Just when you thought it was safe to feel confident about TV characters surviving the rest of the 2026 TV schedule, along comes Dexter: Resurrection with an extremely positive Season 2 update that can only mean bad things down the line. Or at least that’s what I think the case will be, given how a certain someone’s story ended in Season 1. Let’s discuss.

Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 Is Officially Now Filming

April 22 is a big day for the Dexter franchise, as it's the official start date for Resurrection's second season. (If it had only started on 4/20, I could have made the most hilarious "dank" passenger jokes. Or at least passably amusing ones.)

Paramount+ announced the big news, but co-stars Michael C. Hall and James Remar got on camera to share the update with fans on social media, as seen below.

Good times will no doubt be had by all in the coming months as showrunner Clyde Phillps & Co. dig into the story of the New York Ripper, with the uncaptured killer being portrayed by Brian Cox. (If he doesn't tell Dexter to "f--ck off" at some point in the season, Logan Roy-style, it'll be a missed opportunity.) And now for the second-biggest update!

The Good News: Desmond Harrington Was Promoted To Series Regular

After popping up in a couple of episodes during Season 1 as now-Lieutenant Joey Quinn of Miami PD, OG series actor Desmond Harrington was promoted to series regular for Season 2, meaning we'll no doubt be seeing a lot more from Quinn when Dexter: Resurrection returns. Which brings us to...

The Sorta Bad News: Quinn Is Almost Definitely A Goner Now

Take this theorizing with a grain of salt, but nearly 100% of Dexter: Resurrection's series regulars who aren't playing characters with the "Morgan" surname end up dead. The main thing keeping Quinn safe from biting the metaphorical bullet himself was that he was so many hundreds of miles outside of New York City, and that he was mostly in the dark about Dexter's murderous habits.

But then he learned who the Bay Harbor Butcher really is. And Leon Prater's death will likely bring new attention to those murders. So when Quinn learns about Angel's death, he's almost definitely going to put his former coworker in the crosshairs, which is basically signing his own death warrant. Unless the show title suddenly changes to Joey: Resurrection, but that might have people thinking it's a revival of the solo Friends spinoff. Nobody wants that.

Consider that ol' Angel Batista fell prey to Dexter once David Zayas was added on as a series regular for this spinoff after recurring on New Blood. It's not proof of anything, since Uma Thurman's Charlie technically survived and will be back in the mix for Season 2. But Charlie is an exception in more ways than one, and Quinn isn't on her level.

Of course, there were definitely full seasons of Dexter where I outright hated Quinn for being such a douche all the time, so part of me is going to probably enjoy seeing him get moidahed. But it seems like he's in a better place, where his head has been removed from his bum, so I'm sure I'll be all empathetic to his woes by the time Dexter plunges the knife in.

Stay tuned for more on when Season 2 will arrive, but until then, the entirety of the Dexter franchise can be streamed via Paramount+ subscription.

Dexter: Original Sin may not be moving forward with a second season, but Dexter: Resurrection is. The Dexter sequel series was renewed for Season 2 in October, a month after Season 1 wrapped on the 2025 TV schedule. The finale brought some cliffhangers and questions, but it might be a while until the second season is here, as the showrunner revealed when Season 2 will begin filming, and I’m shocked it’s taking so long.

When Dexter: Resurrection began streaming via Paramount+ subscription over the summer, it became an instant hit. So much so that, in the midst of Paramount Global's merger with Skydance, it was revealed that the company wanted to put focus on Resurrection rather than the prequel series, so it was only a matter of time before the renewal was official. Via Dexter Daily, executive producer and showrunner Clyde Phillips shared on The Dark Passengers: A Dexter Podcast how long the writers will need to complete the scripts.

The writers’ room officially opened on October 6, meaning that if the show stays on track, this would take them through March 2026, as the outlet pointed out. Additionally, Phillips confirmed that filming begins on April 13. It’s unknown when Season 2 is expected to premiere, but it can be assumed that fans won’t be getting it until 2027, though it’s possible that it will come in late 2026.

Dexter: Resurrection lived up to its name and became an instant hit when it premiered, so it’s a surprise that it’s going to take so long for filming to start. Of course, it takes time to crank out scripts, but the fact that it sounds like they’re not going to start filming until the writing process is done is definitely a disappointment, since the wait will be long. Especially following the Season 1 finale, fans are probably as anxious as ever for the next part of this story, so it’s shocking that they’re not moving faster on it.

That being said, some shows take longer than others to come out, regardless of how popular it is. Since things seem to be on track for Dexter: Resurrection, it’s possible that it might even start filming earlier than April 13. If anything, the wait for Season 2 will be worth it, even if it will be a very long time. At the very least, the writers’ room has been open for a little over a month, so fans know that the work is just getting started.

Check out a recap of Season 1 while waiting for more updates about Season 2.

I wish that it didn’t take so long for the new season to start filming, but that only means that they’re taking extra care of it to make sure that Season 2 is going to be a great one. Plus, once the holidays are here, time will start to move quickly. That’s the hope.

Spoilers ahead for Dexter: Ressurection.

The Dexter franchise has been going strong for nearly two decades now, with the flagship series as one of the best Showtime shows of all time. It recently got two new spinoffs (available to stream with a premium Paramount+ subscription), the most recent being Resurrection. I really liked the show overall, but I wish that the finale was less of a cliffhanger to set up a potential Season 2.

Dexter: Resurrection's Season 1 finale offered a thrilling conclusion to the story, picking up after the death of Angel Bautista. While we got to see the conflict with Peter Dinklage's Leon Prater come to a head, there were unanswered questions and teases for a second season that made the final overall less impactful than it could have been. At least, in my opinion.

Dexter: Resurrections Got Bogged Down Setting Up Season 2

After Prater shot and killed Bautista, it became clear who the true villain of Dexter: Resurrection was. The billionaire attempted to lock Michael C. Hall's antihero in his vault to die, but Dexter and Harrison eventually got the better of him. It was awesome seeing Dinklage's villain on the kill table, as well as seeing the title character dump his remains in the Hudson with the Statue of Liberty in the background. Unfortunately, we got a bunch of unanswered questions, as well as a bunch of time teasing what might come if/when the show is renewed for Season 2.

There are some major loose ends to this story. I have to wonder if Bautista's murder will trigger questions from Desmond Harrington's Joey Quinn, who was one of many surprise cameos from the season. While he was worried about Angel's behavior, the fact that he was mysteriously murdered after hunting down Dexter has to be a red flag, no?

Then there's the ending for Uma Thurmans' Charley. While she moved her mother out of New York, she's a loose end connected to Dexter, Harrison and (of course) Prater. The vast majority of the cast of Resurrections was killed off throughout the first season, so the lack of closure for Charley is another question surrounding the finale.

I also have lingering questions about Harrison and Dexter's relationship. While they've obviously taken big steps forward after the finale of New Blood, I still don't exactly know where they stand. Michael C. Hall's character has admitted that his son helps give him some much-needed humanity.

Without a doubt the biggest cliffhanger in the Resurrection finale was Dexter leaving with Prater's files about active serial killers. He'll seemingly be going on the road to hunt more murderers if/when the spinoff returns to Showtime for a second season. This is an exciting concept, but I'd rather the show told a more contained story instead of setting up a second season that might not ever happen.

Perhaps I'm particularly sensitive, but Dexter's original series finale is a super controversial one that fans are still sore over. And since the prequel Original Sin is cancelled, I'd hate for the final episode of the entire franchise to be a cliffhanger for stories we never see. Fingers crossed Resurrection gets renewed soon.

The entire Dexter franchise is streaming now with Paramount+ with Showtime. Original Sin and Resurrections arrived in quick succession, so we'll have to see if we get more from everyone's favorite serial killer.

Without a doubt some of the best Showtime shows to binge watch are within the Dexter franchise. Those with a premium Paramount+ subscription have been treated to three follow-up shows in recent years, to varying degrees of success. While I was super bummed that Original Sin was cancelled, the last few episodes of Resurrection have been proving it's the superior spinoff.

The cast of Original Sin is reacting to the news, which is no doubt more shocking since they were originally renewed for Season 2. I'll miss the prequel and those spot-on impressions of the OG Dexter cast, but overall I think Resurrection is a way more thrilling ride. Let's break it down.

I Loved Original Sin, But The Narrative Of Resurrection Is More Thrilling

Original Sin was a blast for a few reasons. I loved being back in Miami, and the way the new cast matched the voice of their predecessor was seriously impressive. Plus, Sarah Michelle Gellar had a role as Dexter's mentor. But it was also a slower story, with the audience watching as Patrick Gibson's title character slowly became the serial killer we know and love. That's simply the nature of prequels in general.

Meanwhile, Resurrection picked up immediately after New Blood's finale. After a coma, Dexter goes to New York to find Harrison, and gets involved in a league of serial killers, whom he's determined to pick off one by one. There are thrills and kills, as well as a number of satisfying plot twists. And, the season isn't even over yet!

Unfortunately, the narrative seeds that were planed at the end of Original Sin's first season will never come to bloom. I personally think the show was setting up Gellar's character to find out his secret, and jeopardize his burgeoning career as both a blood splatter analyst and a serial killer. I was also eager to see the introduction of other characters like a young James Doakes.

More Michael C. Hall Is Simply Better

Michael C. Hall is synonymous with Dexter, and at this point he's been doing it for two decades. While he narrated the first (and only) season of Original Sin, which was another great way for it to tie to the flagship series, having Hall physically back on our screens and hunting fellow serial killers in Resurrection is just plain better.

This isn't a shot at Patrick Gibson's performance in the prequel series. He did an outstanding impression of Hall's vocal cadence and physicality while still making the character his own. But as they say, you can't compete with the original.

Dexter: Resurrection still has two more episodes as part of the 2025 TV schedule before wrapping up. I have to wonder if we'll get Season 2, especially now that Original Sin is officially scrapped. If not, perhaps the franchise will actually end. Only time will tell.

Spoilers below for anyone who hasn’t yet watched the latest episode of Dexter: Resurrection via Paramount+ subscription or on Showtime, so be warned.

Since the start of Dexter: Resurrection, fans have watched Michael C. Hall’s Dexter fighting to keep his fatherly duties separated from his Code-related activities, only for it all to dramatically dovetail when the episode "The Kill Room Where It Happens" hit the 2025 TV schedule. Our morally driven protagonist was in the midst of having a jolly good non-Vegan meal with Harrison when Peter Dinklage’s Leon Prater made his presence known, thus signifying “the jig is up,” as it were.

I’ve no doubt Dexter will be able to totally bullshit his way out of being instantly taken down by Prater and Uma Thurman’s Charley, because that’s precisely the skillset that got him to this point. But the fact that he was publicly accosted in such a way flies in the face of this character’s logic, and so much of what we’ve seen this season should have helped prep him to avoid this very situation. I’ll allow Al’s escape being a smart plot move, but have to draw a line somewhere.

Dexter should be as anonymous as anyone in a metro area as bustling as New York City, and yet it didn’t take that long for Charley and Prater to track him down. As such, I’m not sure whether this issue is meant to be seen as a specific character flaw, or if it’s an issue the writers just didn’t think to address properly. Let’s get into several reasons why Dex should have been ready for this.

Dexter Spent The First Few Episodes Tracking Harrison And The Dark Passenger Killer

Before directly connecting with Prater’s serial killer club, Dexter spent his early days in NYC stuffing his face in his car while following Harrison, and as soon as he gained knowledge of someone killing rideshare drivers, he quickly gained all the knowledge he needed to identify and track the movements of Marc Menchaca’s “Red,” and was able to approach both his son and target without either being aware of it. I get that he didn’t immediately think others might do the same to him, but that instinct should have kicked in soon after.

Dexter Knew Charley Had Also Followed Red And Broke Into His Apartment

Though he didn’t know everyone else who was involved from the jump, Dexter finding the invitation to Prater’s gathering made him instantly aware that Red’s movements and homebase were identified and infiltrated by someone else, and he later determined that Charley was responsible. To the point where, when suspicions were raised about that apartment’s lack of recent activity, Dexter improvised the excuse that he could no longer live somewhere that others knew about. So why didn’t that immediately tip him off that Charley and others could do the same thing to him?

Dexter Knew That Batista Was Following Him

Even if Dexter didn’t grasp how effective Prater’s head of security was at her job, due to not having known her for well over a decade, he has known Angel Batista for ages, and knows the man is a good detective, whether he’s on active duty or not. Not only that, but in witnessing Batista mixing it up with Blessed’s family, Dexter discovered his former colleague was able to track him down to his living arrangements, likely setting up a major showdown. But did he really think that making threats would successfully keep Batista from telling other proper authority figures where he’s living? Also, how the hell did it take him that long to clean out his passenger door? No wonder he’s not a five-star driver.

Knowing All This, Why Didn’t Dexter Take Better Precautions To Not Be Followed?

As a dude who’s mostly evaded capture for an untold number of murders over the years, Dexter should still be the most evasive and paranoid creature on the planet, regardless of the Bay Harbor Butcher being misidentified. The character shouldn’t have any spare time at this point, because he should be constantly on alert and changing locations on an hourly basis. He should have left Blessed’s house behind the second he saw Batista’s face on the property. He definitely shouldn’t be sitting comfortable and having meals with Harrison.

So what is the deal here? Is this another symptom of Dexter getting older and non-wiser? Perhaps a mental setback to accompany the physical muscle pains he’s been facing? Or is this just a character detail that the creative team didn’t think was pertinent enough to address in full? I can’t imagine that’s the case, though, and would more readily assume it slipped through the cracks.

Of course, the next episode could always feature a big reveal that Dexter DID know he was being followed, and that he set up some kind of elaborate cat-and-mouse scenario to draw Prater and Charley out at just the right time. If that happens, I’ll be the first one in line to congratulate all involved for pulling the wool over my eyes. But until then, I’ll be sitting outside in my car, watching and judging Dexter from afar without him realizing it.

Warning! The following contains spoilers for the Dexter: Resurrection episode "Course Correction." Stream it with a Paramount+ subscription and read at your own risk!

Angel Batista was never able to discover the identity of the Bay Harbor Butcher whilst working right alongside him for a couple of decades, but he's determined to close the case in Dexter: Resurrection. The seventh episode ended with an awkward reunion in New York City, after Dexter gave Angel the slip in Iron Lake, and their eventual showdown is now seemingly locked in.

Unfortunately, I have a feeling the 2025 TV Schedule is going to close out with David Zayas' Angel not having survived to make it to a second season. That said, I don't necessarily think Dexter has it in him to kill a longtime friend, and I have two theories about the actual people who will end up taking out the Miami detective.

Theory #1: Charley Will Kill Batista

Leon Prater has shown he has a lot of power in New York City and connections all across the board. If he finds out Angel is hot on "Red's" tail and close to bringing him in, I think it's safe to say he'll send out Charley to handle the problem. He already tasked her with having Mia Lapierre killed to ensure his serial killers' club wasn't exposed to those outside of his influence.

Now that we've seen his relationship with Red grow tremendously in the latest episode, I would expect Prater to do some deeper digging into Dexter's life. He might even be able to uncover that he's the real Bay Harbor Butcher, and thus have Batista taken care of before our protagonist even has the chance to handle it on his own.

Dexter has been more than a little overconfident as of late after taking out a few killers, for all that he called Gareth the egomaniac. I think he's certainly underestimated the type of monster his wealthy benefactor can be when properly motivated to protect things that are in his best interest.

Theory #2: The New York Ripper Will Kill Batista

For those out of the loop, there's been a pretty interesting theory circling the internet about Dexter: Resurrection involving the New York Ripper. Someone on Reddit has suggested that Dexter's landlord, Blessing Kamara, is the New York Ripper. I've enjoyed the idea of this, and I'm close to thinking it may end up being true.

Blessing seems to be a good family man, but he's had brief moments where it seems some darkness haunts him. In short, he's what Dexter is trying to be right now, assuming that he is secretly a serial killer, and he's thriving in a way that The Bay Harbor Butcher would be envious of if he knew.

It also feels like a lot of the theme of this season leans on father-son relationships, with James Remar reprising his role as Harry in Dexter: Resurrection. Blessing is the only other person we've seen be a father in this season, so his character being a key to the story feels likely to me.

We don't have any concrete evidence yet that Blessing is the New York Ripper, but his meeting with Angel here at least connects the two to where, if he were, we now know how they'd potentially cross paths. There has to be some larger reason that Blessing and the New York Ripper are in this story, so I think, from a story standpoint, it would make sense if they end up having some connection to one another.

I've also seen interesting theories that the New York Ripper could be a tease for a storyline that's to come in Original Sin Season 2.

Dexter: Resurrection premieres new episodes on Showtime on Sundays at 8:00 p.m. ET, but if you have Paramount+, you can watch it on Fridays. I'm excited to see where the rest of this season goes, and with so much talk about James Doakes as of late I really hope they're re-introducing the character in Season 2 of Original Sin.

Spoilers below for anyone who hasn’t yet watched Dexter: Resurrection’s excellent fourth episode on Showtime or via Paramount+ subscription, so be warned!

Wowzers and then some, guys. Dexter: Resurrection seemed like it was giving audiences more of a singular storyline hinging entirely on Michael C. Hall’s back-from-retirement vigilante reconnecting with his son after Harrison shot him in New Blood’s finale. (To the point where it sometimes seemed like maybe Harrison should have been the main character.) But Episode 4, “Call me Red,” brought out all the big guest stars and was a glorious reminder of how unpredictable and delightfully weird this horror-soaked universe can be.

Having taken out the horrendously named rideshare-targeting Dark Passenger in Episode 3, Dexter took on his victim’s persona and followed his invitation to meet Peter Dinklage’s hyper-rich Leon Prater ahead of his gathering of the ghouls. Which is where we meet Krysten Ritter’s Mia “Lady Vengeance” Lapierre, Eric Stonestreet’s “Rapunzel”-monikered Al, David Dastmalchian’s brooding Gareth, a.k.a. Gemini Killer, and Neil Patrick Harris’ skin-obsessed Lowell, the Tattoo Collector.

CinemaBlend talked to what is perhaps TV’s most morbid motley crew ahead of the episode, as seen in the video above, and I learned a few details about the new killers, with Michael C. Hall talking about Dexter’s growth and how wild a season this was for him.

David Dastmalchian, Eric Stonestreet And Krysten Ritter Talk Up Their Newly Introduced Serial Killers

No other shows on the 2025 TV schedule feature a cabal of killers gathered together by a serial killer-obsessed benefactor, which is probably good, because Leon Prater would likely find a way to take those other groups out of the running. He certainly has a knack for rounding up highly disturbed individuals, as normal as they may seem sitting around a dinner table.

When I asked which of these newly introduced killers was most disturbing to the new cast members, David Dastmalchian teased some extremely dark scenes on the way for Modern Family vet Eric Stonestreet, saying:

Eric Stonestreet is one of the more affable celebs out there, and often plays characters who exude those same vibes. I can't say that Al isn't a genial dude, but the fact that he's out there killing women and cutting their ponytails off as trophies doesn't exactly warrant a stamp of approval. I can't wait to see how sinister his story gets.

On the flip side of that coin, Stonestreet points to Dastmalchian's Gareth as being the creepiest. Not because it comes as a surprise, but because it's exactly what one might expect. As he put it:

While I doubt Gareth's Gemini Killer has anything to do with actual ducks, I can't help but think about him putting on a giant duck suit in order to pull off his murders. There has to be someone like that out there, right?

Krysten Ritter teased her character by glorifying how non-disturbing she found Mia to be, despite her less positive attributes, and it sounds like she had a blast in the role. In Ritter's words:

At this point, David Dastmalchian spoke up to say how happy he was to finally be sharing the screen with long-time friend Ritter in such a dark project, which she echoed just as happily.

• DAVID DASTMALCHIAN: Can I say, Kristen and I have been friends for a long time, and I've always felt like she's my goth buddy, my goth niece, my goth little sister that I always wanted to get to do something with creatively. And it was really freaking cool to get to go play and be murderers together.
• KRYSTEN RITTER: You were the first... I wasn't gonna say anything yet, but when I found out that he was doing it, I was like, 'We're gonna get to work together finally!'

Gotta love how many smiles are being shared on a show where a dude cuts people's tattoos off of their bodies.

Michael C. Hall Feels Like This Season Was A 'Bizarro, Twisted Superhero Movie'

To be expected, Michael C. Hall was just as excited to get to mix it up with such a varied group of personalities, even if he already had to take one of them out by the end of the episode. (We're really hoping this storyline doesn't run out too quickly.) When I asked if it was surreal to be standing above a guest star like Neil Patrick Harris strapped down to the kill table, the actor responded with:

When I mentioned that I wouldn't have expected Dexter to leave the flirtatious Mia as she showered just to go and find Lowell, Hall got a laugh out of me by pointing to his character's maturity level rising.

On the topic of Leon Prater's vast collection of serial killer trophies and having that be the new world that Dexter is now trying to traverse alongside Harrison's story, Michael C. Hall told me:

Now that he's mentioned superheroes, I'm wondering how Dexter would fare in the world of The Boys, and who he'd try to target first. Or what if Dexter aimed to take on Colin Farrell's Penguin? There should at least be a comic book series tackling that crossover.

Find out what Prater's serial killer club will get into next when new Dexter: Resurrection episodes hit. Paramount+ every Friday, and air on Showtime on Sunday nights at 9:00 p.m. ET.

Michael C. Hall and the creative minds behind the Dexter franchise tried to end the eponymous serial killer's story twice. So the fact that Dexter: Resurrection is now airing on Showtime and streaming for Paramount+ subscription holders illustrates how successful the IP is. As the franchise continues to garner buzz, Hall reveals that he's aware of the fans' reactions to the ending of the original series as well as New Blood's conclusion. With that, the star isn't holding back his thoughts.

Amid Resurrection's run (which comes with a star-studded cast and a "killer" storyline), Hall talked to Screen Rant about the endings to Dexter and Dexter: New Blood. The end of the OG show saw the lead character living in seclusion as a lumberjack. When fans didn't like that development, the writers tried to shift gears by having Dexter die after being shot by his son, Harrison. When Hall made reference to both of those endings in his recent interview, he talked about why neither seemed to work the way he and his collaborators hoped:

Based on those comments, Michael C. Hall and co. realized that the issue wasn't about how Dexter ended, but rather that they didn't want the ride to end. Fans' appetites for this franchise are still signficiant, which is why we now have Resurrection and the prequel series, Original Sin, which will be returning for Season 2.

