Michael C. Hall was recently revealed to be narrating Dexter: Original Sin. That news then took a turn with the added detail that Hall will also physically embody Dexter Morgan again in the upcoming sequel series, Dexter: Resurrection. How is this possible? As the title indicates, TV’s most enduring serial killer somehow survived being (fatally?) shot in the limited series finale of 2022’s Dexter: New Blood. At that time, questions swirled about whether there would possibly be a sequel spin off featuring Dexter’s son, Harrison, who happens to have been nurtured by not one but two serial killers. Yet Showtime decided to head back in time instead for a prequel series, and now, they are hopping slightly forward in time, too, with no mention of Harrison.
On the bright side — and this is basically tradition at this point — this show now has a chance to go for three gut-punch endings after the frustrating lumberjack detour and the semi-anticlimactic “death” of the killer of serial-killers. Can they do it? I do kid — even the worst finales are far preferable to having no Dexter at all, so let’s talk about what has materialized for this surprise (m*therf*cker) sequel, or rather, threequel series.
Plot
To call this sequel unlikely would be an understatement, especially after Dexter: New Blood‘s finale showed Dexter apparently being a goner at the hand of Harrison (he even showed Harrison where to shoot him), who is presumably in the wind now. This seemed to be the definitive end for Dexter’s own Code-dictated lifestyle in early 2022 when Showtime Entertainment chief Gary Levine issued a statement including the words “a profoundly powerful conclusion to our beloved and extraordinary series.”
Additionally, showrunner Clyde Phillips had insisted, “Dexter is dead.” Only, he’s not dead, so what’s the explanation for this miraculous survival?
A few weeks ago at San Diego Comic-Con, Hall cagily hinted to Variety, “I don’t know what I am authorized to say other than, it’s really cold out there.”
In other words, the frigid, snowy weather slowed Dexter’s blood enough to save his life because fiction, baby. With Netflix viewers consistently devouring the original series’ eight seasons (which ended in 2013) this year, Showtime obviously decided that an upcoming prequel series wasn’t enough. They’re gonna trot Dexter back out for more blood-slide action, and Hall seems pleased at this turn of events after previously thinking that sailing into a hurricane was all they wrote.
“It’s unbelievable,” he remarked. “There’s something about this world, something about this character that captivates people.” Why do viewers adore Dexter so much? Hall has a theory:
“I think there’s many different ways this show appeals to people as there are people who watch it. But I think maybe a biding thing is, in a world in which we feel a sense of being out of control people like spending time with a character who’s taking his own, unique control of his little corner of the world. I think we all have our shadow side that we contend with and Dexter’s is obviously a little weightier than most. People enjoy spending time with someone who is doing his best to take responsibility for that side in his sort of outside-the-box way and morally grey way … maybe contending with it in a way that is arguably admirable — even though he’s doing what he’s doing.”
In constructing Dexter: Resurrection, Showtime has planned for possible multiple seasons after the story resumes “right where we left off.”
Cast
Michael C. Hall is the only currently confirmed cast member, although it feels like Jennifer Carpenter could be back as Debra ghost again. We shall see.
Release Date
Even though this sequel series was only announced at SDCC, Showtime plans to roll out Dexter: Resurrection sometime in 2025.
Trailer
While we await further developments, I need to ask a question: were you aware that Michael C. Hall portrayed Broadway’s Cabaret Emcee in the late 1990s? Nobody can beat Alan Cumming, but Hall was still spectacular:
