leaphorn and Chee to Los Angeles
This season pulls its story from Tony Hillerman’s 1984 novel The Ghostway. The plot centers on the search for a missing Navajo girl named Billie Tsosie. The investigation pulls Lt. Joe Leaphorn (Zahn McClarnon), Jim Chee (Kiowa Gordon), and Bernadette Manuelito (Jessica Matten) away from the Navajo Nation and into the unfamiliar and dangerous landscape of 1970s Los Angeles .
They are racing against time to save the young woman from an obsessive killer who has connections to an organized crime outfit operating in the city. The change in scenery marks a major shift for the series, moving from the wide-open spaces of the Southwest to the gritty urban environment of LA.
For Leaphorn, the case arrives at a difficult personal moment. After the events of Season 3, his marriage to Emma (Deanna Allison) is strained. McClarnon recently shared that his character is seeking “Hózhó,” which he describes as the Navajo concept of finding balance, beauty, and personal harmony . The search for the missing girl may force him to confront even more personal demons.
Major Cast Additions for Season 4
The fourth season brings in some notable new faces, adding serious weight to the cast. Titus Welliver, known for his long-running role in Bosch and Bosch: Legacy, joins as Dominic McNair. He plays a ruthless crime boss operating in Los Angeles who deals in drugs and stolen luxury goods .
German actress Franka Potente (Run Lola Run, The Bourne Supremacy) appears as Irene Vaggan, a chilling new antagonist. Showrunner John Wirth described her background, saying she was born in Germany during World War II to a family with Nazi ties. She developed an obsession with Karl May, a German writer famous for fantasy novels about the American West.
“She’s sort of a sociopath and a psychopath,” Wirth explained. Potente added that her character becomes obsessed with Leaphorn. “She believes he is her ideal man, and she cannot harm him. Irene becomes Joe’s psycho stalker… and everyone’s nightmare” .
Isabel DeRoy-Olson (Fancy Dance) plays Billie Tsosie, the missing Navajo teenager at the center of the season’s mystery. Described as resourceful and decisive, she finds herself in deep trouble after running away from her boarding school.
Other new cast members include Chaske Spencer (The Twilight Saga) as Sonny, a recruiter for the LA crime ring, and Luke Barnett as FBI Special Agent Toby Shaw. A. Martinez returns as Gordo Sena, the acting chief of the Scarborough Police Department .
Zahn McClarnon Makes His Directorial Debut
A major milestone for the series happens in the second episode. Zahn McClarnon, who has played Joe Leaphorn since the show began, makes his television directorial debut with the episode airing on February 22, 2026 .
McClarnon has been a key part of the series not just as an actor but also as an executive producer. Stepping behind the camera for an episode of a show he carries as the lead is a significant career moment. He previously shared that taking on this role “means so much” to him personally .
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The Show Is Already Renewed for Season 5
Even before the first episode of Season 4 aired, AMC gave fans even more good news. The network officially renewed Dark Winds for a fifth season. Production is scheduled to begin in March 2026 in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Season 5 will also consist of eight episodes and is expected to debut in 2027 .
Dan McDermott, president of entertainment and AMC Studios for AMC Networks, praised the series in a statement.
“Over four seasons, Dark Winds has masterfully blended compelling character-driven stories, Navajo culture, spirituality and breathtaking cinematography. We are elated to continue the journey alongside showrunner John Wirth and the incomparable Zahn McClarnon,” McDermott said .
This early renewal shows the network’s confidence in the series, which has maintained a rare 100% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes across its first three seasons and found a new wave of viewers after episodes became available on Netflix .
The combination of a weekly release schedule, a fresh Los Angeles setting, and a stacked cast of newcomers makes Dark Winds Season 4 a must-watch for crime drama fans. With new episodes arriving every Sunday through early April, there is plenty of time to follow Leaphorn, Chee, and Manuelito as they track a killer far from home.
Stay tuned to VvipTimes for more updates on your favorite crime thrillers and streaming schedules.