While I don't imagine fans will be receive another new Dexter series announcement before the 2025 TV schedule closes out, it does seem that Paramount is committed to making stories about the droll serial killer. There could very likely be a point at which Dexter comes to an end, but that time certainly isn't now.

As a fan, my big takeaway from Michael C. Hall's comments is that it doesn't seem the ride is coming to an end anytime soon. At least, that's what I want to believe, though I think Angel Batista is hot on the tail of his former friend and potentially looking to deliver justice to the real Bay Harbor Butcher.

Of course, Dexter has to end at some point, and the producers already failed when crafting an ending in which he escapes and another one where he dies. The OG series is still great regardless of its controversial conclusion, and I think the last thing many fans want to see is a world in which Dexter overstays his welcome. It all has to end at some point, so let's just hope that when it's time, there's an ending that's worthy of this blood-soaked saga.

Dexter: Resurrection airs on Showtime on Sundays at 8:00 p.m. ET, but those with Paramount+ can watch the new episodes beginning on Friday. Of course, they can also enjoy the original series, which to still regarded as one of the best TV shows to ever air on TV, regardless of its ending.

Warning! The following contains spoilers for the Dexter: Resurrection episode "Call Me Red," so stream it with a Paramount+ subscription or read at your own risk!

Dexter: Resurrection just introduced one of my favorite storylines for the franchise ever, and finally revealed the storyline that brought such a stellar, all-star cast together to join Michael C. Hall. Peter Dinklage made his big debut as billionaire philanthropist Leon Prater, and revealed to "Red" that he secretly runs a society for serial killers to network and share their dark secrets.

Neil Patrick Harris, Krysten Ritter, Eric Stonestreet, and David Dastmalchian all made their way into the story as notorious serial killers, brought together by Prater for mysterious reasons we still don't fully understand as an audience, at least beyond appeasing his bloodlust. One the one hand, I'm psyched because I can see this storyline going in a lot of fun and different directions, but on the other hand, I have concerns after one of those major guest stars has already been killed off.

The Potential For Dexter: Resurrection's Killer Club Storyline Has Me Thrilled

The Dexter universe has been growing with the prequel running alongside the continuation, and I think it could explode in a similar multi-timeline fashion as the John Wick franchise's future, all tied to this serial killer faction. We now have a stacked cast of personable and highly deadly murderers to mix it up with after Red's demise, and while Dexter doesn't necessarily jive with most criminals, it seems there might be at least one that follows a "code" that he can abide by.

Imagine if this season ends with Dexter enlisting or teaching other serial killers in this sordid circle about Harry's "code," leading to some twisted Dark Passenger-infused version of the Avengers? It's a wild idea to consider, but also a possible one, given that it doesn't seem as though Leon Prater himself is a serial killer. Would he be opposed to Dexter teaching the rest of this group how to adhere to his special brand of justice? (Or, perhaps, other groups of misguided killers.)

Truthfully, it seems likely that the bulk of Dex's current colleagues have their own quirks that drive their urge to kill, and won't need additional guidance. The titular character wants justice served, but others like Lowell simply want to retrieve others' tattoos so that he can look at them. Mia Lapierre, on the other hand, might be easier to mold into something of an equal, assuming Dexter ever has the chance to reveal he's actually the Bay Harbor Butcher to her.

I could also see a scenario where Dexter has to hunt these serial killers down, and this becomes a long arc that's drawn out through several seasons of the series. He's already taken down some awful folks in the past, so I'd love to see him spend a season pursuing and eliminating each person in Prater's special club and still avoid detection from his benefactor.

Lowell's Early Exit Has Me Concerned This Story Is Moving Way Too Fast

Unfortunately, I don't think Dexter Resurrection plans on keeping this colorful cast of killers on the series for the long haul. Dexter killed off Neil Patrick Harris' Lowell before the end of the episode, where this new storyline was introduced. It's led me to believe other newcomer actors like Eric Stonestreet and Krysten Ritter (both of whom were blown away by the fans) won't be on the series for long, either.

It's a shame, because I would kill to see a season centered solely around Eric Stonestreet's ponytail killer, and him having the thriving family life that Dexter always wanted with Rita. I'm also 100% all-in on whatever is going on with David Dastmalchian's killer, who appears to be the most cryptic of the bunch.

I should state that we have no idea what the overall plan for Dexter: Resurrection is, and how this whole thing will shake out now that Dexter has already broken the rules of the serial killer club. It's possible that was a one-and-done meeting, and it'll be Prater vs. Dexter from here on out, and he'll go after some of those other killers at a later date.

There's also a part of me that wants Dexter to embrace the community of having other serial killers to talk to. I think that was a good way of further illustrating that he's not a good person, which I've noted both New Blood and Resurrection have illustrated a bit so far.

Dexter: Resurrection streams new episodes on Paramount+ on Fridays, with Showtime broadcasting the episode on Sundays at 8:00 p.m. ET. I'm ready to see where the rest of this season heads, and am holding out hope it's the setup for a much longer story arc than I currently expect.

Warning! The following contains spoilers for Dexter: Resurrection. Stream episodes now with a Paramount+ subscription, and read at your own risk!

Dexter Morgan's story is continuing with Dexter: Resurrection not long after it seemed New Blood was the endgame. The story picks up where the last one left off, but with everyone's favorite serial killer-killer settling up in New York City to help clean up the latest deadly mess made by his son Harrison. I'm loving the episodes we've seen so far, especially with the continuation giving me major Breaking Bad vibes the longer we get into it.

For all the nostalgia and love I have for the classic series (I also love that James Remar is back), I think the original Dexter did the series a disservice that the revival is fixing. It feels like Dexter is in his "Heisenberg" era in these new episodes, and if that's confusing, allow me to break it down.

Both Dexter And Walter White Are Easy To Root For, Despite Their Crimes

Breaking Bad and Dexter do a great job at taking unsavory individuals (a drug dealer and serial killer) and making them sympathetic. Both are similar in how they execute it as well, giving them noble intentions behind the despicable things they do. For Walter, this was raising as much money as he could to ensure his family was taken care of after he died of cancer. Of course, for Dexter, it's killing violent criminals who have either evaded the law or are operating completely under the radar.

In real life, I think many of us could confidently say we won't root for these types of people in any scenario. Of course, Breaking Bad and Dexter both try to paint their heroes in the most favorable light possible, to the point that the fandom is tricked into villainizing more rational characters like Skyler White or Maria LaGuerta.

These two characters in particular I like to compare, because both shows used illicit affairs to paint them in an unfavorable light. No one likes a cheater, and I applaud both for using that to make the audience more in the corner of the clear bad guys of the show, just because they were shown something unsavory about a character they might otherwise empathize with.

Part Of What Made Breaking Bad Incredible Was How It Reshaped Walter White

Breaking Bad is widely regarded as one of the greatest shows of all time for many reasons, but for me, what sends it over the top is how it reshapes how the viewer feels about Walter White. Throughout the entire series, we see him evolve from a man who is clearly out of his depth to the mythical figure we come to know as "Heisenberg." A lowly school teacher turns into a drug kingpin throughout the length of the series, and ultimately becomes a terrible person in the process.

What starts out as a quest to financially support his family after his death soon becomes a quest to gain as much money and power as possible. He seems to get a great sense of pride that he was manufacturing the best meth in the southwestern United States. It becomes all-consuming, and the deeper he gets, the more willing he is to do despicable things to maintain the status quo. There are plenty of mind-blowing moments where you simply can't believe the person he's become, from allowing Jesse Pinkman's girlfriend Jane to die, to poisoning a child.

Dexter also has its share of mind-blowing moments, but the series lacked the kind of gut-punch that made you feel guilty for rooting for Dexter. Even when he let Doakes die, I didn't really feel too bad for the sergeant, despite having plenty of reason to. Doakes is essentially a villain because he's a good cop who had a suspicion that his colleague was up to some shady stuff, and it turns out he was 100% spot on. At the end of Dexter, Morgan ends up getting away with it all and living in the woods. Not the sort of justice he ultimately deserved as a serial killer, which is ultimately delivered in the novels.

Dexter New Blood And Resurrection Have Leaned Into Reminding Us That He Is Not A Good Person, Despite His Own Opinion

Dexter: New Blood and Resurrection have done a good job thus far of bringing the thing that made Breaking Bad great into its latest stories. Via Harrison, his former girlfriend Angela Bishop, and now his old colleague Angel Batista, we're slowly being shown again that, at the end of the day, Dexter Morgan is a serial killer. Sure, he often tries to kill others who committed heinous crimes and act by his code, but he still only does this because he struggles to resist an urge to kill.

Harry's code or not, he's not a good person, and even his own son recognized that. Even recently in Resurrection, when Dexter went on a manhunt for a serial killer that was using his moniker as "The Dark Passenger," it was more about his pride and the thrill of a kill than it ever really was about a moral code.

What's also true is that Dexter is a survivalist first and foremost. He went and killed the innocent Sergeant Logan under the guise that it was necessary to save Harrison. In reality, he doesn't really want to face any retribution for his various crimes despite the noble intentions he claims to have for his hundreds of murders.

If he did, he wouldn't have fled the city when Angel Batista went to visit him at the start of Resurrection, and I'll be curious to see how he responds should his former friend and colleague get a little too close to the truth later in the series. It really feels like the revival is finally showing us the plot lines that prove Dexter is not the hero the original series portrayed him as, and I'm all here for it, assuming they stick the landing.

Catch new episodes of Dexter: Resurrection on Fridays with a Paramount+ subscription, or on Showtime on Sundays at 8:00 p.m. ET. I'm very excited to see how the rest of this season goes, and if Dexter is going to reunite with his son after they parted ways at the end of New Blood.

Light spoilers below for the first two episodes of Dexter: Resurrection, so be warned if you haven’t yet watched on Showtime or via Paramount+ subscription.

The Dexter-verse is quite the odd duck of a TV franchise. The latest spinoff, Dexter: Resurrection, was directly set up in the premiere of the prequel Original Sin, following the titular character seemingly being killed off at the end of the first sequel series New Blood. Michael C. Hall’s latest venture as the code-following killer even brings back characters unseen since early seasons of the flagship thriller. Perhaps most importantly, from a lore perspective, it welcomes back “Harry Morgan.”

Indeed, watching Dexter: Resurrection’s first two episodes (and then some) was often at its most fun when James Remar’s Harry and Hall’s fatherhood-complicating character are sharing the screen together. As ashamed as I am to admit it, I didn’t even realize how much I missed this element throughout watching Harrison’s journey in and around Iron Lake.

James Remar's Harry Was Understandably Absent From Dexter: New Blood

For eight seasons, James Remar served as both the canonically accurate Harry Morgan (via flashbacks) and as the phantom-ification of Dexter's conscience, and aided in the vast majority of Dexter's actions throughout that run. In making the radical decisions to legally fake his death and to adopt another persona far away from the tanned population of Miami, he became Jim Lindsay. Unlike Miami Metro's former blood spatter mastermind, Jim Lindsay didn't have an innate need for Harry Morgan's advice.

As such, James Remar didn't have a presence in New Blood, so we didn't get to see if non-real Harry would have changed from his signature blue shirt into warmer clothes for New York's snowy weather. Then, when Dexter: Original Sin dove into the Morgan family's backstory, it was Christian Slater who introduced the Harry Code to Patrick Gibson's Dex. Sure, the prolific stage actor appeared on the after show Dexter: Final Cut to share his thoughts on things, but not as Harry.

Harry's Return In Dexter: Resurrection Reminded Me How Hard I Actually Missed His Excellent Pop-Ins

I guess after years of rewatching the O.G. run’s earlier seasons, I took for James Remar’s presence for granted, and didn’t acknowledge his absence in New Blood as forward-facing as I should have. Because holy shit, Dexter: Resurrection immediately profits off of bringing Harry back into the folds of Dexter’s mind. Watching the various (and often hilarious) ways he pops into these new scenes served as a a fantastic reminder of the glory days.

The second episode, “Camera Shy,” features an early scene where Dexter infiltrates the hotel room where Harrison went buck on that would-be rapist’s face with a toilet tank lid. When his non-professional investigation is interrupted by the actual professionals (and the cartoonish hotel manager), Dexter pulls the old “hide in the closet” move. Which is of course both a perfect and imperfect time for Harry to dispense his two cents, as seeing Remar suddenly appear next to Hall in such a cramped setting is going to make my Top 10 moments of the season.

I don’t need or want Dexter’s inner monologues with Harry to skew too humorous, mind you. I’ll freely admit to thinking some of those scenes can be criminally heavy-handed, and always appreciate when levity is mixed in, but I’m fine with those maintaining their emotional core as Dexter works out his issues. In fact, I think it’s even more brilliant when Harry appears out of nowhere in the strangest context, and it isn’t played for a joke, since it’s precisely that tonal juxtaposition that I love to see in this weird-ass show.

Dexter: Resurrection Also Earns My Love For Bringing David Magidoff's Teddy Back

While James Remar's Harry was present during Dexter and missing from New Blood, the opposite was true for David Magidoff's Teddy Reed, who was first introduced as a wet-behind-the-ears officer for Iron Lake's police department. Every show needs a character like Teddy, and while I fully wanted him to continue serving a role in this world, I didn't actually expect to see him back in the narrative for Resurrection given the change in setting.

Let me offer a sincere slow clap for showrunner Clyde Phillips & Co. for making sure to not only bring back the character that was sorely missing from New Blood, but also for bringing back my favorite new element from that one-off season. Now who do I have to talk to about pitching a new spinoff where Teddy solves crimes with the actual ghost of Harry Morgan? Surely someone will help me bring that idea to the 2025 TV schedule. Anybody?

While I wait for answers, be sure to watch new episodes of Dexter: Resurrection when they hit Paramount+ on Fridays, or when they air on Showtime on Sunday nights at 8:00 p.m. ET.

As bizarre as it is to consider for too long, Michael C. Hall’s appetite-heavy killer-of-killers will soon be back on the small screen in a completely new way, with the sequel series Dexter: Resurrection taking both him and Jack Alcott’s Harrison Morgan into the hustle and bustle of New York City. The new series will feature an appearance from John Lithgow’s Trinity Killer, among other former franchise stars, but what about that standalone idea that was previously discussed?

It turns out Dexter producer Clyde Phillips, who took on showrunning duties for Resurrection, hasn’t dropped the ball at all in regards to a potential spinoff digging into the backstory of Lithgow’s Arthur Mitchell, arguably Dexter’s most vicious villain. In fact, he told Collider that the only thing keeping it from happening right now is a lack of a greenlight from the powers that be. As he put it:

Talk about confidence in an idea. Clyde Phillips & Co. not only crafted a working outline for the Trinity Killer’s rise to infamy, but they went ahead and scripted the entire shebang. Without a thumbs up from network execs, that’s quite a big risk to take; or if not necessarily a risk, than potentially a lot of time being spent focusing on a lost cause. But hopefully that won’t be the case.

Arthur Miller gave audiences one of the most shocking TV moments of all time, not just for Dexter, but any show, in the final episode of Season 4. It absolutely changed the course of Dexter’s life, as well as that of his and Rita’s son. Surely he had a similarly devastating effect on other family’s lives prior to that, though, which is the kind of subject matter I’d assume the prequel-ized series would follow.

Within Dexter’s canon, Arthur’s prolific run as a serial killer lasted for three decades, all while he maintained a public life as a beloved and well-respected high school teacher and church deacon. Despite being highly abusive towards his wife and children, he’s also viewed as being a family man, though his views on families are a bit more twisted than most. He crossed the country committing his patterned crimes, evading capture and recognition, and it sounds like the creative team knows exactly where those crimes are happening.

Will we get to see another awkward Thanksgiving dinner quite like this one, though?

It’s unclear whether or not John Lithgow himself would ever be seen on the show, or if he would only appear through voiceovers and narration. It stands to reason he won’t have a ton of time in the near future to take on many TV roles, since he’s set to play Dumbledore in the upcoming Harry Potter series.

For now, all we need to do as fans is watch the hell out of Dexter: Resurrection so that Showtime and Paramount+ and all the execs involved make the right call and order up the Trinity Killer spinoff before it’s too late.

Plenty of upcoming 2025 TV shows can show off having great casts, but which franchise can boast two star-studded lineups across two different timelines centering on the same titular character? That tricky distinction is best exemplified by Showtime’s Dexter series, which concluded its prequel series Original Sin in a theory-sparking way in February, just a few months before the impending spinoff Dexter: Resurrection premieres. The latter started filming in January, and there’s been no end to the exciting cast reveals.

While major details are still somewhat scarce, we know that Resurrection will center on the killer-killing vigilante at some point after he was killed off in New Blood and then brought back to life in Original Sin’s premiere. And we also know that this may well be the most impressive ensemble cast yet to join Michael C. Hall in the world, although it’s technically impossible to beat Original Sin’s mirror images of the O.G. cast.

Check out all the big names who have signed on for the new spinoff since it was first announced, starting with new recruits and ending with the few known returning stars. (Note that while Jennifer Carpenter addressed her potential to return, she currently isn’t within this lineup.)

Eric Stonestreet - "Al"

• The Modern Family and Santa Clauses vet is reportedly set to appear in four episodes.
• He'll portray a midwesterner named Al who is believed to be one of the serial killers that the namesake vigilante will be tracking down.

Krysten Ritter - "Mia"

• Jessica Jones vet Krysten Ritter joins Dexter: Resurrection in a guest-star capacity as a character named Mia Lapierre, who is rumored to be a well-respected sommelier that may
• It's unknown how many episodes "Mia" will be featured in, but she's also believed to be a potential serial killer who catches Dexter's eye.

Neil Patrick Harris - "Lowell"

• Following the cancellation of his comedy Uncoupled, whose second season was initially picked up by Showtime before the 2023 strikes messed those plans up, Neil Patrick Harris is indeed teaming up with Showtime for this guest-starring spot on Dexter: Resurrection.
• Harris will be portraying a character named Lowell, and little else is known about the role, though set photos revealed the actor will be rocking a rather different hairstyle in the horror-thriller.

Steve Schirripa - "Vinny"

• Sopranos and Blue Bloods vet Steve Schirripa doesn't factor into a ton of TV horror, but he'll be making his mark on the Dexter-verse in a recurring capacity.
• Schirripa will portray a character named Vinny, who will apparently be a greed-mongering landlord of a less than reputable living establishment.

David Dastmalchian - "Gareth"

• Late Night with the Devil and Oppenheimer vet David Dastmalchian is no stranger to horror and genre projects, so it's no surprise he's joining this franchise in a guest-starring capacity.
• Unfortunately, beyond the "guest star" distinction and the lone character moniker "Gareth," nothing else is known about what to expect from Dastmalchian's character.

• Fans have waited ages to see Game of Thrones alum Peter Dinklage's debut as Toxic Avenger, but we'll have to settle for his next TV role as a series regular in Dexter: Resurrection.
• Dinklage will star as a billionaire venture capitalist named Leon Prater, whose publicly philanthropic nature is buttressed by darker interests and urgest.

Uma Thurman - "Charley"

• The first additional cast member to be announced for Dexter: Resurrection alongside Michael C. Hall, esteemed Hollywood icon Uma Thurman landed what is arguably her biggest TV role yet as a series regular within this universe.
• Thurman will portray a polished and dependable character named Charley, who serves as the Head of Security for Peter Dinklage's billionaire Leon Prater, after having previously taken on a variety of upper-level security positions.

Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine - "Blessing Kamara"

• The Lincoln Lawyer vet Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine is set as the series regular named Blessing Kamara, a driver for a rideshare company. He's an extremely positive guy who is dedicated to both his family and his local community, which will either be a good thing or a bad thing for Dexter.

Kadia Saraf - “Claudette Wallace"

• Kadia Saraf, who has portrayed Attorney Anya Avital in both Law & Order: SVU and Organized Crime, will play NYPD Detective Claudette Wallace, who has a reputation for being rigidly methodical and sharp as a tack.

Dominic Fumusa - "Melvin Oliva"

• Best known for Nurse Jackie and Godfather of Harlem, Dominic Fumusa is joining Dexter: Resurrection as fellow NYPD Detective Melvin Olivia, who seems to be the only investigator who totally understands his partner Claudette.

Emilia Suárez - "Elsa Rivera"

• Musician and Up Here co-star Emilia Suárez is set to play the confident and outgoing Elsa Rivera, a workplace buddy of Harrison Morgan's at the Empire Hotel.

Returning Stars From The Dexter-Verse

• Michael C. Hall as Dexter Morgan
• James Remar as Dexter's late father Harry Morgan
• Jack Alcott as Dexter's son Harrison Morgan
• David Zayas as Angel Batista
• David Madigoff as Iron Lake PD's Teddy Reed (from Dexter: New Blood)

Dexter: Resurrection is currently in production, which kicked off in January, and the eventual goal is for the spinoff to debut on Showtime and Paramount+ with Showtime in Summer 2025.

This article includes SPOILERS for Dexter, Dexter: New Blood, and the premiere episode of Dexter: Original Sin, which recently debuted as part of the 2024 TV schedule. If you’re not caught up yet, you can stream the series with a Paramount+ subscription with Showtime.

Few TV finales spark debate like Dexter: New Blood’s seemingly deadly finale, a shocking conclusion where the beloved antihero, played by Michael C. Hall, met his end at the hands of his own son, Harrison. Now, as Showtime’s titular serial killer universe expands with the prequel series Dexter: Original Sin and a sequel series Resurrection set to hit the 2025 TV schedule next summer, creator Clyde Phillips is reflecting on the controversial choices that shaped Dexter Morgan’s fate — and why fans haven’t seen the last of him.

In a conversation with The Hollywood Reporter, Phillips explained the reasoning behind his bold decision to kill Mr. Morgan in New Blood, describing it as an effort to honor the integrity of the character and bring a definitive end to his story. As he tells it:

The finale, aptly titled “Sins of the Father,” saw Dexter urge Harrison to kill him to break the violent cycle that defined their lives. For Phillips, this was both an artistic and practical choice. He noted that anything short of a conclusive finale would have felt dishonest following the original series’ divisive 2013 ending, in which the beloved antihero faked his death and became a lumberjack. But, as the creator points out, everyone hated it.

