Amelia Reardon

Amelia Reardon teaches at the school once attended by the murdered girl at the center of the case, and her composure catches Rust Cohle's attention when he comes to question her. Sharp, watchful, and unwilling to be managed, she asks harder questions than the detectives expect and keeps her own counsel about what she knows.

Carmen Ejogo refuses to play Amelia as a mere romantic complication for the two leads; she gives her an intelligence and moral seriousness that rivals theirs. The writing lets her pursue the case on her own terms, and Ejogo's stillness makes you believe she sees more than she says.