‘True Detective’ Star Kali Reis Fist Bumped the “Horrifying” Tsalal Corpses for Fun

True Detective: Night Country Episode 2 picks up where last week’s harrowing premiere left off, with Ennis police chief Liz Danvers (Jodie Foster) and her colleagues dealing with a most horrific crime scene: some of the missing scientists from the local Tsalal Research Station are glued together in a frozen, naked knot in the middle of the polar landscape. The bodies had been discovered by local frontierswoman Rose Agineau (Fiona Shaw), who in turn had been led to the men’s bodies by the ghost of her dead lover Travis (Erling Eliasson). Adding even more craziness to the central crime at the center of HBO‘s latest season of True Detective? The fact that State Trooper Evangeline Navarro (Kali Reis) has connected the Tsalal mystery to a cold case murder investigation that’s haunted her for years.

True Detective: Night Country Episode 2 on HBO is full of the unsettling. In the first few minutes, we not only see Danvers and company excavating the “corpsicle” of dead Tsalal scientists, but when one boneheaded cop accidentally cracks a victim’s limb off, the man stirs awake like a nightmare. Later, the bodies are moved to a local ice rink — owned by a woman with a grudge against Danvers for sleeping with her husband!! — where they stay for the remainder of the episode. The ghoulish pyramid of frozen bodies makes for an odd bit of set dressing throughout subsequent scenes in True Detective Season 4 Episode 2. However, True Detective: Night Country star Kali Reis revealed that she and the cast and crew got used to them after a while. Well, mostly.

“They were so amazingly made and we met them before we met the actual actors so it was kind of creepy and weird,” Reis told Decider. “But you know, by day two or three, I was like, ‘Meh.’ I’m sipping coffee, talking about the scene.”

“Sometimes it was funny because it’s made great, but they would shake like mannequins. And I’m like, ‘Dude, it’s so creepy!’ But it was fun. You know, a little fist bump here and there,” she said before admitting, “On camera, though, it looks horrifying.”

The corpsicle was no problem, but what did make Reis nervous? Working with the great Fiona Shaw.

“I absolutely love Fiona. She was a joy and such a pleasure to work with. She came on set and said, ‘I’m nervous.’ I’m like, ‘You’re nervous? I’m a huge fan!’” Reis chuckled. “ Like she was amazing. The way she portrayed Rose was exactly like I’d seen her.”

Reis explained that when she read about Rose in the script, she always thought of the women of Life Below Zero, who live on the land. She also specifically appreciated that True Detective: Night Country creator, writer, and director made it so Rose wasn’t an indigenous character.

“The people who survive in that environment aren’t only indigenous people. It takes a certain type of person to live in Alaska. I got to tell you that right now,” Reis said before explaining that she thought Rose and Navarro’s relationship was built on their shared respect of authenticity.

“Navarro has these sweet, very soft, vulnerable situations where she allows herself — but she it’s her choice — to really be open,” Reis said. “It’s an amazing little dance because [Rose]’s almost like a mentor and she’s just very, very interesting to Navarro and Navarro isn’t interested in much, you know what I mean? So it’s really nice to see her explore and be open in a way different way than she is with her sister, than with Qavvik, and with Danvers.”

Navarro might be tight with Rose, but the events of True Detective Season 4 Episode 2 mean she’s going to be re-teaming with former mentor and partner Liz Danvers. Will the two formidable women be able to untangle what’s happened at Tsalal? Will Annie K’s murderer be uncovered? You’ll just have to continue to tune in to the extraordinary True Detective: Night Country to find out…