However, the character’s death wasn’t the end of the story. Enter Original Sin, a prequel series that delves into the origins of Dexter’s murderous instincts and the moral code instilled in him by his adoptive father, Harry Morgan (played by Christian Slater). The series follows a young Mr. Morgan, portrayed by Patrick Gibson, as he navigates his dark urges and begins his journey to becoming the calculating killer fans know.

Phillips revealed that the twist in Original Sin’s opening minutes sets up even bigger surprises for Resurrection. Dexter, it turns out, survived his apparent death in New Blood, thanks in part because the actor behind the serial killer picked up his phone and made a call. He explains:

Clyde Phillips has kept the Dexter universe alive and thriving, and for us die-hard fans, that’s nothing short of a gift. If you’re wondering how to watch the prequel series Original Sin, it’s already streaming on Paramount+ as of December 13, 2024. New episodes drop every Friday, with a Sunday night premiere at 10 p.m. on Showtime for those who prefer the old-school viewing experience.

As for what’s next, the sequel series Resurrection is gearing up for a 2025 debut, picking up with the forensic specialist with a dark side’s miraculous recovery from his gunshot wound and diving back into the dark and twisted tale we can’t get enough of.

With the Dexter creative team weaving an ambitious narrative across dual timelines, expectations are sky-high for both newcomers and seasoned fans. In the meantime, why not rewatch the original Dexter series? It’s still one of the best shows on Showtime, and with Dexter’s story evolving, it’s the perfect way to make peace with that polarizing first finale — and get hyped for what’s coming next.

Spoilers below if you haven’t yet watched the first episode of Dexter: Original Sin on Showtime or with a Paramount+ subscription. (Here’s how to watch!)

Of all the extended fictional universes that popped up on the 2024 TV schedule in one place or another, only one franchise follows a seemingly immortal serial killer with extremely soothing narration skills: Showtime’s Dexter, which ramped up the blood-spattered fun anew with the prequel spinoff Dexter: Original Sin. The new series stars Patrick Gibson in the titular role made famous by Michael C. Hall, with a slew of co-stars who are mirror images of the O.G. series’ main cast.

But while we expected to see major events from the forensic analyst’s past depicted on the show, I can’t say I was ready for how the new show started off. It wasn’t with all kinds of 1990s throwbacks, but with a current-day follow up to the events of Dexter: New Blood’s seemingly deadly finale, which itself was meant to serve as a retcon for the disappointing final episode of the flagship run. Let's take a closer look at one of the more shocking TV moments in the final months of the 2024 TV schedule, and how they'll presumably lead into Michael C. Hall's return in Dexter: Resurrection.

How Dexter: Original Sin Set Up Michael C. Hall's Return For Resurrection

Before any prequel characters could officially make themselves known, creator Clyde Phillips knocked audiences for a loop by directly following up on the events of New Blood's finale, which saw Jack Alcott's Harrison Morgan shooting his father with a rifle as a response to Dexter having killed an innocent man to secure his own safety.

Dexter seemed like a total goner at the time, bleeding out into the snow. But as it happens, he was rescued just in time, and EMT were able to transfer him to a proper hospital, where the medical team successfully revived the notorious vigilante killer after he coded. And while he obviously wasn't instantly back on his feet and potentially tracking down Harrison, Dexter is officially back in the land of the living, and I can't wait to see what kinds of lifestyle changes he adopts in the new series.

I'm also curious to see whether or not the next spinoff will immediately follow up on the hospital scene shown in the premiere, or if fans will pick up with an already recovered Dexter. Hell, Original Sin itself might offer up some answers in that respect by the time its final comes around.

How Fans Reacted To The Dexter: Original Sin Premiere

Fan reactions to Dexter Morgan's return as a younger man were all over the place, which is to be expected for just about any new show, much less one that follows up on a widely beloved series. But more than a few viewers were right there on the same page I was in being shocked by the prequel's opening sequence. Here are some of the more elated responses found on X:

• Just got so giddy while watching the first minute of Dexter Original Sin!!!! OH MY GOSH!!!!! Ahhhhh fuck yes. - @AshleyESanders
• I love how they transition from Dexter: New Blood to the prequel and correcting what they did from the finale!!!! And this updated intro is fucking amazing! Goosebumps!!! So nostalgic and beautiful! #DexterOriginalSin - @NiceJanice19
• The opening scene to Dexter original sin gave me the chills man - @blexcii
• Not gonna lie, once my brain adjusted to Dexter being played by someone other than Michael C Hall, I loved Dexter: Original Sin episode 1. I’m pretty fuckin stoked for the rest of the season (and what those first couple of minutes ultimately lead to ) @DaBatman7
• I actually really like how Dexter Original Sin opens with a sequel scene to New Blood. The franchising of this show might be forced but at least they're cooking - @LynchUnhinged

Oh, and let's get one more in here just for Wilkes and giggles.

I'm sure there have been other TV shows that have altered their timeline to set up future storylines through prequel narratives, but I can't quite think of any that went the route Dexter: Original Sin did, and I can't imagine there are plenty of other shows that it would work for.

Of course, there were also more than a few commenters who had less than positive things to share about Dexter's younger days. Those comments ranged from calling the prequel a cash grab to criticizing it for rehashing already established story details to pointing out that all the characters have the exact same habits and tics as they do in the flagship series' timeline. And all those are valid, but still can't deflate other fans' excitement.

Here are a few sidebar comments that aren't super-positive or super-negative, but amused me all the same.

• Dexter: Original Sin should be an animated series - @YoungerPope
• That was no reason for Dexter original sin to use that bad chuckie wig again or even exist. - @hekoya1
• The new actor for dexter original sin looks like he is a serial killer just he is too afraid to kill anybody - @gavincombs15

Dexter: Original Sin airs Sunday nights on Showtime at 10:00 p.m. ET, and streams three days early on Paramount+.

Created by Alan Ball, Six Feet Under was a drama that explored how people in the business of death struggle with the topic on their own time, as seen through the eyes of a dysfunctional family who run a Los Angeles funeral parlor. During its five-season run from 2001 to 2005, all the way to its highly revered final episode, the series became one of the most acclaimed to ever air on HBO — due in part to the performances of its talented ensemble. In memoriam of this now classic TV show, let’s take a look at what the Six Feet Under cast has been up to in the years since they said goodbye.

Peter Krause (Nate Fisher)

Peter Krause, and his onscreen family members, would bid farewell to his three-time Emmy-nominated role as eldest child, Nate Fisher, when Six Feet Under ended. The actor would only continue to find success on the small screen.

Most notably, he starred in another dysfunctional family drama as Adam Braverman in NBC’s Parenthood cast before going on to lead Fox’s 9-1-1 cast as L.A. Fire Department captain, Bobby Nash. Audiences may have also spotted him in movies like 2006’s Civic Duty, a modernized Beauty and the Beast story called Beastly from 2011, and the fact-based 2020 drama, Saint Judy.

Michael C. Hall (David Fisher)

As Nate’s brother, David — who spends much of the series struggling to come to terms with his sexuality — we have Michael C. Hall. Just a year after starring in a show about people struggling with death, the actor led a series about a man obsessed with death as the title “hero” of the Dexter cast.

Following his role as executive producer and narrator of Showtime's prequel series, Dexter: Original Sin, he is set to reprise his career-defining, homicidal role in another follow-up called Dexter: Resurrection. Hall also lent his voice to Sean Conant’s documentary, The Gettysburg Address, which is due in November 2025, and Deadline reports that he is starring in a dramatized film about the infamous cult, Heaven’s Gate, called The Leader.

Frances Conroy (Ruth Fisher)

The Fisher Family matriarch, Ruth — an iconic TV mom who deserved more credit — was played by Frances Conroy. She would find further success as one of the most frequent recurring American Horror Story actors, appearing in eight seasons so far.

Conroy has played a few other notable motherly roles, such as Barney Stinson’s mom, Loretta, on How I Met Your Mother and Penny Fleck in the Oscar-winning comic book movie Joker in 2019. More recently, she appeared in the Oscar-winning Netflix original Western movie, The Power of the Dog, and voiced the role of The Director in the platform’s acclaimed animated 2023 film, Nimona.

Lauren Ambrose (Claire Fisher)

As the youngest Fisher, the free-spirited Claire, we have Lauren Ambrose. Her most notable small-screen efforts following Six Feet Under include producer M. Night Shyamalan’s Servant from Apple TV+ and a Season 2 stint in the Yellowjackets cast for Showtime.

Feature-length highlights on her resume include writer, director, and star Mike Birbligia’s semi-autobiographical film, Sleepwalk with Me, the 2012 comedy Wanderlust, and a great time travel movie called Caddo Lake from 2024. She returns as Van on Yellowjackets Season 3.

Freddy Rodriguez (Federico Diaz)

The Fishers’ business partner, Federico Diaz, is one of the best-known characters played by Freddy Rodriguez, who earned an Emmy nomination for the performance. The actor is also famous for playing Wray in Robert Rodriguez’s Planet Terror segment from 2007’s Grindhouse and Benny Colón on the CBS legal drama Bull.

Rodriguez more recently played detectives in both Hulu’s Wu-Tang an American Saga and the 2023 anthology horror movie, V/H/S/85, and lent his voice to Max’s animated sci-fi thriller Scavengers Reign. He has a romantic dramedy in post-production called Day When the Rains Came and, according to Deadline, is set to star in an upcoming horror movie called You Lose You Die.

Mathew St. Patrick (Keith Charles)

David’s on-and-off cop boyfriend, Keith, was played by Matthew St. Patrick. He would later make several guest appearances in various cop dramas, including Law & Order: SVU and Hawaii Five-0.

St. Patrick has also starred opposite Jason Statham and Jet Li in the 2007 revenge thriller War and had a four-episode stint on the final season of Sons of Anarchy. His most recent acting role was in the 2019 ensemble drama Ice Cream in the Cupboard, but he worked as a production consultant for a 2021 special called Night, Mother.

Rachel Griffiths (Brenda Chenowith)

Nate’s on-and-off girlfriend, Brenda, was played by Rachel Griffiths, who had earned an Academy Award nomination for 1998’s Hilary and Jackie before she was cast on Six Feet Under. Following the series end, she starred on another dysfunctional family series called Brothers & Sisters from 2006 to 2011 and appeared in movies like the original Step Up from 2006, 2013’s Saving Mr. Banks, and the Oscar-nominated Hacksaw Ridge in 2016.

More recently, she appeared in the hit 2023 rom-com, Anyone But You, and in an Australian political drama series called Total Control, which she also produces. She was last seen leading a 2024 series dramedy about an escort agency called Madam.

Jeremy Sisto (Billy Chenowith)

Brenda’s younger brother, Billy, was played by Jeremy Sisto. The actor has achieved a very successful career in the years since Six Feet Under, which includes the acclaimed 2007 dramedy Waitress, a stint on Law & Order as Det. Cyrus Lupo, and the ABC comedy Suburgatory from 2011 to 2014.

He would later go on to lend his voice to animated films Ferdinand and Frozen II and currently stars in CBS’ FBI as Jubal Valentine. Sisto also recently starred in a 2023 horror movie called Last Straw.

James Cromwell (George Sibley)

Academy Award nominee James Cromwell (for 1995’s Babe) joined the cast in Season 3 as Ruth’s second husband, Prof. George Sibley. He would later reunite with Conroy on Season 2 of American Horror Story before appearing in more Oscar darlings, like the 2012 Best Picture Oscar winner, The Artist, and more acclaimed series like The Young Pope and Succession.

He more recently voiced Alfred in Amazon’s great superhero Christmas movie Merry Little Batman, starred in Jeremy Saulnier’s acclaimed Netflix movie, Rebel Ridge, and appeared in Fox's Murder in a Small Town. As reported by Deadline in 2022, Cromwell is producing a political docudrama called Nixon's Nixon and is starring in a modernized update of Alice in Wonderland called Get Lost.

Justina Machado (Vanessa Diaz)

Justina Machado had a recurring role (which became a main role in the final season) as Federico’s wife, Vanessa. The vocational nurse was, coincidentally, one of many characters in the medical field the actor has played — most notably Penelope Alvarez on Netflix’s reimagining of the classic sitcom, One Day at a Time.

She is also well-known for her recurring role on Jane the Virgin, an impressive stint on Dancing with the Stars, her successful voice acting career (including Elena of Avalor and the Gears of War video games), and her reputation as a Scream Queen, having starred in the likes of Final Destination 2 and The Horror of Delores Roach. She starred in a 2024 comedy film called The Throwback and is now set to play another medical professional in the upcoming series, Pulse.

Richard Jenkins (Nathaniel Fisher Sr.)

Despite his death in the pilot, Nathaniel Fisher Sr. was a pivotal presence on Six Feet Under in spirit, in hallucinations, and in flashbacks. He was played by veteran character actor Richard Jenkins, whose Academy Award-nominated performance in 2008’s The Visitor rejuvenated his career.

He went on to play larger roles in films like the horror-comedy movie favorite The Cabin in the Woods and Guillermo del Toro’s The Shape of Water (which earned him a second Oscar nod) and more acclaimed series like Netflix’s Dahmer - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. Following his voice acting role in the 2024 movie, IF, Jenkins is set to star in Amazon’s upcoming drama series, Criminal.

While Six Feet Under may be gone (unless there is still a chance for a reboot), it will continue to live on in our memories and through the talents of its brilliant cast.

Based on the ending of The Batman, there is at one villain we can expect to see in director Matt Reeves’ follow-up to his smash hit DC reboot. However, there are a few other characters we also hope will appear alongside Robert Pattinson’s Caped Crusader at some point in this franchise, and one of them is Harvey Dent, who would also come to be known as Two-Face.

Instead of how Aaron Eckhart’s depiction was handled in The Dark Knight, I would like to see the next movie only explore Harvey’s days as Gotham City’s district attorney and save his tragic evolution into a murderous psycho at war with himself (and Batman) for a later sequel. It is going to take one hell of an actor to portray this good man’s descent into madness and we have a few candidates in mind, including one who has played a similar role before.

Adam Driver

Opinions regarding the more recent Star Wars movies vary, but one thing most agree on is Adam Driver’s performance as Kylo Ren - a Dark Side wannabe wrestling with an inner desire to use his Force sensitivity for good. From the opposite perspective, the arc feels a lot like how Harvey Dent struggles with his latent, menacing split personality before it is fully unlocked by his disfigurement, turning him into Two-Face. By channeling his Kylo Ren performance in reverse, the Academy Award nominee would be perfect for The Batman sequel.

Antony Starr

Someone who is also well-versed in playing two-faced individuals, as well as comic book characters, is Antony Starr - best known as Homelander in The Boys cast. The leader of The Seven is usually good at appearing heroic to the public, but is actually one of the most despicable characters on Amazon Prime’s hit show based on Garth Ennis’ truly graphic series. The New Zealand-born actor could make a great Two-Face by, once again, portraying this struggle to maintain a clean reputation, but with a more sympathetic angle.

Michael C. Hall

As the lead of the Dexter cast, seven-time Emmy nominee Michael C. Hall gave one of the most celebrated performances of his career as a homicidal two-faced individual. Of course, considering his moral code, I think most think of Dexter Morgan as more akin to Batman, but if the Dark Knight never honored his no-killing rule, that is. By playing Harvey Dent, Hall could revisit that duality he mastered on the hit Showtime series while also tapping into the more damaged psyche of an individual who is completely beyond saving. 

Jon Bernthal

Jon Bernthal has played two iconic comic book characters on TV and both give off some serious Two-Face vibes. The former Walking Dead cast member played Shane as the once trusted best friend of the main hero before grave circumstances brought out his true nature, and his vengeful and homicidal Frank Castle on Daredevil and The Punisher was once a kind, everyday individual before losing his family. We also know from both of those roles that he can play unbalanced very well and I’d like to see him lay that on a little thicker in a Batman movie.

Oliver Jackson-Cohen

I think it is clear that Oliver Jackson-Cohen could pull-off Two-Face from his roles in Mike Flanagan’s Netflix miniseries. We saw him wrestle with the demons (sometimes literally) that made him an outcast on The Haunting of Hill House and, on The Haunting of Bly Manor, his character was once a sophisticated and (seemingly) well-intentioned man before he was driven to murder by a violent act committed against him. Not to mention, the Londoner is, kind of, the spitting image of how I would picture Harvey Dent in a live-action setting.

Daniel Kaluuya

Did you ever notice how Daniel Kaluuya rarely plays a character who is not relatively calm and well put-together? For instance, throughout most of 2017’s Get Out, as Chris Washington, he keeps his composure brilliantly before shit really starts to hit the fan in Jordan Peele’s horror masterpiece, at which point he allows himself to let loose and rebel. I want to see the Academy Award winner play Harvey Dent in a similar way in future Batman movies: a cool, trustworthy everyman pushed to the brink of his sanity when he (or, more accurately, the left side of his face) falls prey to a cruel injustice.

Michael Shannon

Some iterations depict Harvey Dent and Bruce Wayne as old friends around the same age, such as on Batman: The Animated Series, but I am intrigued by the idea of making the DA older, more experienced, and privately disillusioned by what he has seen on the job - opening the door for his descent even wider. For this, I thought of Michael Shannon, who, surprisingly, received neither of his two Oscar nominations for his mesmerizing performance in 2010’s Take Shelter as a family man trying to keep his life together as he slowly loses his mind. I think seeing him play a Dent who struggles to internalize his maddening discontent would make for an amusing, unique take on Two-Face, which would be his second big DC role after General Zod, whom he is set to reprise in The Flash.

John David Washington

If Matt Reeves was to go with the angle that Harvey Dent and Bruce Wayne are old friends, I think he should cast someone who has already proven to have good chemistry with Robert Pattinson. For this, I thought of John David Washington, who previously teamed up with the Batman actor for a mission that exceeds the bounds of time in 2020’s Tenet, from Dark Knight Trilogy helmer Christopher Nolan. Additionally, I think that his portrayal of a charismatic justice seeker in 2018’s BlacKkKlansman would translate very well to a pre-Two-Face Dent, making his post-Two-Face transformation all the more shocking.

Taylor Lautner

If Matt Reeves, instead, reimagined Harvey Dent and Bruce Wayne as rivals, similar to how Christian Bale and Aaron Eckhart played them in The Dark Knight, I think he should cast someone who knows what it’s like to be at odds with the Batman actor. I am talking about the Jacob to his Edward from the Twilight cast, Taylor Lautner, who has not been given the chance to really show his worth as a performer beyond his career-making role as a werewolf in the blockbuster franchise based on the YA novel series. I would be curious to see his take on Two-Face and to see if it could put him on a new career trajectory like Pattinson’s post-Twilight years.

There are so many great storytelling opportunities in the character of Harvey Dent. Maybe we will see one of the actors above portray the best depiction of the tragic DC villain yet in one of Matt Reeves' next Batman movies.

Big spoilers coming for anyone who is not caught up on Showtime’s revival of Dexter, subtitled New Blood. The final episode is here, and it’s not one to be missed. 

When it was announced that Dexter Morgan and co. would be returning to the small screen for another round of murder and drama, it seemed like an opportunity to tackle the ending concerns star Michael C. Hall and other creatives related to the show have made over the years. In fact, many people have spoken out about fixing the oft-panned finale of the original Dexter series and New Blood gave the show the opportunity to do just that. 

First and foremost, if you caught the finale for Dexter: New Blood you should know that Dexter Morgan met his demise this time around (unlike last time, where he ended up off the beaten path and working as a lumberjack). Perhaps more fittingly, his death came at the hands of his own son Harrison after the elder Morgan had broken his own code and killed Logan, who was basically collateral damage. 

The father and son had made plans to escape and find a new life, but Harrison couldn’t reconcile with the person his father said he was and the path his father had just gone down in order to avoid jail time and his past life in Miami coming back to haunt him. Harrison confronted his father and decided that killing Dexter was the only way. Michael C. Hall’s character in fact even tells Harrison he’s going to have to take the safety off before the moment ultimately comes and he's left bleeding in the snow.

This ending gave the show a second opportunity to move forward in a way that would be satisfying to the fanbase after the blowback related to the show’s original finale in 2013. Though the finale drew a slew of viewers, in subsequent years it has been panned, and showrunner Clyde Phillips told TV Insider that it wasn’t an “easy decision", but that New Blood was conceived in order to right the wrongs of the original. He noted: 

It’s an ending that Clyde Phillips says was in the works for a long time, even as the new series of Dexter episodes was in its early days of inception. In fact, lead Michael C. Hall was told about this ending for his character about two and a half years ago, per a Deadline interview. When he was told how things would go, he reportedly gave Phillips a hug and greenlighted Morgan's demise by saying, “I’m in.”

There was no looking back after that. In many ways this story reminds me a lot of Daniel Craig’s James Bond ending and how Craig himself signed off on his 007 finale early on. Dexter Morgan’s obviously a very different character and Dexter: New Blood is definitely a different sort of project, but it’s nice to hear when shows have a clear end goal and are working toward that from the get go. 

From what I can tell, Dexter dying was where the show felt it needed to go at the end of the day, as Phillips also told Deadline:

While Clyde Phillips does “lurk a lot on social media” for fan reactions, as he put it, he also noted that even the polarizing original finale has its fans, and I can’t wait to hear more about what fans think this time around. In the meantime, the finale is available on the Showtime app or airing at 9 p.m. ET Sunday on the subscription cabler. You can see what else is heading to Showtime with our full TV premiere schedule. 

When Six Feet Under went off the air in 2005, the message was clear: “Everything. Everyone. Everywhere. Ends.” In arguably the best television series finale of all time, viewers witnessed the deaths of each member of the Fisher family and their loved ones in a touching and heartbreaking montage. But in today’s climate of revivals, reboots, and reimaginings, I guess anything is possible — even reviving a show that literally killed off every character — because a follow-up to the classic HBO drama is reportedly in early development. And there’s more good news that’s going to have fans of the original series excited.

The new Six Feet Under project, reported by Variety, must really be in the earliest stages, because there’s no indication yet of whether the follow-up will be a reboot or sequel, and there’s no writer attached the project. However, fans will be ecstatic to hear that Alan Ball, who created the early aughts series, and executive producers Bob Greenblatt and David Janollari are all attached to the new project as executive producers.

Six Feet Under aired on HBO for five seasons with an ensemble cast that included Frances Conroy, Peter Krause, Michael C. Hall (in his first television role) and Lauren Ambrose as the Fisher family, who lived in and operated a funeral home after the death of patriarch Nathaniel Fisher, who made appearances from beyond the grave and was played by Richard Jenkins. The supporting cast was just as notable and included Rachel Griffiths, Freddy Rodriguez and Rainn Wilson, who has voiced his desire for a reboot.

The return of creator Alan Ball is a boon for Six Feet Under fans, as his vision and storytelling gave the original series depth and compassion for the seriously flawed group of humans who made up the Fishers. The series garnered Ball multiple awards, including an Emmy Award for Outstanding Direction in a Drama Series in 2002. A year ago, Ball’s other HBO creation, True Blood, was reported to be in talks for a reboot, also with Ball signed on to executive produce.

It’s theoretically been long enough for a reboot, as the series celebrated its 20th anniversary this year, but the original series was so good, do we really need one? But if not a reboot, it’s going to be really interesting to see which direction the project goes. While we did see how the Fishers all end up meeting their maker, the series-ending montage didn’t go into a lot of detail about their lives, so will HBO find stories within that skipped-over time period? It’s all speculation at this point.

Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more on this follow-up to Six Feet Under, and in the meantime, check out our 2021 TV Schedule to see what’s coming up this month. You can also get a peek at what to expect in the new year with our 2022 TV Schedule.

This article contains spoilers from the original Dexter series on Showtime. (If you're not caught up on the series ahead of Dexter: New Blood, be warned!) 

In 2013, fans of the hit Showtime original crime drama Dexter voiced their dissatisfaction over the series finale which sees Michael C. Hall’s titular, heroic sociopath abandon his double life in Miami in an unspecified - and much colder - location. Well, it appears that these grievances were heard because a new limited series follow-up is coming to the 2021 fall TV schedule to, hopefully, offer a more proper conclusion to the story of America’s favorite serial killer. Unfortunately, very few of the surviving members of the original Dexter cast are making a return for the new season, but you are certainly bound to see a few familiar faces on the Dexter: New Blood cast, including (and unsurprisingly) the Golden Globe-winning lead.

Michael C. Hall (Dexter Morgan)

Reprising his best known role as Dexter Morgan - who now goes by Jim Lindsay on Dexter: New Blood - is Michael C. Hall, who first broke out to Emmy-nominated acclaim as David Fisher on HBO’s Six Feet Under cast before taking center stage on Dexter, which led to big screen roles like the 2009 sci-fi thriller Gamer or the 2013 drama Kill Your Darlings to name a few. He has also voiced a vampiric version of Batman in the DC animated movie Justice League: Gods and Monsters, played a suburban dad looking for his missing daughter in the Netflix miniseries Safe in 2018, and the 2019 Netflix movie In the Shadow of the Moon as a man of the law. Earlier in 2021, Hall starred in the thriller John and the Hole and voices Leonard Swett in an upcoming documentary about the Gettysburg Address.

Clancy Brown (Kurt Caldwell) 

Dexter now resides in the small town of Iron Lake, which is unofficially led by truck stop owner Kurt Caldwell - played by Clancy Brown, who is known for being many things throughout his extensive career from an iconic horror movie actor (most recently in Shudder’s The Mortuary Collection), a leading star of HBO’s Carnivále cast, and even a superhero movies star as the voice Surtur in Thor: Ragnarok, among other comic book roles. In fact, he may be even better known for voice acting, such as in several DC TV shows and Marvel TV shows, but most famously as Mr. Krabs on SpongeBob SquarePants. After Dexter: New Blood, you will see the actor in person in upcoming movies Last Looks and John Wick: Chapter Four, which is now in post-production.

Julia Jones (Angela Bishop) 

As Iron Lake’s first Native American police chief Angela Bishop we have Julia Jones, whose earliest career highlights include the 2010 DC Comics-inspired western Jonah Hex, playing shapeshifter Leah Clearwater in the Twilight movies, and a recurring role on the ER cast in 2008. She more recently had a recurring role on the Westworld cast, played a grieving mother in Wind River in 2017, starred in the 2019 action thriller Cold Pursuit opposite Liam Neeson, and appeared on Episode 4 of The Mandalorian as Omera. Outside of Dexter: New Blood, 2021 saw Jones join Peacock’s Rutherford Falls cast and lend her voice to a series of Disney Channel original shorts called The Ghost and Molly McGee. 

Alano Miller (Logan) 

As Iron Lake police sergeant and assistant high school wrestling coach Logan, we have Alano Miller, who started out making guest appearances on several hit series (including FX’s Damages) before landing a recurring role on the Jane the Virgin cast that led to bigger things, such as an spot on one of the best Atlanta episodes ever as a devious talk show host in 2016. That same year, he landed a role in the historical biopic Loving, played Cato Powell on WGN’s historical series Underground, and a few more period pieces such as AMC’s Halt and Catch Fire and the Amazon Prime original movie Sylvie’s Love in 2020. Season 2 of his romantic OWN original series Cherish the Day (from creator Ava DuVernay) is expected to premiered in 2022.

Johnny Sequoyah (Audrey) 

As Angela Bishop’s arrogant teenage daughter Audrey, we have Johnny Sequoyah, who made her uncredited acting debut at age 11 in the 2013 comedy Ass Backwards before becoming the central focus of the short-lived supernatural NBC drama Believe, which was co-created by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón, in 2014. That same year, she starred in the dramedy film Among Ravens and a drama called Black Eyed Dog before appearing in the 2015 horror film Wind Walkers, the 2016 fantasy movie Albion: The Enchanted Stallion, and the pilot episode of American Housewife on CBS.

Jack Alcott (Harrison Morgan)

Jack Alcott is the fifth actor to play Dexter’s son, Harrison Morgan (who goes by Randall on Dexter: New Blood), which is easily the young actor’s biggest role to date in a career dominated by appearances in short films for years. However, the year 2020 began to bring new changes with his guest spot as a younger version of The Blacklist cast member Diego Klattenhoff and a starring role on the Showtime original western miniseries The Good Lord Bird as creator and star Ethan Hawke’s onscreen son. 

Jennifer Carpenter (Debra Morgan) 

Of course, no one else could play Dexter’s adoptive sister, who appears on Dexter: New Blood from beyond the grave, than Jennifer Carpenter, whose other best known roles come mostly from horror movies such as The Exorcism of Emily Rose (in which she plays the titular possessed teen) and Quarantine (the 2009 English-language remake of [REC]). Debra Morgan is also one of a few characters she has played with a badge, including an FBI agent on CBS’ Limitless series spin-off and on NBC’s short-lived The Enemy Within as a traitorous former CIA operative. In 2021, the Brawl in Cell Block 99 star also appeared alongside Amanda Seyfried in the drama A Mouthful of Air and Carpenter has a new horror movie in the works called She’s Still Here. 

Jamie Chung (Molly) 

Also a bit of a Scream Queen (especially for her role on the Lovecraft Country cast) is Jamie Chung, who plays a recurring character on Dexter: New Blood named Molly, but “Blockbuster Queen” might be more accurate for all the huge Hollywood movies in her 16-year career, such as 2014’s Sin City: A Dame To Kill For and the last two Hangover movies, to name a few. She also played Mulan on the Once Upon a Time cast, appeared on many superhero TV shows like Big Hero 6: The Series (on which she reprises her role from the original film), and recently lent her voice to the animated series Star Wars: Visions on Disney+. Chung also appears on the Apple TV+'s Mr. Corman and is currently working on the mythological animated series Twilight of the Gods and the mystery comedy movie Reunion.

David Magidoff (Teddy Reed) 

In what might be his comparatively darkest role yet (Teddy Reed on Dexter: New Blood) is comedian David Magidoff, who debuted on NBC’s 1950s-set drama American Dreams and made his feature film debut with Sex and Death 101 a year after landing a recurring role among the Veronica Mars cast in 2006. Guest spots in other hit TV shows - such as Fox’s Lethal Weapon reboot and even a few Disney Channel originals like Austin & Ally - followed before 2019 when he landed major roles on Apple TV+’s The Morning Show cast and Top Elf on Nickelodeon. More recently, Magidoff acted opposite the Impeachment: American Crime Story cast in its premiere and you might have also spotted him hosting HQ Trivia.

Michael Cyril Creighton (Fred Jr.) 

A Dexter: New Blood cast member who previously worked with Michael C. Hall in the 2018 comedic caper Game Night is Michael Cyril Creighton - a theatre-trained actor whose theatre-inspired web series Jack in a Box (which he also created and won a Writer’s Guild of America Award for) eventually earned him guest spots on FX’s Louie  and Netflix's Orange is the New Black. He has also appeared in a few Oscar darlings, including the 2016 Best Picture winner Spotlight and the Best Picture nominee The Post in 2017. Creighton also appeared in a much lighter crime series in 2021, namely Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building, and is now working on a series remake of A League of Their Own for Amazon Prime.

John Lithgow (Arthur Mitchell)

Perhaps the most exciting familiar face appearing on Dexter: New Blood is two-Oscar-nominee John Lithgow, who channeled his villainous side (as seen in Cliffhanger or as Lord Farquaad from the Shrek cast) into Emmy-winning performance as the Trinity Killer in Dexter’s fourth (and arguably best) season. The Third Rock from the Sun cast member (who won his sixth Emmy playing Winston Churchill on The Crown) recently revisited his more innocent side when joining HBO’s Perry Mason cast, but has not abandoned the darkness when playing Judd in 2019’s Pet Sematary remake and Roger Ailes in Bombshell that same year. Lithgow has another limited crime series in the works called The Old Man, stars in Martin Scorsese’s upcoming Killers of the Flower Moon, and is filming the drama Sharper and an untitled Mother Cabrini biopic as we speak.

The new blood on the Dexter: New Blood cast looks promising enough to suggest this new season will make a killing. See for yourself when the special limited series event premieres Sunday, November 7, 2021, on Showtime.

It’s been eight years since Dexter’s original eight-season run came to an end on Showtime, as the titular serial killer sailed his boat into a hurricane and came out with a new identity, working as a lumberjack and vowing to control his Dark Passenger. The dramatic thriller's original finale is objectively one of the most reviled in television history, but in a climate where reboots and revivals are more a question of “when” not “if,” Michael C. Hall took the chance to reprise the role of Dexter Morgan in Showtime's limited continuation Dexter: New Blood. But can he possibly leave the character on a higher note?

Dexter: New Blood picks up ten years after the events of the original series. Michael C. Hall's former blood spatter expert has given up the warm beaches of Miami for the snow-covered Iron Lake, New York. Here, he works in a hunting and fishing supply store and is dating the town’s police chief, Angela Bishop (Julia Jones). Events soon trigger the serial killer’s old ways, naturally, as Dexter continues to be haunted by the actions — and people — of his former life. Critics were given the first four episodes of Dexter: New Blood to review, and now that those opinions are going public, let’s take a look at whether or not they think Showtime’s revived limited series is worth checking out.

The new series reunited Michael C. Hall with showrunner Clyde Phillips, who steered Dexter’s first four seasons. While those seasons are largely considered to be the best of the original Showtime series, it did make some question if this revival was simply a chance to redo the series’ ending, and if so, is that reason enough? Rolling Stone gave the series 2 out of 5 stars, saying clearing such a low bar was not worthy of celebration. 

Collider appreciated the distinction between the original and the revived version, but also said Dexter: New Blood felt enough like the original that it “might be the apology that fans are looking for” after the disastrous Season 8 finale. 

While the story itself doesn't seem to be winning anyone over entirely, the cast still won some reviewers over. Variety noted how nice it was to have Michael C. Hall and his on-screen sister (and off-screen ex-wife) Jennifer Carpenter reprising their roles. Carpenter’s Debra — widely considered one of the best characters in the original series — still employs that profanity-laced magic. The review stated:

THR pointed out that Dexter set the stage all those years ago for similar anti-heroes and empathetic serial killers, perhaps most notably the Netflix series You and its killer Joe Goldberg. Joe has been compared to Dexter in his narration style and, specifically in You’s third season, wondering what murderous traits he might have passed on to his son. The review posited that You was “a sexier, sillier, more topical Dexter. It’s a Dexter that has evolved" which didn't suggest much of Dexter: New Blood's own evolution.

Dexter: New Blood’s attempts at social commentary — which the original series did not contain — fell a bit flat in the first four episodes provided to critics, per Vulture. However, the outlet's review did say the revived version is “intriguing” and still worth checking out.

IndieWire gave Dexter: New Blood a middling C+, saying that while there are plenty of red flags and unfortunate tropes, there are enough notes of the original series to attract viewers to this Showtime Original. The reviewer is still wary, though, since viewers also had optimistic attitudes going into Dexter’s later seasons, and wonders if they should have just left it alone after it took fans so long to get over the ending the first time around.

While everyone's mileage will vary for a show like this, with finale apologists no doubt ready to lean in harder than anyone, it sounds like Dexter: New Blood isn't completely absent of what made the original series enjoyable. Albeit it also sounds like the newest season still pales in comparison to the earliest years. But everyone will be able to give their own assesments soon enough. 

If what you need to get over that 2013 Dexter finale is more of Dexter Morgan, you’ll finally be able to get your closure as Dexter: New Blood premieres at 9 p.m. ET Sunday, November 7, on Showtime. Keep up with other premieres through the end of the year with our 2021 TV Schedule.

The word “hero” gets tossed around a lot to describe various kinds of characters in all media, but there are some whose merit for being “heroic” is debatable, such as Michael C. Hall’s titular serial killer on Dexter. The Miami blood spatter analyst is a self-described monster with uncontrollable, homicidal tendencies that he channels into bringing even worse people to justice, making it easy to root for him, but harder to imagine him as a superhero. 

Well, for that reason (and in honor of his upcoming return in Dexter: New Blood in November), I decided to put myself up to the challenge of figuring out what comic book characters Hall would be the right person to play in the Marvel movies, starting with one whom I believe has a couple things in common with the Emmy-winning actor’s flagship role. 

Sentry

When considering what superhero I would choose for Michael C. Hall to play in the Marvel movies, I, honestly, could not help but think of Dexter Morgan as inspiration, because everyone’s favorite serial killer is the first person to come to mind when I think of the actor. Therefore, I wanted to find a character who is likable and very skilled at what he does, but also burdened by an addictive personality and a tendency to break the rules (with deadly consequences) every once in a while. I pretty much found exactly that in Sentry. 

At first, Robert Reynolds was a nobody meth addict, until he broke into a science lab and ingested a special serum that imbued him with the power of a million exploding suns. Now harnessing just about every ability you could imagine, Sentry is one of the most powerful people to join the Avengers, which could be the reason why he has not yet been introduced into the Marvel Cinematic Universe - if not for how dangerous he can be. Well, I would hope that is not the case, because the character’s moral ambiguity is exactly what I believe makes him worthy of a big screen debut and, especially, with an actor like Michael C. Hall in the role.

Calvin Zabo

Speaking of moral ambiguity, an iconic story often cited in reference to internal conflict is Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. This very story, written by Robert Louis Stevenson in 1886, inspired a Marvel Comics character named Calvin Zabo to prove that the experiment which transforms the titular scientist into his darker self was possible. As it turns out, the man succeeded and transformed himself into a brutish monster whom he would appropriately dub “Mister Hyde.”  He would use this “Hulk-like” alter ego to become a powerful professional criminal.

After eight (soon to be nine) seasons of playing a man living a double life to much acclaim on Dexter, Michael C. Hall has almost perfected the art of portraying dual personalities. Of course, the essential difference between Dexter and Calvin Zabo is that Zabo literally created his own “dark passenger” and, in part, as a way to become a purer physical representation of his own sinister personality, which would be something of a new challenge for Hall. Also, my earlier comparison to Hulk was no accident, because I think this character would work very well on the She-Hulk TV show coming to Disney+.

Doctor Doom

On the other hand, if we make Michael C. Hall a baddie (like he was in Gamer , for instance), it would make sense to cast him as someone more notorious and with an especially large body count. Few supervillains in the Marvel Comics universe more deserving of their title than the very powerful and even more power-hungry Victor von Doom - otherwise known as Doctor Doom. Luckily, the Latverian tyrant’s MCU induct is not so far away with Marvel Studios’ Fantastic Four reboot currently in the works.

That being said, while Doom is commonly thought of as the archenemy of the Fantastic Four, he has made enemies with pretty much everybody in the Marvel Universe (or even the Marvel Multiverse, I could say). In fact, even with great candidates like Galactus, I think that he should succeed Thanos as the franchise’s next “big bad,” which would certainly satisfy the most devoted comic book fans. Give the role to Michael C. Hall and we may have one of the most exciting Marvel movie villains yet.

Baron Blood 

If and when Michael C. Hall joins the MCU, it will not actually be his superhero movies debut. In 2015, he starred in one of more interesting DC animated movies, Justice League: Gods and Monsters - an Elseworlds story in which Superman (Benjamin Bratt) is the son of Zod, Wonder Woman (Tamara Taylor) is the queen of the underworld, and Batman (Hall) is an actual vampire who, similar to Dexter Morgan, uses his abilities for good. Unless he ever had the chance to revisit this role in a live-action remake of the film, Marvel has a character that would allow him to play a vampire again.

The Marvel Universe is actually crawling with bloodsuckers, and one of the more fascinating is a Victorian-era nobleman named John Falsworth, who would begin to call himself Baron Blood after succumbing to a bite from Count Dracula himself. Unlike Michael C. Hall’s version of Batman, Blood would use his abilities for evil, eventually becoming an ally to the Germans during World War II. Well, if that does not sound like great motivation for Mahershala Ali’s Blade to hunt him down in the upcoming reboot, I do not know what does.

Banshee

You know what? Maybe we should dial back on suggesting so many villains for Michael C. Hall, who I imagine would be more than happy to play someone who is not so driven by darkness. I figured a good, more heroic match for the actor from would be Sean Cassidy, who is otherwise known as Banshee for his piercing sonic scream among other abilities. 

Why would I choose Michael C. Hall to play this Irish-born mutant? Well, for one, l believe that Marvel Studios' forthcoming X-Men movies reboot should take the opportunity to improve on Banshee's ill-fated depiction in 2011's X-Men: First Class (with all due respect to Caleb Landry Jones). Secondly, he is one of a few Marvel heroes who, like Hall, is often noted for his red hair.

With how well the guy has shown that he can play darkness while leading the Dexter cast (and elsewhere), can you really blame me for choosing mostly dark Marvel characters for Michael C. Hall to play? Maybe, a role in the DC movies would be more his style.

As nostalgia continues to be a powerful force in the entertainment world, no franchise is truly dead. Still, Dexter fans were shocked that the Michael C. Hall series would be returning to the network, seemingly retconning the controversial finale in the process. Dexter: New Blood just got its first trailer, featuring the return of Jennifer Carpenter's beloved character Deb. And now I have so many questions.

As you can see in the above trailer, fans have finally been treated to footage for Dexter: New Blood. The series is moving from the beach to the woods, as Michael C. Hall's title character is living on the lamb following his time as the Bay Harbor Butcher. And while a new cast of characters will be introduced, fans will be thrilled to see Debra Morgan back, and seemingly serving as the new guide to her brother's Dark Passenger.

This trailer for Dexter: New Blood spends a great deal of time setting up the title character's new identity as James Lindsay. Tension builds as he's pulled over by a cop, but it's clear that his new love interest. Because even when Dex is starting over, he can't help but stay close to the action of police work. Does this mean he's been killing, or trying to keep his Dark Passenger in check as James?

Speaking of which, it seems that Jennifer Carpenter's Deb is taking over as the voice inside of Dexter's head for New Blood. In the show's original run on Showtime, this was a role played by James Remar's Harry Morgan. Fans have been wondering how Deb would factor into the story, and this is a solid way of bringing her back. One of the shots of Deb seem to show the character doing some investigating of her own, leading to more questions about the revival. Will we also be getting flashbacks, or will ghost Deb have more agency than Harry? Only time will tell.

Obviously the biggest questions about Dexter: New Blood is exactly how this series will address the controversial series finale from 2013. Fans took umbrage with Deb's fate, as well as the final sequence of Dexter as a woodcutter. The new series has the opportunity to fix this issue, but the pressure is certainly on.

There's a strong cast joining Michael C. Hall and Jennifer Carpenter in Dexter: New Blood. Twilight and Westworld actress Julia Jones is playing Dexter's love interest Angela, and the trailer also revealed a glimpse at actress Jamie Chung. It was previously revealed that John Lithgow would somehow be returning as the fan favorite villain Arthur Mitchell, although it's unclear exactly how this will play out.

Dexter: New Blood will premiere on Showtime November 7th. In the meantime, check out the fall premiere list to plan your next binge watch.

Of all the big TV revivals that are coming down the pop culture pipeline, I'm not sure if anything shares the exact same anticipation frequency as Showtime's new season of Dexter, in which Michael C. Hall's killer-of-killers will get one last hurrah to follow-up on the much maligned Season 8 finale. Nearly eight years after that finale aired, the show's star and its creative team are well aware of what the fan discourse has been for that season on the whole. And Hall thinks there's a pretty specific reason that the character's prior swan song put fans off.

Dexter's panel for Comic-Con@Home featured Michael C. Hall, showrunner Clyde Phillips, executive producer Scott Reynolds, EP and director Marcos Siega and new star Julia Jones, and there were lots of teases and details to enjoy regarding the upcoming season. After the group discussed the genius of using Dexter's silent smile for the revival's first teaser, Hall reflected on silence being a big factor in why fans were left so dissatisfied by Dexter's final flash-forward. In his words:

It's certainly hard to argue with such an assessment, and not only because it's coming from the dude who lived in the character's headspace for nearly a decade. Before viewers even see Michael C. Hall's fully lit face, his narration kicks in, putting everybody right there in the (dark) passenger seat for his journey. So for a show that so fully adhered to the idea of cycles being repeated, it only makes sense for the series to have ended in a way in which it began, with Dexter's disembodied voice cluing us in on where his mind was at in that new setting, or some other insightful nugget to cling to in lieu of more episodes.

I guess if it was abundantly clear that the lack of narration was fundamentally important to Dexter's evolved nature having moved away from the terrors he caused and suffered in Miami, then it would have been less confusing. But it wasn't that first thing. So there you go. But while we're here, let's go over some of the worst final lines that Dexter could have given its main character to close out the series.

Speaking of Deb, or not, fans will very likely be seeing actress Jennifer Carpenter again as Debra in the new season, along with John Lithgow's Trinity Killer, though presumably through flashback or hallucination, as opposed to mystical resurrections. And while she doesn't appear in the new trailer released along with the panel, you can check it out below to hear some of that sweet, classic Dexter Morgan narration.

Fans can catch Dexter up to his new/old tricks when the new/not-old season premieres on Showtime on Sunday, November 7, at 9:00 p.m. ET, hitting right in the middle of the 2021 Fall TV season.

Most TV comebacks attempt to capitalize on everything that made shows memorable to begin with, from the setting to the tone to the characters. Going against that small-screen grain is the Dexter revival, whose return to fans' lives on Showtime will be radically different from the series' initial run. Though Michael C. Hall's killer-of-killers Dexter Morgan will obviously be fronting things, former co-star James Remar threw doubt on the idea of other returning cast members, saying Showtime opted not to bring anyone else back for the New York-set season. But it sounds like new star Jamie Chung has now indirectly refuted that claim.

After serving as an excellent and extremely disturbing standout in HBO's Lovecraft Country, Jamie Chung is keeping things dark and dirty with the Dexter revival, where she will play a famous true-crime podcaster and L.A. resident named Molly. Speaking with People, Chung said the new episodes are definitely a departure from the sun-soaked thrills of the first eight seasons, but then seemingly teased that not everything around Michael C. Hall will be a brand new element. In her words:

It's clearly Jamie Chung's last sentiment that has us scratching our collective heads. At this point, the only people that are confirmed to be returning from Dexter's initial run for the revival season are its aforementioned star Michael C. Hall and its original showrunner Clyde Phillips, while all of the announced cast members other than Hall are new to the series. And considering Phillips isn't enough of a household name for his face to be instantly familiar to fans, I am extremely curious to learn what whose faces Chung was talking about.

Because by all means, as disappointing as it was to hear James Remar's claim that the majority of the original cast was left by the wayside for Dexter's new episodes, it still made a certain amount of sense. If Dexter is living his life in hiding more than 1,200 miles north of Miami, without having alerted any of his family or colleagues about his current whereabouts, then it wouldn't exactly make perfect sense for every single former co-star to suddenly be in and around that same New York area. So while the creative team could certainly find ways to explain and justify the reappearances of Julia Stiles Lumen, Jennifer Carpenter's Deb, David Zayas' Batista and others, it might be a stretch if it happened even once.

Honestly, while I usually like diving into unfounded and bordering-on-ridiculous speculation in cases like this, I'm a bit unsure how to take Jamie Chung's claims. Maybe Dexter keeps a big cork board in his apartment/cabin/renovated school bus and has pictures of all the show's main characters tacked to it, with those being the "familiar" faces. Or maybe he went back and killed everyone and is keeping all their heads in jars. I'm not gonna die on that particular hill, but I'll certainly roll around it for a bit while waiting to hear more info about the new season.

Jamie Chung and Michael C. Hall will be joined in Dexter's revival by Clancy Brown as the charming new big bad, as well as Michael Cyril Creighton, Oscar Wahlberg, Julia Jones, Jack Alcott and Johnny Sequoyah. As the episodes are currently filming in secret, Showtime has not yet revealed a release window for the new season, but there are more than enough big 2021 Summer TV shows coming soon that will make the wait more tolerable.

With all the TV revivals that have happened in recent years, it's definitely not a novelty anymore to hear about a former fan-favorite series being called back into action, but it's still quite exciting for those fans. Michael C. Hall's Dexter, for a big bloody example, is finally giving audiences the do-over that everyone has been asking for since that polarizing Season 8 finale aired in 2013. And while there has been much jubilation amongst those awaiting the killer-of-killers' revival season (which recently dropped a first-look teaser), former star James Remar has seemingly confirmed that not only will Harry Morgan be absent in the new season, but so will all the other original cast members

This update from James Remar is almost as disturbing as anything that ever happened on Dexter, including that entire eighth season's existence. And while it could obviously end up being less than 100% accurate by the time the show actually arrives on Showtime, he certainly sounds confident in his knowledge in a video to a fan. In Remar's words:

So again, that means no Harry Morgan issues for Dexter. It means no further resolution between Dexter and Jennifer Carpenter's Debra Morgan. No silky-smooth romancing from David Zayas' Angel Batista. No anti-silky-smooth romancing from C.S. Lee's Vince Masuka. And so on, and so on. While I wouldn't have necessarily expected to see any emotionally wrought flashbacks with Julie Benz's long dead Rita, or another posthumous appearance from Erik King's Doakes, I definitely expected SOMEONE to make an appearance of some kind. But now I'm just stressed in that super-compacted way that scripted TV news can be stressful.

I'm not going to pretend like there aren't potentially sound and sensible reasons why Dexter's creator James Manos Jr. and Showtime's execs would choose not to bring back any of the original cast members beyond Michael C. Hall as the former blood spatter expert. It's possible part of the planning for this ninth season involved a smaller budget, which meant it wouldn't have been financially viable to have multiple returning stars and still pull off top-notch episodes with new stars like Clancy Brown. Alternately, the obviously necessary shift in locales from Miami to Iron Lake, a fictional town in Upstate New York, doesn't allow for the easiest explanations for why everyone Dexter knew in Florida would suddenly travel up the coast to confront him in some way. Granted, James Remar wouldn't have had that issue as Harry, but still.

As James Remar sees it, the onus for keeping the original cast out of the loop is not on the original stars themselves, as he implied it wouldn't have been hard to get others involved, saying:

This update isn't enough to make me give up on ever watching the show, of course, because I truly cannot wait to see if Dexter can partially redeem itself by returning to its delectably evil roots. But I'd definitely argue that the cast was the main reason Dexter kept a fingernail on the rails going into the previous finale, so the alleged fact that none of them will be returning for the revival makes me a Doubtful Passenger.

While Dexter's new season won't be part of the upcoming 2021 Summer TV season, everyone can expect to see Michael C. Hall reprising one of his best roles on Showtime at some point in the hopefully not-too-distant future. And they gotta bring Debra back in the meantime, right?

It's been nearly 8 years since Michael C. Hall's Dexter wrapped up its partially acclaimed eight-season run, with that awkward final season and awful series finale going a long way to make fans forget how good those early seasons were. But Showtime is trying to make lightning strike twice in the same plastic-covered place with the upcoming limited series revival, which will hopefully bring the vigilante serial killer back to his glory days. If the teaser is anything to go by, the new episodes gave its star something to smile about.

Isn't it awesome to see Michael C. Hall's grinning face again? Well, I mean, the actor has obviously been in other roles where he smiled since Dexter ended, not to mention interviews and things. But I obviously mean in direct relation to Hall being back in the role of Dexter Morgan. He obviously won't be back in the Miami sun when he returns, but it looks like he shaved that scruffy beard that he was strangely rocking when the series' first run ended, so let's all give thanks for that, since it makes it that much easier to see that killer smile. Unlike that mess below.

As awesome as it is to see Dexter again in a new context, it is unfortunate that these early Dexter teasers are so short and sweet and not very helpful about trying to discern plot points and clues. Thankfully, we do already know a little about what returning showrunner Clyde Phillips and his creative team will be bringing to the table. We know that the new episodes will take place in a town called Iron Lake, which will present Dexter with a new set of challenges in the form of a beloved local.

Iron Lake's unofficial mayor Kurt Caldwell will serve as the season's main antagonist. The owner of a local truck stop and a variety of the big rigs that use said truck stop, Kurt will be portrayed by the great Clancy Brown, of Shawshank Redemption and SpongeBob SquarePants fame, which makes it easy to understand why he's such a people-person, even if he's likely hiding some dark secrets. Plus, people have a way of getting hurt whenever they get in Kurt's way. So Dexter should take care not to do such things, even though he definitely will.

While we obviously know a bit about Clancy Brown's character, and we know that The Morning Show's David Magidoff will be on board as a new cop in Iron Lake whose timidness gives way to pure badassery when the situation calls for it. So his first run-in with Dexter should be quite interesting. Other cast members for the new season include Julia Jones, Alano Miller, Johnny Sequoyah and Jack Alcott.

While it doesn't have a release date locked down just yet, Dexter will air its revival season on Showtime at some point this fall. Here's hoping it ties into the Halloween season with ease.

CinemaBlend participates in affiliate programs with various companies. We may earn a commission when you click on or make purchases via links.

It was not until I started watching Dexter that I ever believed I would find myself empathizing with and even, in terms of personality, actually admiring a serial killer. The achievement of this seemingly impossible task has a lot to do with the hit drama’s unusually perfect balance of criminally morbid subject matter and relatable, character-driven humor, but also, especially, for the likability of its star. If you agree, there are plenty of other Michael C. Hall movies and TV shows on streaming that you should be checking out.

The 50-year-old North Carolina native has led a relatively versatile career, successfully avoiding being typecast as other homicidal characters, with his performance while leading the Dexter cast (for which he won a Golden Globe) likely being a big factor in that. One could infer that the actor has borrowed a lot from the character of Dexter Morgan (his secret dark side, his family man persona, etc.) to inform how he has portrayed many of his other well-known roles on the big and small screen. Get to know the many other sides of Michael C. Hall through streaming these movies and TV shows, but, first, reacquaint yourself with the side you already know best.

Dexter (Amazon Prime, Showtime)

Following the guidance of his late cop father's code, a police blood spatter expert (Michael C. Hall), with an adoptive sister on the force (Jennifer Carpenter), channels his homicidal tendencies into ridding Miami of its most notorious criminals while struggling to maintain a squeaky clean record and a seemingly normal life.

Why it’s worth checking out if you like Michael C. Hall: Chances are that, if you consider yourself a fan of Michael C. Hall, you have already seen creator James Manos Jr.'s hit adaptation of Jeff Lindsay's book series, but a rewatch (yes, the controversial series finale included) before the premiere of Showtime's upcoming Dexter revival might be a good idea.

Stream Dexter on Amazon Prime or on Showtime.

Six Feet Under (HBO Max)

A widow (Frances Conroy) and her three adult children (Peter Krause, Michael C. Hall, and Lauren Ambrose) try to look on the bright side while working together to run the family business: an independent funeral home in Los Angeles.

Why it’s worth checking out if you like Michael C. Hall: Before Michael C. Hall played the cause of many deaths on Showtime's dark comedy, he broke out on HBO as the one putting the dead in the ground with the Six Feet Under cast as middle child David Fisher, whose struggles to come out of the closet in Season 1 are the main reason for his strained relationship with his family.

Stream Six Feet Under on HBO Max.

Christine (Netflix, Hulu, Tubi, Vudu)

An ambitious television reporter's attempts to further her career are put at odds with the pressures of the media industry and an increasing struggle with her mental health, which reaches a grave peak.

Why it’s worth checking out if you like Michael C. Hall: Michael C. Hall plays the co-anchor and possible love interest to Rebecca Hall's titular character in 2016's Christine, one of best movies on Netflix, which tells the shocking true story of TV reporter Christine Chubbuck who took her own life live on air in 1974.

Stream Christine on Netflix, on Hulu, on Tubi, or on Vudu.

Kill Your Darlings (Amazon Prime)

A group of young scholars destined to be influential figures in poetry (including Daniel Radcliffe as Allen Ginsberg and Dane DeHaan as Lucien Carr) become acquainted with one another at Columbia University, where the brutal murder of an English professor changes their lives forever.

Why it’s worth checking out if you like Michael C. Hall: This time playing a real-life victim of fatal transgressions is Michael C. Hall in 2013's Kill Your Darlings - a fictionalized account of events surrounding the death of David Kammerer, which rocked the Beat Poetry Generation in the 1940s, and is one of the best movies on Amazon Prime at the moment.

Stream Kill Your Darlings on Amazon Prime.

Documentary Now! (Netflix)

Academy Award-winner Helen Mirren hosts this showcase of non-fiction features profiling a vast variety of topics throughout the decades which are actually parodies of some of the most famous and influential documentaries of all time.

Why it’s worth checking out if you like Michael C. Hall: On Season 3 of Documentary Now! (the hilarious, Emmy-nominated mockumentary anthology series from creators Bill Hader, Fred Armisen, and Seth Meyers), Michael C. Hall plays a bowling tournament champion competing against SNL veteran Bobby Moynihan and I Think You Should Leave star Tim Robinson in a sport doc parody episode called "Any Given Sunday Afternoon."

Stream Documentary Now! on Netflix.

Star Vs. The Forces Of Evil (Disney+)

A teenage princess from an alternate reality (The Middle's Eden Sher) lands on Earth, where she stays with a Mexican-American family while enduring the struggles of high school and protecting her new home from malevolent inter-dimensional phenomena.

Why it’s worth checking out if you like Michael C. Hall: In addition to his more comedic efforts, Michael C. Hall has also done a few things for the kids, such as the Disney XD animated series Star vs. the Forces of Evil, on which he plays an evil immortal lizard (go figure) named Toffee.

Stream Star vs. the Forces of Evil on Disney+.

Justice League: Gods And Monsters (HBO Max)

In a world in which Superman is the son of General Zod, Batman is a doctor trying to cure his vampire physiology, and Wonder Woman is the queen of a dark underworld, the trio of anti-heroes try to use their powers for good despite protests from the people they aim to protect.

Why it’s worth checking out if you like Michael C. Hall: In addition to his more kid-friendly voice acting efforts, Michael C. Hall has also starred in an animated film targeted more toward adults - namely Justice League: Gods and Monsters, an Elseworlds story from the DC Animated Movies Universe in which he plays the vampiric version of the Dark Knight.

Stream Justice League: Gods and Monsters on HBO Max.

Paycheck (Hulu, Amazon Prime)

A reverse engineer (Ben Affleck) who specializes in classified technology with the agreement to have his memory of the assignment erased must figure out why the authorities are chasing him after completing a three-year job for a shady company - none of which he can remember.

Why it’s worth checking out if you like Michael C. Hall: Twelve years before he got to play an alternate version of Batman in 2015, Michael C. Hall got to star opposite the DCEU's Batman in Paycheck, a Phillip K. Dick-inspired thriller from Face/Off director John Woo as one of two FBI Agents (the other being another Zack Snyder's Justice League star, Joe Morton) trailing Affleck's character for reasons he does not understand.

Stream Paycheck on Hulu or on Amazon Prime.

Gamer (Max Go)

A death row inmate (Gerard Butler) is forced to compete in a dangerous game of survival against other violent convicts with the same sentence for the chance to win his freedom - the catch being that he, like the others, is being controlled by a teenage video game prodigy (Logan Lerman) as if he were a virtual reality simulation.

Why it’s worth checking out if you like Michael C. Hall: In Gamer, a futuristic tech thriller with themes of psychological manipulation released in 2009, Michael C. Hall plays Ken Calte - the rich, powerful, and extremely corrupt creator of Slayers, the game that will determine the fate of Gerard Butler's character, Kable, if 17-year-old Simon cannot successful guide him to safety.

Stream Gamer on Max Go.

In The Shadow Of The Moon (Netflix)

A Philadelphia cop (The Predator star Boyd Holbrook) ruins his life obsessing over the inexplicable return of a notorious serial killer (Cleopatra Coleman) years after his bullet put a stop her crimes.

Why it’s worth checking out if you like Michael C. Hall: The 2019 Netflix original sci-fi thriller In the Shadow of the Moon has a unique, socially relevant angle to ground it to reality, and also stars Michael C. Hall as brother-in-law of Holbrook's character and a fellow police detective.

Stream In the Shadow of the Moon on Netflix.

The Report (Amazon Prime)

A senate staffer (Adam Driver) is assigned to investigate an interrogation program developed after the events of 9/11, the shocking secrets he uncovers put him at odds with the CIA.

Why it’s worth checking out if you like Michael C. Hall: Based on the true story of Daniel Jones' findings about controversial torture methods, The Report is a gripping Amazon Prime original political drama featuring Michael C. Hall as real-life CIA lawyer Thomas Eastman, who fights to redact as much from Jones' revealing report as possible.

Stream The Report on Amazon Prime.

Safe (Netflix)

Years after the death of his wife, the teenage daughter of a surgeon (Michael C. Hall) suddenly goes missing, inspiring him to conduct his own investigation which brings secrets of his closest friends and family to light.

Why it’s worth checking out if you like Michael C. Hall: From the mind of acclaimed author Harlan Coben, the eight-episode Netflix original miniseries thriller, Safe, stars Michael C. Hall as a widowed family man with medical expertise who goes to extreme lengths to take justice into his own hands.

Stream Safe on Netflix.

Remember that Michael C. Hall will return to Showtime for Dexter's limited series revival in 2021. And, that is a repeat I and other fans will welcome with open arms.

When Dexter concluded on Showtime, it didn't end on the best terms. The series finale is often derided as an embarrassment to the show's legacy, failing to match one iota of its original potential. If it's not the worst way to end the series, it certainly felt like it. Alas, while disgruntled fans have been stewing with their resentment of Dexter's final hour for years, the creatives were listening. And they've decided it's time to try it again.

That's right; the serial killer drama isn't dead after all! Rather, the titular character will return for an upcoming limited series return that'll (hopefully) provide a more proper, honorable conclusion than what we got. Maybe the second time will be the charm.

While details are currently limited, we do know some key bits of information about this Dexter revival, which is set to star Michael C. Hall once more in the role that made him famous (apologies to Six Feet Under fans). Here's what we know about Dexter's revival.

The Revival Will Be A 10-Part Limited Series

Dexter is back, but don't expect him to stay for long. The Showtime series is returning only in a limited fashion, as the press release notes that this revival will be a 10-part limited series. When describing the project to ET, Michael C. Hall noted that this new season will serve as a "10-hour movie" that'll try to serve as a more fitting farewell than the previous series finale. While Dexter fans will get a chance to spend some more time with the serial killer, it'll only last a little while. He'll be gone again before you know it.

Michael C. Hall Is The Only Original Cast Member Announced To Return (So Far)

It's hard to have Dexter without Dexter. There wouldn't be much of a show without our titular serial killer, memorably played by Michael C. Hall. Sure enough, the Emmy-nominated actor will reprise his most famous character in this mysterious new revival. While Hall initially showcased reluctance to come back, the showrunners must have convinced him that it was worth his while, because he sounds enthusiastic to return.

Thus far, Michael C. Hall is the only original cast member confirmed for this revival, which makes sense based on how Dexter (originally) concluded. That said, the possibility of a few other characters coming back into the fold isn't out-of-the-question. But we (probably) won't learn about any cameos until after this revival's fall premiere.

Clancy Brown Plays The Main Antagonist In This Dexter Revival

You might know him from The Shawshank Redemption, Highlander, Starship Troopers, Thor: Ragnarok, or, most recently, Promising Young Woman. You may know him as the voice of Lux Luthor in Superman: The Animated Series, Doctor Neo Cortex in the Crash Bandicoot franchise, or Mr. Krabs in SpongeBob SquarePants. No matter how you know the veteran character actor, you've seen — or heard — his work over the years, and it's a credit to his immensely versatile and distinguished talents that he's capable of playing so many different personalities throughout his expansive career. Now, Clancy Brown has landed one of his most high-profile parts yet. He's set to play the main antagonist in Dexter's revival.

Certainly, while he can also be soft and mild-mannered, Clancy Brown is best known for his looming, imposing presence as an actor, capable of bringing intense menace with even one long stare. He's an excellent pick to play Dexter's adversary, and it'll certainly be another great performance.

The Dexter Revival Will Take Place Close To A Decade Later, Following The Events Of The 2013 Series Finale

It has been a little while since Dexter was on television. The show wrapped up in 2013, nearly eight years ago, and it saw our titular character on his own, miles away from where we once saw him, living a much quieter life than he once led. The finale was a whimper, but now that some time has passed, the showrunners can reflect on what went wrong and make a revival season that's more appropriate for the show's legacy.

But Dexter's finale is still what it is. There's no going back on it. Rather than follow the events shortly thereafter, according to Michael C. Hall, this revival will take place several years after this previous conclusion, with the lead character almost a decade older, mastering a different trade, and filled with brand new life (and death) experiences that we'll discover soon enough.

Michael C. Hall Hopes This Revival Will Right Some Wrongs

When Dexter aired its final hour, the reactions weren't kind, to say the least. Following a stellar early run, the Showtime series started to lose its way in its later seasons, resulting in a series finale that was largely panned by critics and fans alike. In fact, for many TV lovers, the ending is called the absolute worst series finale in television history, which is an awfully bold statement. While this revival might not reach the same heights as the first four seasons, it's hard to imagine it being much worse than the finale we already got, and Michael C. Hall is hoping the revival will fix the finale's faults.

During an interview with ET, Michael C. Hall admitted that he understood why Dexter's series finale wasn't well-received, and the actor claims that the revival's genesis was inspired — at least in part — by this underwhelming conclusion.

Hopefully the revival will give the writers a chance to redo the faulty finale and provide a finish that's more befitting, but we'll have to wait and see.

Original Dexter Showrunner Clyde Phillips Is Also Returning

For many fans, Dexter's fourth season is considered its high point. It had the best dramatic stakes, the most shocking surprises, and the best villain with John Lithgow's Emmy-winning guest star role. But in order to spend more time with his family, showrunner Clyde Phillips left the series, and it wasn't long after his departure that Dexter started to lose its way. The later seasons are often considered inferior to what came before, to say the least, and the last two seasons, in particular, are among the weakest in the series' run. Suffice to say, Dexter didn't end on a high note. But if you groaned at the prospect of a revival, you'll be encouraged to know that Clyde Phillips will return once more to oversee the story.

Now, just because Clyde Phillips is back doesn't automatically guarantee that Dexter's revival will be great. But it's a promising start, certainly, and it suggests that this reboot might return the once-acclaimed series to its original high standards.

Julia Jones, Alano Miller, Johnny Sequoyah, David Magidoff, And Jack Alcott Fill Out The Supporting Cast

In addition to Michael C. Hall and Clancy Brown lending their established talents, this Dexter revival will feature a number of familiar or fresh-faced supporting stars, including Julia Jones (The Mandolorian), Alano Miller (Sylvie's Love), Johnny Sequoyah (Believe), David Magidoff (The Morning Show), and Jack Alcott (The Good Lord Bird). Expect some more names to be announced in the weeks ahead as production gears up.

Dexter Is Expected To Start Shooting In February And Premiere This Fall

Dexter's return is nigh. According to Michael C. Hall, the revival will start shooting in February. Filming will continue for a few months after that, but since it's only ten episodes, the production won't last as long as a normal season. With that in mind, the goal is to premiere this revival in the fall, maybe around October. It's a very quick turnaround, especially in COVID times, but nothing is official yet. That's the plan, though.

Dexter's Plot Is Vague But It’s Considered A ‘Worthy’ Return To The Character, According To Showtime’s Gary Lavine

It's easy to be apprehensive about the return of a popular show. Even though Dexter didn't end flawlessly, there's still the danger of exploiting any goodwill left in the brand and denigrating the integrity of the program's earlier seasons. But despite any reservations that fans might have about this television return, Showtime's Gary Lavine is certainly optimistic about this revival, believing that it will be a "worthy" return to the serial killer character.

Here's what he said in a press statement:

Are you excited to see Dexter's return? Let us know in the comments!

Dexter is headed back to television, and it's the hope of Michael C. Hall (and likely many of the killer drama's former viewers) that the limited TV return will rectify the panned finale that originally capped things off. With that goal in mind, the project is already off to a great start, as news broke that esteemed actor Clancy Brown will join the revival in a way that places him on the opposite end of the spectrum from Dexter Morgan.

A veteran of the MCU through both film and TV, Clancy Brown has joined Dexter to play the character of Kurt Caldwell, a man described as the "unofficial mayor" of the town of Iron Lake. TVLine reports the character can be described as a "true man of the people" who gained his reputation as a big-rig driver – a trait that runs in his family – and as the owner of a local truck stop. Friends of Kurt couldn't have a more loyal and willing ally, but anyone that crosses him or hurts someone he loves would be smart to get the hell out of Dodge. Or Iron Lake, in this case.

Based on the little bit of information that's been revealed, it's hard to say just where Clancy Brown's character falls in relation to Dexter's past villains. It's unclear whether he'll get Dexter's attention because he's an actual criminal/murderer causing harm to others, or if he's a more of a prominent figure who starts to become a little too interested in Dexter's life in seclusion. We've seen Michael C. Hall's bloodthirsty anti-hero have to take action against both of those types of character, so we'll have to wait and see how things play out there.

One thing we do know is that Clancy Brown has had many notable roles as a villain in his career, and he'll definitely be a formidable opponent for Dexter Morgan. Brown is known for portraying Kurgan in the movie Highlander, as well as The Shawshank Redemption's Captain Hadley. He's no stranger to playing the villain roles with subtly, while also being capable of becoming a malicious demon in HBO's Carnivale. He's also quite well known for voicing one of the greatest villains of all time, Lex Luthor, in a number of animated projects. Regardless of how his character Kurt Caldwell is written, I have the utmost confidence that Brown is the right choice for Dexter's limited series.

Clancy Brown's casting feels like another positive indicator that this new Dexter story will rectify the low note the series went out on with its finale. For those who blocked the memory out, Dexter Morgan ended up faking his death in Miami, and the series closed with the reveal that he was rocking a lumberjack beard and living in a remote part of Oregon. That might have sounded like a good plan on paper – within the narrative, not the finale in general – but perhaps Dexter didn't account for the nosiness of those living in a small town whenever strangers randomly shack up in their community. To his credit, Dexter may have been able to keep locals off any scent of his past for quite a few years, as the limited TV series is said to pick up in the present.

The Dexter limited TV series is in development. Continue to stick with CinemaBlend for more on its progress and the latest news in television and movies.

Showtime's Dexter is proof that a show can be phenomenal 90% of the way through, but a disappointing finale can impact its legacy. It happened to Game of Thrones, it happened to How I Met Your Mother, and it definitely happened to Showtime's acclaimed serial killer drama. Many Dexter fans were disappointed with how the series ended, and Michael C. Hall wants to fix that.

The actor recently spoke about Dexter's upcoming revival, a limited TV series that has long been discussed. Despite ideas floating around ever since the finale in 2013, the idea for a comeback was only greenlit in late 2020. Star Michael C. Hall talked with The Daily Beast about why the trigger was finally pulled on this long-awaited revival, and why it's happening in general.

One reason for the Dexter revival finally happening is the quality of the story that Michael C. Hall and others think will be told, and another is the actor's curiosity in what Dexter Morgan is up to all these years later. Dexter ended with Dexter Morgan faking his own death and moving to Oregon. The series left many loose ends for the character, such as what became of his son Harrison and his lover Hannah in Argentina.

The Dexter finale was panned by audiences who were dissatisfied with Dexter Morgan just taking up a new identity elsewhere. Michael C. Hall shared his thoughts on the finale and what he thought of the negative criticism the show has received over the years.

With the upcoming limited TV series, the Dexter crew will have a chance to give its fans a more satisfying finale, or maybe even a great end to Dexter Morgan's story. It certainly seems like Michael C. Hall and others were in no rush to bring the character back without the right idea considering how long they've waited, but we'll only know for sure if it was worth the wait when it releases.

The Dexter limited TV series is in the works, so be sure to keep an eye out for updates on its development. Also, continue to stick with CinemaBlend for all the latest happening in television and movies.

Judging by social media reaction, reviews and conversations I’ve personally had with other Dexter fans, there are a lot of viewers who did not appreciate where the show ended Season 8 when it went off the air back in 2013. Fortunately, all involved now have another chance after Showtime ordered a limited 10 episode revival, and original showrunner Clyde Phillips is openly acknowledging that it’s a chance to basically write a second finale.

The executive producer stopped by Hollywood Reporter’s TV’s Top 5 podcast earlier this week to discuss the recently announced revival, and during the conversation, he talked pretty openly about what limited series will be, what it won’t be and what fans should expect. Here’s a portion of his quote…

For those of you who don’t remember or intentionally blocked the finale out of your memory, Season 8 ended with Deb being yanked off life support, Hannah escaping with Harrison and Dexter first driving his boat into the middle of a hurricane and then later appearing as a lumberjack in Oregon, seemingly having started a new life after disappearing. It was a shock to the system for a lot of fans who I think wanted to end things a bit tidier. I was a bit more middling than others on what happened, but it’s important to point out that nothing in the limited revival is going to chance or cancel out what we saw before.

Clyde Phillips was very clear on that during his interview. There won’t be a misdirect or an it was all a dream type situation. He and the writers aren’t planning on “undoing anything.” They’re just going to give fans a fuller picture of Dexter a decade or so into the future. Exactly what that looks like, however, is very unclear. We don’t know what other characters might be back. We don’t know if there will be flashbacks to characters who died during the show.

Michael C Hall was always open about expressing a never say never attitude about Dexter returning. He was, after all, a very well-liked character by fans, and depending on who you were asking, the show produced, at minimum, a handful of spectacular seasons. When I reflect on the show, I’m much more likely to think about those moments of brilliance, which is different than Hall’s other big show, Six Feet Under, which is widely praised for having one of the best and most discussed endings in the history of television. Those extremes are probably why he's talked in the past about thinking fans focus too much on where shows end.

I really hope this Dexter revival works. I miss the character a lot, and if the writers can recapture the magic, we’re all going to be in for a special 10 episodes when they premiere in 2021 on Showtime.

When you are a sociopathic serial murderer like the anti-heroic title character of Dexter, secrets become an all-consuming aspect of your life. The crime drama, starring Michael C. Hall in a Golden Globe-winning performance as forensic analyst who moonlights as a bloodthirsty vigilante, is not without a few hidden behind the scenes facts of its own… until now.

Inspired by a best-selling series of novels by Jeff Lindsay, Dexter is one of the biggest hits to originally air on Showtime, earning widespread acclaim from critics and audiences alike and multiple award wins during the the course of its run of eight seasons. Yet, even some of its most die-hard fans believe the show, developed by former The Sopranos writer James Manos Jr., may have lasted a little longer than it should have, especially when putting the controversial conclusion of its final episode into consideration. Actually, the ending we got was not the one the producers had originally envisioned, if you can believe it.

Care to learn more about the series finale that could have been and why the episode would end the way it did? Read on to learn all about that and 11 other examples of startling trivia related to Dexter with the following killer facts, starting off with some shocking insight into Michael C. Hall’s acting process.

In Preparation To Play Dexter, Michael C. Hall Stalked Real New Yorkers

While he never went as far as living out the morbid desires of his best-known role, Michael C. Hall did go to questionable lengths to get into character. On George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight in 2013, he recalled how, after getting the part of Dexter, when he “had some time to kill” he would randomly choose someone in New York and follow them wherever they went. He assured the audience that he had no intention further than seeing how well he could pull it off without getting caught, which proved successful and led to one of the most striking portrayals in TV history.

Julie Benz Originally Auditioned To Play Dexter’s Sister

An equally memorable performance from the show for reasons that are both endearing and heartbreaking (more on that later) is Julie Benz as Dexter Morgan’s wife and mother to his son, Rita, despite originally reading for the part of his sister, Debra Morgan, as a 2009 interview with Backstage Magazine reveals. Ultimately, that role would go to Jennifer Carpenter, which is even more ironic considering her relationship to her onscreen brother in real life.

While Playing Siblings On Dexter, Michael C. Hall And Jennifer Carpenter Were Once Married

In one of the series’ more intriguing subplots, Debra Morgan would admit to having romantic feelings for her adoptive brother, Dexter, in the eighth episode of Season 7. In an even stranger twist, the siblings’ off-screen counterparts, Michael C. Hall and Jennifer Carpenter, struck up a real-life romance that resulted in marriage in late 2008. While the pair would split up two years later, they remained friends and managed to prevent it from affecting their relationship as Dexter co-stars.

David Zayas Was A Cop Before Playing One On Dexter

Miami police sergeant Angel Batista is actually just one of several characters in law enforcement played by David Zayas and it must help that he has actually undergone the proper training. On the NPR program All Things Considered, the Puerto Rican Dexter star recalled taking acting classes in his 20s while working as an officer in New York City. The police department was actually unaware of Zayas’ pursuits for his childhood dream, except for his partner, who would read lines with him while on patrol.

Jeremy Renner Turned Down The Part Of Dexter’s Brother

Playing Jeffrey Dahmer in a 2002 biopic earned Jeremy Renner consideration for a Dexter role, but also informed his decision to say no. The Avengers star and former Dexter producer Michael Cuesta were talking to Cloture Club about their 2014 film Kill the Messenger when the series popped into conversation, sparking memories of Cuesta considering Renner for Dexter’s homicidal biological brother Brian Moser. On top of his attachment to 28 Weeks Later, Renner was not interested in playing another murderer (especially after portraying one so infamously horrific), leaving the part open for Christian Camargo to take.

Composer Daniel Licht Reused His Own ‘90s Horror Movie Score For Dexter

Speaking of things that are horrific, the late Daniel Licht (the main composer for Dexter) previous wrote the music for many scary movies, including the 1993 H.P. Lovecraft-inspired anthology film Necronomicon: Book of the Dead, which features one chilling piece entitled “Because the Dawn.” That particular score may sound especially familiar to Dexter fans because Licht reused it as the famous “Blood Theme” for the series.

John Lithgow’s Trinity Killer Was Inspired By The BTK Killer

In another instance of “borrowing” on Dexter, if Arthur Mitchell, whom Dexter Morgan identifies as the Trinity Killer, seems familiar to any true crime aficionados, it is because his life deeply parallels the history of Dennis Rader (the BTK Killer). Much like Mitchell, for whom John Lithgow won an Emmy, Rader was a seemingly innocent, church-going family man who managed to remain undetected for his many years as a serial murderer. Lithgow’s character is still regarded as one of the creepiest in the show’s history, especially for the heinous crime he is responsible for at the end of Season 4.

Rita’s Death Scene Was Challenging and "Surreal" To Shoot

Considered one of the series’ most shocking and perfectly executed scenes is the one where Dexter Morgan finds his wife, Rita (Julie Benz), dead in a bathtub from which her blood is running over onto the floor, where his infant son sits. Prop master Joshua Meltzer went into detail about how the haunting imagery of the Season 4 finale’s conclusion was achieved in the following quote from a Vulture article profiling Dexter’s most frightening sets:

Rita’s death remains a staple of horrific and saddening character write-offs in TV history. It is almost surprising that it would not prove to be Dexter’s most controversial moment.

An Australian Dexter Ad Sparked Complaints From The Tourism Industry

Speaking of controversy, even before the airing of the infamous series finale (more on that soon), Dexter became subject to protests of a 2008 commercial promoting the series in Australia. It sees Michael C. Hall telling a man at an airport that he is heading to Adelaide because it “has more serial killers per capita than any other city in Australia,” a claim that tourism spokesman Michael Pengilly was not pleased by, according to a report by The Australian (via TV Tonight). The Aussie television website also claims that the complaints might have done more to increase excitement for Dexter in the Land Down Under than the ad itself, which only goes to show that there is no such thing as bad press.

Michael C. Hall Battled Cancer While Filming Season 5 Of Dexter

After the heartbreak of Season 4, Michael C. Hall had to endure a different kind of saddening challenge during production the the following season after making his diagnosis of Hodgkin’s lymphoma public in January 2010. He continued to work on Dexter while receiving chemotherapy, during which he would wear a wig to hide his hair loss, and announced that he made a full recovery the following April and has been in remission ever since. While his fans were obviously pleased to see him survive, some would have rather his character not been granted the same fate.

Dexter Was Originally Meant To Die In The Series Finale

Now for the moment we have been waiting for: the infamous final episode in which Dexter fakes his own death, starts a new life as a lumberjack, and leaves virtually the entire fanbase horribly disappointed. Well, apparently, Showtime is to blame as the writers were put in a corner with the network’s instruction to not kill off the title by Season 8’s end. However, that is exactly the conclusion former showrunner Clyde Phillips had envisioned as the following quote to E! states:

While Clyde Phillips left Dexter in 2009, we never would have gotten this poignant ending anyway thanks to Showtime’s alleged rule against it. I bet we can all easily imagine what word Debra Morgan would have used in reaction to this.

Jennifer Carpenter Dropped 996 F-Bombs Throughout Dexter’s Run

If there is one thing that Jennifer Carpenter will forever be best known for from her performance on Dexter, it would be her character’s frequent use of the F-word. According to Bloody Disgusting, a fan went to painstaking lengths to tally each and every one of Debra Morgan’s utterances of said expletive throughout all eight seasons, which rounded out to 996.

What do you think? Have all of these lesser-known Dexter facts piqued your fascination or is Jennifer Carpenter’s insurmountable swear jar debt the most interesting thing you read in this entire article? Let us know in the comments and be sure to check back for additional information and updates on the criminally good Showtime original, as well as more inside looks at your favorite movies and TV shows, here on CinemaBlend.

No one could have imagined any reason to root for a serial murderer until Michael C. Hall played one with an unprecedented heroic charm on one of the most killer original series from Showtime. Of course, even bloodthirsty sociopaths are nothing without the company they keep and rest of the stellar cast members from Dexter were definitely worth keep around, even if not all their characters managed to survive.

Developed by former The Sopranos writer James Manos Jr., Dexter is based on a series of novels told from the point of view of a forensic analyst who spends his spare time using his homicidal tendencies as a force for good, butchering the worst criminals imaginable. The dark drama, which lasted eight seasons from 2006 to 2013, sees Dexter struggle to keep his second life as one of Miami’s most prolific killers a secret from his family, his colleagues in law enforcement, and the despicable personalities he targets (until they become his prey, that is).

Whether or not you particularly enjoyed the controversial series finale, it is hard to deny that the show was home to some criminally good performances throughout. So, where has the Dexter cast of lent its talents to since? Find out here in this career update of the following 11 actors behind some of the most memorable roles on Dexter.

Michael C. Hall (Dexter Morgan)

Following up his Emmy-nominated role on Six Feet Under, Michael C. Hall landed the title role of Dexter, for which he won a Golden Globe in 2010, and seems to have been active to outgrow the character ever since. His first big acting effort after the seres' end was as the lead of the 2014 Broadway run of Hedwig and the Angry Inch and followed by notable big screen appearances, like Game Night, and a few projects for Netflix, namely the feature-length In the Shadow of the Moon and miniseries Safe. 

His next big TV role is post-World War II crime drama Shadowplay and, in an intriguing role reversal, he will play victim in the thriller John and the Hole, which has no set theatrical release yet.

Jennifer Carpenter (Debra Morgan)

Best known for playing this Miami homicide detective, Jennifer Carpenter also had a real relationship with Michael C. Hall that ended in amicable divorce while playing adoptive siblings (even though Debra's admission to having romantic feelings for Dexter made it not such a stretch after all). Outside frequent collaborations with Brawl in Cell Block 99 director S. Craig Zahler, the 40-year-old actress' best known work since Dexter has also been on the small screen, such as upgrading to the FBI for Limitless on CBS and downgrading to a traitorous former CIA agent on NBC's short-lived The Enemy Within. She more recently lent her voice to an animated Mortal Kombat movie her upcoming drama A Mouthful of Air is expected for 2021.

James Remar (Harry Morgan)

Playing one of the more unusual characters in the series was James Remar as Harry Morgan, a detective who inspired his adoptive son, Dexter, to use his homicidal tendencies for good at a young age before becoming his "conscience" of sorts after death. The 66-year-old veteran actor has continued turn in stellar performances of a wonderful variety, including voicing Tonraq on The Legend of Korra, a cast member from Bounty Law in Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood, and an ally to the titular hero of Arrow spin-off Black Lightning.

David Zayas (Angel Batista)

Quickly after retiring his role as detective turned lieutenant Angel Batista on Dexter, David Zayas did a 180 as Sal Maroni, one of the Batman's most notorious mob enemies, on Fox's Gotham. However, the Puerto Rican actor would go back to playing good guys more frequently not long after, such as on the Netflix original crime drama Bloodline and in a few of the several gigs he has lined up, including Eli Moran, in which he plays a coach and mentor to a young basketball prodigy.

Julie Benz (Rita Bennett)

The series would also became a romantic tragedy thanks to Julie Benz, whose stint as the Dexter's wife, and the mother of his child, Rita, ended with her character's murder in Season 4. Ironically, one of her first notable post-Dexter roles was as Patrick Wilson's dead wife in medical drama A Gifted Man, followed by playing mayor to a post-apocalyptic society in the Syfy original series Defiance, a police inspector in Hawaii Five-0, and other TV roles that were, indeed, "defiant" to her past efforts. Benz most recently returned to Showtime in a recurring role opposite Kirsten Dunst on the '90s-set comedy On Becoming a God in Central Florida.

C.S. Lee (Vince Masuka)

The sex-obsessed Vince Masuka, played by South Korean-born C.S. Lee, was also one of the greatest threats to Dexer's secret life, being the very accomplished and very clever lead forensic investigator at Miami Metro. He would play a similarly threatening (but far more difficult to get along with) version of that character on Chuck, who leans a bit more in the opposite direction of the adulterous recovering alcoholic he played on Season 4 of Chicago Med. Also known for playing a state attorney in Season 2 of True Detective, Lee's most likable role to date may also be his most recent performance as a priest in the Netflix original coming-of-age drama All Together Now, which also stars Moana's Auli'i Cravalho.

Luna Lauren Velez (Maria LaGuerta)

Speaking of unlikable people, Maria LaGuerta's job may be upholding the law, but her true role is one of Dexter's main antagonists - a persona that actress Luna Lauren Velez would, thankfully, not have to repeat for her recurring spot on How to Get Away with Murder or in the Academy Award-winning animated comic book movie masterpiece Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, in which she voiced the role of Miles Morales' mother, Rio. In addition to landing a role in 2018's The First Purge, Velez returned to playing a cop in the pilot for a reboot of the '90s crime drama New York Undercover, which has yet to be picked up, and also plays a police captain in the upcoming TV movie Murder opposite Michael Chiklis.

Desmond Harrington (Joey Quinn)

Prior to and since playing Detective Joseph Quinn, Desmond Harrington has led a career of great variety, especially on the small screen, which has seen him reunite with several of his Dexter co-stars - including Jennifer Carpenter on Limitless and C.S. Lee on Sneaky Pete. More recently, the star of Nicolas Winding Refn's 2016 thriller The Neon Demon played FBI Head Louis Freeh on the second season of Manhunt, a retelling of the same story that inspired Clint Eastwood's Richard Jewell, and will play prolific novelist Jack Kerouac in the John Kennedy Toole biopic Butterfly in the Typewriter, which is currently in pre-production.

Erik King (James Doakes)

While certainly not a bad guy, Sgt. James Doakes (portrayed unforgettably by Erik King) could be appropriately referred to as an enemy to Dexter Morgan and was even the first character on the series to identify him as The Bay Harbor Butcher. The actor would take on a whole different profession in his recurring role on the fourth season of brutal Cinemax crime drama Banshee and would pull another 180 playing a church pastor on yet another crime thriller, the 50 Cent-produced Crackle original The Oath, which also stars Sean Bean. He also appeared in the 2018 music drama Vox Lux, opposite Natalie Portman, and more recently scored a recurring role on CBS All Access exclusive The Good Wife spin-off, The Good Fight.

Yvonne Strahovski (Hannah McKay)

Also known for pulling a few 180's in her day is Yvonne Strahovski, best known as secret agent Sarah Walker on Chuck and the voice of Miranda Lawson in the Mass Effect games before joining the cast of Dexter in Season 7 as Hannah McKay, a fellow sociopathic murderer whom Dexter falls for. The Australian model and actress would go on to play a cult escapee in the Netflix original miniseries Stateless following her Emmy-nominated turn as Serena Joy Waterford in The Handmaid's Tale. She will next join Chris Pratt and Betty Gilpin in the futuristic combat thriller The Tomorrow War, which is expected to release in 2021.

John Lithgow (Arthur Mitchell)

Those who might have doubted that John Lithgow could give an Emmy-winning performance as the Trinity Killer on Dexter must have forgotten about his sinister roles in Cliffhanger and Raising Cain. With the exception of his charming role as struggling attorney Elias Jonathan on HBO's revamp of Perry Mason, the former Third Rock from the Sun star has been leaning into that sinister side much more frequently, from helping a desperate father raise hell in the 2019 Pet Sematary remake to playing disgraced former Fox News CEO Roger Ailes in Bombshell. Lithgow is continuing that streak with the upcoming FX crime miniseries The Old Man.

What do you think? Have we covered all of your favorites actors from Dexter, or did you want to hear more about Jadon Wells (who played Dexter’s son Harrison Morgan in Season 8) and the CrossFit videos he is known for these days? Let us know in the comments and be sure to check back for additional news related to the hit crime drama, as well as even more updates on the cast members from your favorite movies and TV shows, here on CinemaBlend.

With Six Feet Under and Dexter, actor Michael C. Hall was part of two of the most beloved premium cable dramas of all time. Both of those shows feature series finales that fans could not stop talking about for years after, though with the Dexter camp being far more critical of that series' conclusion. When asked if he thinks viewers put too much critical emphasis on TV series finales, Hall was agreeable.

Though he said it jokingly, Michael C. Hall was not shooting blanks with his first point about people that care far too much about TV shows in general. It definitely doesn't take a polarizing finale these days to get fans to call for riots and boycotts against a series. Hell, it sometimes only takes a subtle hint to send fans up the walls with rage.

Regardless of how "fair" it is or not, the quality of a TV finale can absolutely cloud fans' opinions about the series as a whole, and Dexter falls into that conversation accordingly. Many viewers agree that the show took a narrative dip in its later seasons, but an A+ ending could possibly have secured the killer Showtime show a much higher placing in the TV pantheon. (How would opinions about Lost differ with a new ending?)

Unfortunately, the creative team balked at wrapping things up with full closure, and instead took some oddball leaps to keep Dexter Morgan around for another potential round of episodes down the road. Though it's perhaps because of those sour feelings that fans would likely embrace Dexter's return with the most open of arms and kill rooms.

It wasn't all that long ago when Michael C. Hall was dropping some light implications that he might be ready to get back into the killer-of-killers mode for more Dexter. At the very least, he didn't say it was an impossibility, so assuming creator James Manos Jr. or some other talented scribe can come up with the perfect narrative arc to bring Dexter out of the woods-work, we could very well witness the next chapter of the Morgan family story.

They'd better hurry, though, since Michael C. Hall might not be so interested in sticking around in dark and deadly dramas for the long haul. His latest TV role is for IFC's hilariously spot-on parody Documentary Now!, in which he plays a talented bowler for the spoof of The League of Ordinary Gentlemen. Hall, who recently starred in Game Night and the bizarro one-night-only stage play Skittles Commercial: The Broadway Musical, talked with Uproxx about embracing his comedy skills.

Even his 2018 Netflix kidnapping caper Safe, while dealing with all kinds of serious issues and themes, had a darkly comedic streak running throughout. (And not just for Michael C. Hall's snazzy British accent.) At least no one went berserk over how that show ended.

While Dexter's series capper may never get its day in the sun, Six Feet Under's final episode strangely got a loving homage from The Simpsons in 2018, 13 years after the finale first aired. But note that while he may or may not be cool with heading back to Dexter in the future, Michael C Hall is pretty positive he wouldn't want to return to the role of Six Feet Under's David Fisher.

Would you guys want to see more Dexter from Michael C. Hall? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to check out the actor's episode of Documentary Now!, which already aired on IFC this week but can still be watched on the channel's website.

The Bay Harbor Butcher could eventually be coming back to television. At least, it seems to be something that may happen if prolific actor Michael C. Hall reads the right script. Hall recently spoke about the possibility of Dexter Morgan's return to television and once again teased the serial killer's adventure may not be over. The actor also spoke about the Dexter series finale, and why he thinks folks seem so eager to see the character return, noting,

Michael C. Hall's recent comments make it sound as though he's willing to bring Dexter back, provided the right story comes along. On the same token, Hall appears to be in no rush to jump into a Dexter Morgan return just for the sake of doing so, because he's fine with the way Dexter ended. Hall told The Daily Beast he "stands by" the decision for Dexter to go off into the wilderness at the end of the series, even if it left the Showtime drama with some loose ends.

That ending is good enough for Michael C. Hall that he's apparently rejected past pitches that would've led to another Dexter project. Hall briefly mentioned the projects that didn't make the cut and a possible timeline of when a new idea could get far enough to get talks of a serious revival started.

These recent statements are in line with what Michael C. Hall said earlier in the year about a Dexter revival, so it appears 2018 didn't feature much inspiration for Miami's killer to return. The "something" that's there Hall referenced is seemingly rooted in the fact that Dexter survived, rather than any compulsion that he feels to reprise the role. As mentioned, he doesn't have the same issues he notes others have with how Dexter ended.

Hall's approval of the show's ending is rooted in Dexter's realizing isolation will protect the ones he loves. A pitch to justify Dexter Morgan's return would seemingly have to convince Michael C. Hall his character's need for human companionship proved too great for him to stay isolated or a threat that could place someone he cares about in danger. That's what we're speculating anyway, as we have no idea what projects Hall has rejected since the drama's end. Perhaps a Revenant-style man-in-the-wilderness revenge story could be the right fit...

Dexter is available to stream on demand on Showtime or Netflix. For a look at what television shows are set to arrive before the year's end, head on over to our fall premiere guide.

As great and singular as Netflix's library of seemingly infinite originals can be, the sheer number of shows can sometimes make finding a new obsession as hard as bobbing for apples in the ocean. Which is probably why Michael C. Hall's new U.K.-thriller Safe hasn't been as rabidly discussed and as widely championed as it deserves to be. And that's a television blight that needs to be fixed ASAP, since Safe is smart, barbed and fast-paced storytelling that can only be elevated by popcorn and binge-viewing. Let's run down what makes Safe such a wild and enjoyable ride.

It was created by Harlan Coben. While it doesn't make for exact science, it does stand to reason that a prolific and super-talented crime thriller author would be perfect for crafting a TV show in the same genre. With Safe, Coben put forth a skillfully plotted missing child mystery that, more than just about any other TV show out there right now, fits the full definition of a "page-turner." And what's more, Safe comes in at a lean eight episodes (thanks in part to a co-production with France's Canal+) and thus doesn't suffer from the bloat that some of Netflix's originals do.

In Safe, Tom Delaney (Michael C. Hall) is a surgeon and widow whose grief and guilt over his wife's death (a year previous) have affected his abilities to be a fully present father to his daughters. And when one of those daughters, Amy James-Kelly's feisty 16-year-old Jenny Delaney, goes missing under mysterious circumstances, his ongoing trek to discover what happened uncovers the dark underpinnings of his community and its many residents. True to Harlan Coben's written works, he and his creative team pile on the suspenseful sequences and suspicious suspects, giving viewers just as much information to suss through as the characters.

Safe doesn't hit TV's usual "missing person" stereotypes. Admittedly, Safe gets familiar with more than a few genre tropes throughout the season, as Harlan Coben wasn't trying to shift away from everything he's familiar with, but it still bucks expectations in winning ways. For instance, Safe's effective emotional beats aren't as frequent or as pummeling as they are on a show like Broadchurch, while the show's more intense chases and action sequences aren't mindlessly gigantic as broadcast TV shows tend to embrace. And at no point does Michael C. Hall worried father Tom reach John McClane's superhero status, and he's surprisingly often the least capable character in any given scene, with impulses overriding his shortcomings.

So Safe functions as an emotional character portrait of sorts, a missing child thriller, a police-driven procedural, a murder mystery -- yes, one character is found dead the same night Jenny goes missing -- and more, with the various genre formulas mixing and mingling as the story drives forward. Perhaps the strangest storytelling addition comes in the form of the Marshall family. Daughter Sia (Amy-Leigh Hickman) throws the doomed house party that kicks off various plot threads, with her parents getting caught up in the mix, and the performances given by Hickman, and Nigel Lindsay as father JoJo (opposite the stressed Laila Rouass as Lauren Marshall), enter the realm of full-on black comedy. There are quite a few naughty scenes throughout Safe that inspire hushed giggles, but JoJo is on a whole other wavelength. (That might put some viewers off, but I loved the bizarreness of it all.)

The ensemble cast makes it all click. There are plenty of moments in Safe where the story and its twists threaten to derail the tightly wound mayhem, but the cast saves it from ever tipping over. Michael C. Hall, whose accent takes multiple episodes to latch onto, is nothing like his Dexter or Six Feet Under characters here, but is similarly flawed and seeks ways to atone for such flaws. Pete Mayfield, played expertly by Marc Warren, is Tom's longtime best friend and fellow surgeon, with whom he shared a stint in the military. Pete is the alpha male in the friendship, and is just as invested in trying to find Jenny as Tom is. The same goes for Sherlock vet Amanda Abbington's Sophie Mason, a Detective Sergeant dealing with a non-routine home life (complete with an alcoholic ex-husband living in a caravan in the driveway) and a complicated burgeoning romance with Tom.

Let's go down the list of all the other characters clamoring for viewers' suspicions, even on top of everyone that's already been discussed. There's Sophie's boozing ex Josh (Emmett J. Scanlan) and their antsy son Henry (Louis Greatorex). There's Zoé Chahal (Audrey Fleurot), a teacher who gets embroiled in a scandal after being accused of sleeping with a student; her husband Neil (Joplin Sibtain), a hulking man who doesn't smile much; and their son Chris, who also happens to be Jenny's boyfriend. There's Hannah Arterton's new-to-town Detective Constable Emma Castle, whose troubled past brought her to town under hidden circumstances. Add to that Milo Twomey's intimidating club owner Bobby, Karen Bryson's dulled-eyed neighbor Helen and Hero Fiennes-Tiffin's secret-harboring student Ioan, and you've got a suspect pool that never seems to slack off.

Telling a story that doesn't seem capable of expanding into additional seasons, Safe is far from the most safe kind of programming for Netflix subscribers to take a chance on. But here, the rewards for trying something new become prevalent very early on, especially once the streak of gallows humor starts creeping up through the hyper-dramatic narrative. Now how about giving Harlan Coben another show, Netflix?

Safe is currently available for streaming on Netflix right now, so be sure to get on that. And after you're finished there, our 2018 Netflix schedule and our summer premiere schedule will clue you in on everything else coming to TV soon.

Michael C. Hall rose to prominence with starring roles on two of television's most acclaimed series: the HBO drama Six Feet Under and the Showtime thriller Dexter. After the latter series ended in 2013, Hall avoided starring roles until quite recently with the Netflix limited series Safe. Now the actor is opening up about his decision to take a break from the medium that brought him such success after Dexter. Hall explained his thinking behind the move, saying:

Michael C. Hall summed up his train of thought in an interview with THR. After five seasons, Six Feet Under ended in 2005. The very next year, Hall took on the role of Dexter Morgan in the Showtime thriller Dexter. That series would run for eight seasons before concluding in 2013. Between the two shows, Hall starred on television for 12 years straight and 13 TV seasons, which is a long and impressive time on the small screen.

Since Dexter, the actor has been steering clear of starring in another ongoing series. One of his latest television roles was as a guest star on the second season of Netflix's The Crown, playing President John F. Kennedy in the eighth episode, aptly titled "Dear Mrs. Kennedy." Now fans can catch Hall taking on a completely different role, thanks to Netflix and its new dramatic thriller.

Five years after Dexter ended, Michael C. Hall is finally making his return to television in a lead capacity with the limited series Safe. The miniseries stars Hall as a widowed father, whose eldest daughter goes missing after attending a party. When he endeavors to find out what happened to her, the pediatrician ends up digging up the secrets of his closest friends.

While fans are undoubtedly excited about the actor's return to the television format, they need to know that Safe will not be a long-term thing for Michael C. Hall. The series is an eight-episode saga that will begin and end with its first and only season. So it's sort of like a super long movie starring Hall, which is a compromise that fans will probably welcome. Television allows actors to deeply explore the various facets of their characters in a more probing way than film, and fans of Hall's work know he can make the most of that.

Safe is currently streaming on Netflix, and it isn't the only new arrival on the streamer. To find out about the other TV content set to arrive on the streaming service, check out our guide to all of the new and returning shows set to debut on Netflix via our 2018 premiere rundown. If you're curious about Amazon Prime, we have you covered there too! Check out our complete guide to learn when new and returning shows are set to premiere on the rival streamer.

Dexter's Michael C. Hall is making his return to television in a new show that looks intense. Netflix has released the first trailer for Safe, a brand new thriller that finds Hall playing a father whose teenage daughter vanishes after attending a party. As it turns out, his search for her will unearth quite a few startling truths. You can watch the captivating trailer below:

Now you see what we are talking about with this new series. Safe promises to be a mystery wrapped in many mysteries. There are some things the trailer did not directly spell out, so buckle up. Here is what Netflix has revealed about the series. In Safe, Michael C. Hall's Tom is a recently widowed pediatric surgeon and the father of two teenage girls. Tom's eldest daughter, Jenny, is the one who disappears.

Tom is still haunted by the death of his wife and feels immense guilt over the night she died. Adding to the drama is that Jenny has a secret from that night. Safe promises it will answer the questions from the ominous night in question, which has had a domino effect on the one Jenny has disappeared into. To solve the mystery, it sounds like viewers will have to come at it without trusting any of the characters we encounter.

While Safe's premise sounds like it could be in the vein of Taken, it appears that Michael C. Hall's Tom will not rely on violent methods to get to the truth. The thriller will run for eight episodes. Safe marks Hall's first starring role in a TV series since Dexter ended in 2013. The Showtime series ran for seven years and eight seasons.

Michael C. Hall waded back into TV via a popular Netflix series last year. He guest-starred in a Season 2 episode of Netflix's royal drama The Crown. Hall portrayed John F. Kennedy in the episode. As for movies, the actor recently starred in the dark comedy Game Night opposite Ozark's Jason Bateman.

If you are a fan of thrillers, Safe seems like a "safe" bet for an eight-part binge. The episode count is a little less than the usual Netflix series. It is a positive sign the series should not be stretching out its storyline unnecessarily. While the premise is not entirely new terrain for a mystery, it offers a hint of further drama. Safe is nested in a larger mystery that sounds as though it will provide a fresh angle to the mystery at hand.

Safe premieres on Netflix, May 10. To find out what other series are set to arrive on Netflix, check out our guide to all of the new and returning shows set to debut on the streaming service via our 2018 Netflix premiere rundown. As for what else is coming up on TV in general, check out our guides to TV's midseason and summer premieres.

Rumors of a Dexter revival seem to spring up every now and again, and even when they don't, Michael C. Hall often has to address the question. Hall, who is about to appear back in front of audiences in the Netflix original series Safe, recently admitted that a revival of his most known series could happen, although it couldn't be just any revival. Here's what he had to say about the prospect of a revival:

"Never say never" is definitely a popular stance to take. More and more shows no one thought would make a comeback continue to do so. That said, Michael C. Hall doesn't seem all that interested in reviving Dexter at the moment. Hall expressed that's mainly due to the fact that he hasn't heard an idea enticing enough to bring Dexter Morgan out of the wilderness and back into the spotlight, which is a totally valid reason few fans should be upset with. Basically, if the Bay Harbor Butcher is coming out of retirement, there better be a damn good reason for him to do so.

Michael C. Hall's response might have put another nail in the coffin towards the discussion of a Dexter revival any time soon, although the actor told Variety he knows the question will come his way again. Hall is well aware that his role as Dexter will be what he's most known for in acting, and that he'll likely be fielding questions about the show right up until the day he dies:

Hall's acceptance of Dexter's impact on his career likely came from his work following the show's conclusion, which he referred to as a "Dexorcism." Hall's roles in Safe and other work that followed the show's end in 2013 have been eclectic and a decent mix of characters distinct from the performance he gave as Dexter Morgan. Perhaps enough time in different roles will sway Hall to actively want to revisit his character somewhere down the road in a new adventure, but if five years isn't enough time, who knows if Dexter will ever return?

Dexter fans who miss the series can currently binge the entire show on Netflix. As for Michael C. Hall's new Netflix series Safe, that's expected to land on the platform sometime in 2018. For a list of other shows headed on Netflix, visit our Netflix premiere guide. Those looking to get a more general idea of upcoming television in 2018 can get a more general breakdown at our midseason premiere guide and summer premiere guide.

For eight seasons, Michael C. Hall played one of TV's most devious and fun-to-watch antiheroes, and his killer-of-killers Dexter Morgan won't soon be forgotten, even if Dexter's troll of a finale will. Thankfully, Hall is returning to TV after 4 years for what sounds like it'll be an excellent new dramatic thriller called Safe, and the fact that it's a Netflix Original is only part of that presumed excellence.

For Safe, Michael C. Hall is teaming up with Sherlock star Amanda Abbington, which should make for a solid pairing, assuming they spend time onscreen together. Hall is set to play Tom, a recent widower (and pediatric) who is mourning the loss of his wife while raising their two teenage daughters. The road to recovery is suddenly disrupted one night when one of those daughters sneaks out of the house and heads to a house party. Unfortunately, someone goes missing from the party, while another person is murdered, and the horrifying incident propels a host of thought-buried secrets to rush to the surface.

That sounds like a huge rush of a TV drama, and perhaps thankfully, the season will only be eight episodes, according to Deadline. Curiously, there's no information about Amanda Abbington's role, so it's unclear if she'll be one of the authorities looking into the case with Tom's assistance, or if she'll possibly have a more villainous part to play. I'm down to see either angle play out.

Behind the scenes, Safe looks to be just as impressive, and it's being executive produced by the literary plot-meister Harlan Coben as the novelist's latest TV project. The scripts will be penned by Danny Brocklehurst, the English screenwriter and producer whose past efforts include the original Shameless and Coben's own mystery drama The Five. The company behind Safe is StudioCanal's RED Production Company, which put together the BBC and Netflix release Happy Valley. We're assuming more casting news will be released soon, and we can only hope that more TV vets like this will be involved.

When Dexter ended in 2013 to the tune of viewers scratching their heads in frustration, Michael C. Hall decided to take a break from the small screen and focused on features like Cold in July and After Adderall. To be sure, he has had a couple of voice acting roles in Justice League: Gods and Monsters Chronicles and Cartoon Network's Star vs. the Forces of Evil. And he's actually already set to show up on Netflix for the acclaimed royalty drama The Crown, for which he'll portray former U.S. President John F. Kennedy. But Safe will be his first leading TV role since saying goodbye to the Miami sun.

Production for Safe actually kicked off today, implying deals were being worked out in the immediate past, and Netflix is planning for a 2018 release date. We can't wait to hear more about this, but you can see everything else Netflix has coming with our 2017 Netflix schedule, and then hit up our summer premiere schedule to see all the new and returning shows hitting primetime in the near future.

Michael C. Hall has joined the cast of the critically acclaimed Netflix series The Crown. The actor is set to join the series, which portrays the early years of the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, during Season 2 of the show. Hall will be portraying a famous political figure, and once you read it I guarantee you'll find the casting interesting. Michael C. Hall will be playing none other than former American President John F. Kennedy. Jackie Kennedy has also been cast.

The casting may seem a bit odd when you look at the face of our 35th President and Michael C. Hall. The portrayal doesn't seem spot on, but this won't be the JFK we typically see on screen. Typically, when I think of JFK I think of the "chicken in every crockpot" laughing at Forrest Gump getting shot in the buttocks President. That's not the direction The Crown will be taking!

Deadline writes that the JFK we will see Michael C. Hall play is different than many of the portrayals we've seen in the past. In the show, President Kennedy will receive a lot of positive attention thanks to the help of his wife Jackie Kennedy, but reports indicate he will feel very emasculated by the media and public, who give more attention to his wife than him. The Crown will show the darker and more manipulative side of John F. Kennedy as he looks to humiliate his wife, flaunting his infidelity and privately showing anger at the attention The First Lady is receiving. That's definitely a reported side of JFK that's not always portrayed in popular culture.

Michael C. Hall will share the spotlight (which he will hate in character) with actress Jodi Balfour, who will play Jackie Kennedy. Showrunners describe Balfour's representation in The Crown as a woman who naturally fits the role of First Lady, but hates the public life it brings. If the show is continuing its historical take on the reign this visit will likely take place a couple months after JFK's inauguration at the royal palace. Historically, Jackie was the talk of the trip, winning both media attention and the attention of European heads of state, a fact we are sure to see Hall's Kennedy resent in the series.

Michael C. Hall is no stranger to critically-acclaimed television. The actor got his first big break with his role on HBO's Six Feet Under in 2001 and even those who haven't watched Dexter likely recognize his work on the Showtime series. Now that he's hopping over to Netflix it's almost as though he's making a checklist as he goes along! I can't wait to see him on The Crown, although I'm still having trouble seeing him as John F. Kennedy. Season 2 of The Crown does not have a release date yet, so before you go and binge the first season again jump over to our midseason premiere guide and see what's premiering this month.

There have been a lot of rumors over the past week regarding a Dexter remake. But let’s really break it down, and get to the truth.

Facebook blew up last week with rumors of Dexter’s dark passenger returning to television. This was started due to Dexter’s official twitter sending out a tweet wishing its followers a Happy Thanksgiving. This greeting quickly sparked a fierce debate Dexter viewers, past and present. Fans of the Showtime series, and there are many, took to their social media accounts to debate whether or not they’d see their favorite serial killer again.

Uproxx is reporting that, no, Michael C. Hall is not interested in appearing as everyone's favorite blood spatter analyst. Let me break it down for you:

When the series first ended in September of 2013, there was some talk about a possible spin-off. After a controversial series finale, which left Dexter alive, and apparently living a solitary life cutting down trees (gosh, I wish that was a joke), the possibility of a new series was discussed. Then again, much of this discussion was an attempt to rationalize the finale letting Michael C. Hall’s character survive despite murdering dozens of people throughout the series’ run.

Following Dexter’s finale, its star went on to a variety of different theatre and film projects, most notably taking a turn starring as the titular character in the Broadway revival of Hedwig and The Angry Inch. Showtime has always maintained that Dexter could only be brought back if Hall is involved in the project- and it seems that this isn’t a priority of the actor’s at the moment.

Dexter premiered on Showtime in 2006, to both critical and viewership success. Dexter’s momentum continued to grow through its fourth season, which brought an outstanding villain played by John Lithgow and a season finale that nobody saw coming. Unfortunately, the show began to fizzle after the fourth season, though it didn’t stop Showtime from producing another four before its series finale. Despite its steady decline in viewership, the series finale “Remember the Monsters?” is still the highest rated episode in the network’s history.

As an avid Dexter fan, I’m disappointed that the rumors don’t seem to be true. I had my hopes up until the debate was skewered, and was until then, part of a group text with my fellow Dexter-viewing friends sharing our excitement about the premise of a reboot.

While Michael C. Hall is currently appearing in an Off-Broadway play, perhaps when the show closes he and Showtime will be able to have a conversation about a Dexter reboot. After all, with shows like Heroes and Gilmore Girls making revivals for their fans, it seems like anything is possible these days.

The upcoming remake of the Disney live-action/animation hybrid film, Pete’s Dragon continues to horde what appears to be an increasingly impressive cast within its den. It has been reported that Dexter star Michael C. Hall and The Hunger Games star Wes Bentley are now on board.

Recent reports from TheWrap confirm Bentley’s addition to the cast and Variety would subsequently drop the news of Hall’s involvement. The duo will join Robert Redford, Bryce Dallas Howard, and young Oakes Fegley, who will play the titular Pete.

The film will attempt to modernize the original 1977 Disney film set in a small fishing town in the early 1900’s about a boy named Pete who is stuck in a bad situation with a wicked foster family of obnoxious yokels, the Gogans. While trying to run away, he is rescued by a friendly dragon named Elliott, who has the power to turn invisible, specifically around adults. (Because if we’ve learned anything from family movies, the plot just can’t afford for kids to be believed.) Slap-happy shenanigans ensue all around the town. Fish are disappearing and the townsfolk are looking for a scapegoat. (Because that’s what townsfolk tend to do in movies.) Pete gets friendly with a lighthouse lady whose fiancé is missing at sea and protects him from all the Elliott-related adversity, despite not being initially sure if the dragon isn’t just the product of a lonely child’s imagination.

In the director’s chair for the new Pete's Dragon will be David Lowery, who helmed the 2013 romantic thriller, Ain’t Them Bodies Saints. The film will be based off a script written by Lowery and Toby Halbrooks. While there are expected contextual changes to the story (it is a 38-year-old Disney film, after all), the primary alleged change is that the story will now take place in a logging village, as opposed to a fishing village like the original.

As far as remakes go, this one presents some interesting challenges. Besides undoubtedly being a product of its time, the original film was also a musical. Given the more serious dramatic tone of director David Lowery’s films, clearly Disney didn’t bring him on board to put serious actors on screen singing jaunty tunes with saccharine grins on their faces. In fact, if the dramatic focus on child runaways in Lowery’s 2009 film, St. Nick, is any indication, then a great deal of focus will likely be placed on the dramatic aspects of Pete’s alienation from all the adult figures in his life.

That kind of description evokes memories of Spike Jonze’s 2009 adaptation of children’s book essential, Where the Wild Things Are. There's even strikingly similar themes to the overall stories. With that said, I cannot imagine that it will be quite the same bleakly picturesque project and will still likely contain the famous Disney stamp of optimism and (merchandise-friendly) fun.

David Lowery’s Pete’s Dragon remake is currently penciled in for a 2016 release.

The eighth and final season of Dexter was an abomination marring a once-respectable TV series. With largely piss-poor new characters, killers and plot development, Dexter spiraled downward into a finale that defied not just odds but main character Dexter Morgan’s M.O. in life. But for all the questionable choices found therein, star Michael C. Hall is able to put the finale’s final scenes into a justifiable perspective, at least inside of Dexter’s head if no one else’s.

Hall recently took part in a Reddit AMA in promotion for his lead turn in Broadway’s Hedwig and the Angry Inch, and he was of course asked about Dexter’s escape from Miami by faking his own death and eventual life as an Oregon truck-driving lumberjack. Here’s how he explained the serial killer’s mindset.

I kind of like that explanation. Like a neat freak gunshot victim who walks to the hospital because he doesn’t want to get blood in the car, Dexter found a way to reach a solution that worked for his more obsessive needs. Even if it spit in the face of years of yammering about his Dark Passenger never leaving him. Looking back, I would have been fine with Dexter just showing up in Paris as a blood splatter specialist name named Drexler. But it’s the life of a burly man for him.

Now, I left the arguably more interesting part of his answer out. Before getting into the Dexter talk, here’s what Hall answered, in direct response to being asked his initial reaction to reading the lumberjack reveal.

At first I thought he was taking a sly jab at the episode, saying he was bummed that the massive switcheroo happened, and that he would have been happy with Dexter’s death being legitimate. But then it’s possibly just the actor feeling sorry for his character having to live a life of solitude and partial misery without the family he’d been so accustomed to. (Or not accustomed to, in the case of the always pawned-off Harrison.) Or maybe it’s something else entirely.

In any case, it’s now time to start some pondering of our own over what Hall saying “put himself on hold” means in terms of seeing the character return in the future.

Not an actor to dive into multitudes of projects with reckless abandoned, Michael C. Hall has landed on his next role, and it’s taking him back to the televised home that turned him into a household name. Hall has signed on for the miniseries God Fearing Man, which will be based on an unproduced screenplay from the iconic Stanley Kubrick. Thankfully, the Dexter star won’t be bothered by any Dark Passengers or the ghost of his dead father in this project.

Hall will also executive produce God Fearing Man, in which he’ll play the real-life minister-turned-safecracker Herbert Emerson Wilson. A traveling evangelist who eventually gave up the faith, Wilson paired up with low-rent criminal Herb Cox in 1916. The duo connected with more lawbreakers and spent the next five years or so blowing up bank safes and snatching up money all over the country. Wilson ended up getting caught in 1921, and spent part of the rest of his life writing about his exploits. You can read about his version of things in his book I Stole $16,000,000.

God Fearing Man was first set up for development by Entertainment One a couple of years ago, and they’re still on board, along with Philco Films’ Steve Lanning and Philip Hobbs, a longtime collaborator of Kubrick. eOne will be shopping the miniseries around to networks at some point, and one would assume having Kubrick’s name on it would make for an instant bidding war. While the THR story doesn’t make mention of who is penning the project, British writer Stephen R. Clarke was involved back when God Fearing Man was first acquired.

Hall played serial killer/Miami PD blood spatter expert Dexter Morgan on Showtime's Dexter for eight years, with that coming to a ridiculous close last September. After that, he hit Broadway for a role in The Realistic Joneses and starred in Jim Mickle’s dark thriller Cold in July, the Joe R. Lansdale adaptation that hit theaters and VOD back in May. Check out the trailer for it below.

Wilson is the second real world character Hall will take on in as many years. Last year, he starred as the pederastic David Kammerer in John Krokidas’ biographical drama Kill Your Darlings opposite Daniel Radcliffe and Dane DeHaan. While Wilson is on the same side of the law, I’m assuming he’ll be a much more charming and enjoyable character to watch over the span of a miniseries. Are you guys excited to see Hall return to the small screen?

One of the easiest ways to tell if you’ve heard the perfect casting for a film role is that hopeless feeling of loss when it’s revealed the casting news was only a rumor. Such is the case with Marvel Studios and Netflix’s upcoming small screen take on Daredevil, which for the briefest of times had Dexter star Michael C. Hall reportedly donning the red cowl and lawyerly suit. But the Internet got this one wrong, and now I just want to curl up on an operating table and cover myself in shrink wrap.

So it wasn’t actually the entire online life force that is to blame here, as the rumor was first posted on the Marvel Cinematic Universe Facebook page as coming from “a reliable source.” Vulture was on the case, however, and caught up with Hall at the premiere of The Realistic Joneses, his long-awaited return to his stage roots. And surprise, surprise, nobody ever got in touch with him about taking the part. But that doesn’t mean he isn’t into the idea.

When asked if he was aware of the rumors, he responded, “I’ve heard them, but I think that’s all they are – rumors.” Just in case anyone from Marvel or Netflix happened to have their eyes and ears open, though, he made his stance clear.

“Don’t misunderstand,” he said, “I would definitely consider it…but I can’t tell you any inside information, because I think they’re nothing but rumors.“ It would be pretty sweet if these rumors in turn led to the studios officially molding the part around Hall, whose thesp skills were the main reason Dexter remained as grounded as it did once the later seasons started to fly off the rails. Both as Dexter and as Six Feet Under's David Fisher, Hall displayed the perfect kind of personality that Matt Murdoch’s double life calls for.

But does he want to get back into a TV show so soon after ending one? “I really am enjoying mixing it up a little bit,” he said, “and I’m committing to things that have a foreseeable end in sight when I start them, but I wouldn’t rule out the possibility of [a new series] happening at some point. But I’d have to read the script!” At this early stage, Daredevil is set for one 13-episode season, with a pilot written and directed by The Cabin in the Woods director Drew Goddard, but the all-at-once release would have to do incredibly badly for Marvel to forego continuing into more seasons.

Hall will be seen later this year in We Are What We Are director Jim Mickle’s crime thriller Cold in July, based on the revenge-heavy novel from master storyteller Joe R. Lansdale. But you can see him on Broadway right now alongside Tracy Letts, Marisa Tomei and Toni Collette. You can see a little of that Joneses performance in the recent interview Hall gave to Today.

The fervency with which fans have taken to HBO's original series True Detective is nothing short of impressive. The series' striking visuals, gripping storyline, and incredible acting have helped turn this show into can't-miss TV of the grandest variety. But given the series format — it's an anthologized, like American Horror Story — and the fact that Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey's story ends after the finale next month, some minds have turned to casting season two. And we've got some ideas of our own.

When it comes to HBO’s most popular and inventive drama (at least until Game of Thrones returns in April), there’s a seriously ravenous audience that loves (nay, obsesses) over its every hypothetical scenario — just look at Patton Oswalt’s Twitter feed. Nowhere was that more evident than in the immense popularity of the hashtag #TrueDetectiveSeason2 this week, wherein folks cast (mostly jokingly) dynamic duos to take over the starring vehicle.

We thought we’d do them one better, though: what if, instead of joking, we took a serious look at some pairs of killer actors who’d take on the impressive mantle of the series and do it justice? We've already done it for dream directors, so why not the cast? The result was 10 pairings we’d really love to see on the Nic Pizzolatto series. So we decided to share them with you. Feel free to leave your own serious contenders in the comments. After all, the more to deduce from, the better.

Winona Ryder and Elisabeth Moss

With Ryder’s steely, confident brand of crazy and Moss’ impressive investigative seriousness (as evidenced in Top of The Lake), these two could potentially hit it out of the park, so to speak. Just imagine: a dusty, dried up town somewhere in middle-of-nowhere California? Ryder as a down on her luck cop stranded in a hometown she wants nothing to do with and Moss as her following-in-the-family-footsteps partner. Admit it: you’re into it.

Idris Elba and Chiwetel Ejiofor

This one may be mostly selfish: these two astoundingly impressive and incredible actors need to be in something together, STAT. Elba already has the impressive-cool detective stylings down thanks to his work on Luther, and Ejiofor just commands the attention of any scene he’s in. Imagine: a season set against the backdrop of Detroit’s disintegrating-but-trying urban landscape with these two and just try and pretend you’re not wholly on board.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Joaquin Phoenix

Now, here the question is obvious: would Phoenix act opposite the sometimes perma-bubbly JGL? Methinks he could, and the unexpectedness of it all would work in both of their favor. Just imagine it: small town, maybe out in Utah somewhere. Devious dealings with a local Mormon religious figure? Phoenix harboring a secret tie to the man’s empire and Gordon-Levitt hot on that connection’s tail — only to find it brings him more compassion for his crooked compatriot than originally anticipated? You’d watch the shit out of that, don’t play.

Bryan Cranston and Elizabeth Banks

Any excuse to get more Cranston on your television, right? The levity that would infiltrate the season with the addition of Banks might be just the sort of reengineering the series needs to ensure it doesn’t become stale. Both intelligent and competent actors, we’d love to see Banks in something serious after her domination in the comedy game. And who better to bring that sort of brooding brilliance out of her than Cranston? Something tells us a small town outside of Seattle would do well to have these two detectives.

Maggie Gyllenhaal and Parker Posey

Parker Posey as a seriously off-center but broodingly dark detective? Gyllenhaal besting her brother’s performance in Prisoners? These two women are phenomenal actors, and no doubt an unfolding mystery on par with this season’s True Detective would do well in their care. Something tricky, psychosexual, and absolutely bonkers would be the perfect fit — maybe out somewhere in Kansas? In the backwoods of New England? Either way, we’re into it.

Sam Rockwell and Michael Fassbender

Of all the pairings, this might be our favorite. Two genius actors that have yet to do television would make serious waves if cast in season two. Like Fassbender, Rockwell has incredible range and commitment — he inhabits characters with such convincing aplomb you’re almost terrified of him. Naturally, the sort of duality both men charismatically possess would ensure a terrific season of television. Put them somewhere bleak and expansive — the Dakotas, maybe even middle-of-nowhere Nevada — and watch the electricity fly.

Kevin Spacey and Michael B. Jordan

Michael B. Jordon as a green detective with a jaded outlook on life, paired up with old-timer Spacey (who recently lost his partner under curious circumstances), a bubbly and seemingly benevolent believer in the old guard? You want to see that. Nay: you need to see that. Put them in some deeply southern town with a lot of dark patches in their history — perhaps somewhere swamp-laden? — and you’ve got a clash of cultures as well as a seriously charismatic leading duo.

Anne Hathaway and Michael C. Hall

We know, we know: you might think this one is weird, but just hear us out. Hathaway would play a goody-two-shoes sort, assigned to work with Hall on her first-ever detective-ing endeavor. A quiet girl with a mysterious and foggy past that she won’t discuss, Hall and Hathaway are teamed up to investigate a series of child abductions and suspected murders in upstate New York. Only what comes to pass is that Hathaway has a lot more insight into the case than her 15-years-on-the-job partner. You like it, eh?

Aaron Paul and Jimmi Simpson

Imagine this one taking place in Washington, DC and stay with me. Two genius detectives in the US’ cyber crimes become embroiled in a plot to infiltrate and destroy the government from the inside. With House of Cards hacker Simpson’s brilliant technological mind and Breaking Bad star Paul’s charisma and keen intuition, the duo source out who’s at the heart of the attacks and unfold an even bigger plot that’s in development across the world.

Bradley Cooper and Dustin Hoffman

Last but far from least, we have Cooper and Hoffman. Can you imagine a more dynamic old/new guard pairing? Between Cooper’s unhinged electricity and Hoffman’s quiet brilliance, we see a seedy underbelly story rife for the solving with these two actors on board. Perhaps somewhere in Iowa? Both men not only have the gravitas it takes to carry a series, but they also play extremely well with others in a more ensemble setting. Put these two in charge of season two and we bet you’d be hard-pressed to find a story they couldn’t make engaging.

Though it still doesn’t have a release date yet, Jim Mickle’s We Are What We Are has gotten enough festival buzz to make the film seem like it could be a successful remake – Jorge Michel Grau wrote and directed the 2010 Mexican original – while also rising above Mickle’s other previous lackluster genre efforts. Positivity breeds optimism, which is needed to really get behind his next film, an adaptation of the cult revenge novel Cold in July by revered author Joe Lansdale.

But now Michael C. Hall has joined the project, according to Deadline, and the movie sounds a whole lot better . Hall is best known for his powerful work on HBO’s Six Feet Under, as well as for meticulously killing known murderers and getting into other hijinks on Showtime’sDexter . With that series ending this year, it’s high time for Hall to become one of cinema’s leading men.

In the film, he’ll play protagonist Richard Dane, a man who kills a burglar in self-defense after his house gets broken into. Even though Dane was clearly the innocent guy, the thief’s father doesn’t see it that way and plans to enact Old Testament-style of revenge. Local cops, federal agents and the Dixie Mafia all have a role to play here. I wonder if the vengeful father coming after him will be named Mexter Dorgan.

Hall will next be seen in the Beat Generation thriller Kill Your Darlings, and he’s developing a Showtime series that will adapt Matthew Specktor’s novel American Dream Machine.

Nowadays we all know him as our friendly neighborhood serial killer, Dexter, but even Michael C. Hall himself admits “there’s more to acting than playing a serial killer.”

In the upcoming release The Trouble with Bliss, Hall stars as Morris Bliss, a guy in his mid-30s who calls his widowed father’s (Peter Fonda) apartment his own and actually bunks down in what looks to be his childhood room. Oddly enough, rather than date someone his own age, Morris falls for an 18-year-old student (Brie Larson) who just so happens to be the daughter of an old high school pal (Brad William Henke).

Morris is a pretty interesting specimen. He’s got hopes to make big moves, but seemingly lacks the motivation to do, well, much of anything – quite the opposite of Dexter. In honor of The Trouble with Bliss’ March 23rd limited release, Hall took the time to discuss his Dexter detox, his experience playing a more reactive character, working with writer-director Michael Knowles and much more. Check it all out in the interview below.

This film went through a fairly lengthy preproduction process. Were you on board the entire time?

Michael C. Hall: Yeah, I guess we shot it in the early spring. Initially we were going to do it in the previous fall and it in part didn’t work out because I got sick. But I stayed in touch with the director and they waited for me and reconstituted it all with I think an even better group of actors and so it turned out to be worth the wait. But yeah, as far as the actors go, I think I was the first person on board.

What made you think The Trouble with Bliss was worth sticking with?

I loved that it was a chance to go back to New York and work in the neighborhood I first lived in. I actually lived on East 5th street where Morris lives. I really liked the script, I really liked the character, I relish the opportunity to play someone who is really unspectacular [laughs], who is not uniquely afflicted or remarkably capable in any way. After spending so much time playing Dexter, that was a nice change of pace.

You've somewhat lived in Dexter's mind for about six years now, so do you need to go through a Dexter detox to be able to inhabit another character?

Yeah, I think so. I think just getting off the wheel [laughs], the Dexter wheel, does a lot of my work for me, taking a trip, just getting some time away form it. But I think encountering another character and doing something else really just goes a long way to reminding myself that there’s more to acting than playing a serial killer.

What's the very first thing you like to do when you get a new role? Do you have any sort of routine?

I think the first thing I try to do is read and re-read and re-re-read the script. That’s sort of the road map. And if I’m playing someone who is a real person or was a real person, I’ll do whatever investigating I can to find out about them. Or if I’m playing a person who has some sort of occupation, I’ll try to familiarize myself with what that’s all about. And I think that kind of research is helpful to ground you, but I think ultimately what’s required and the fun of it is the imaginative leap, just the magical what if or as if. What if I were this person? What if these were my given circumstances?

How about for Morris specifically? Is there anything you did for him that you’ve never done before?

I had the luxury of working with people I knew previously and I had the luxury of just hanging out with Chris Messina and Brad Henke in LA and also doing some rehearsals with Brie [Larson]. It’s also something that initially was happening several months before we actually shot it so in that sense I just had so much more time to let it simmer in the oven, you know? I wasn’t living with my widowed father or anything, but I certainly was living with very little money in that very neighborhood when I was just starting out in New York, so I suppose I imagined that all that time I’d spent was good soiling with which to plant the character.

I wouldn't say Morris is a man on a mission in this movie; it's more of a slice of life piece and about just seeing what move he makes next. Is that something that gives you more freedom when portraying a character?

Yeah. I think he described himself as craving direction, but also without direction and as a result it makes him more reactive. He has a sense of openness I think to experience or the possibility of experience and isn’t so directed or compelled. He’s more there to just be open to and listen to and witness whatever comes up for him so that’s sort of a different place from which to operate.

What’s going through your head while on set and just playing him reacting? Are you actually digesting what the other character is saying or doing or are you maybe thinking about direction Michael had just given you?

It varies. You are the horses, you are the chariot, you are the person driving the chariot and at any given moment you’re sort of in one of those three places and ideally some percentage of you is everywhere. It’s hard to say at any given point. You certainly think about what a character is after and try to focus on those things, but as in life, our mind is not always focused. [Laughs] You’ve got to tolerate whatever does or doesn’t come up.

Oh, do I know what you mean! So how about working with Michael? What kind of actor's director is he?

I think he is an actor’s director. Michael spent time as an actor earlier in his career and really, as a result, I think knows how to talk to actors, what to say, what not to say, how to say things simply, how to give suggestions that are really constructive and actable and not vague and esoteric. That was very much appreciated especially on an independent film budget and schedule where you don’t have the time to luxuriate in the myriad of possibilities. You kind of need to make a decision and move forward, so he was great in that sense. And he also just created a really playful and relaxed atmosphere on the set, which I think we all really appreciated.

He’s also an experienced cinematographer and editor, too, so did you notice that helping him at all?

Yeah, he’s cutting the movie in his mind probably as he was directing it and maybe knew what we did and didn’t need as far as his editorial take on what the film would ultimately look like, so it probably made for shorter days. [Laughs]

How many takes were you doing? Did he know what he wanted, get it and just move on?

It’s funny, I think he was to a degree open to being surprised and everything, but I think he knew the story that he hoped to tell and once he was assured he had what he needed, he moved on. No more than two to four takes and sometimes fewer and sometimes, you know, you’re talking about four takes of a scene that plays in one shot, so it’s kind of like which full ride are you gonna go with?

How does that compare to working on a show like Dexter? It's TV, so you're still churning out episodes pretty quickly, but I imagine you might have a little more room to breathe there.

I would say the pace is comparable really. The difference is that on the TV show we’re dealing with sets that we built, that our crew had worked on, that we know how to light, the crew at this point has a groove that they’re in and the actors all know their characters very well. On something like this we’re just jumping in in the deep end and there are so many more variables beyond your control and it’s a little less luxurious in terms of where you hang out between scenes or the craft service table, but it’s nice to be reminded of just how little you do need to make something.

Did you have any Larson’ Brie at craft service?

[Laughs] No, I didn’t.

Was that really the name of the Brie or did the production design team come up with that?

I think they made that as an inside joke.

And how about those paintball guns? Get to have any extra fun with those?

I got to shoot them at the wall, but nobody had any protective gear on so I didn’t shoot any people.