Dexter Morgan has supposedly died twice during his bloody Showtime adventures. In the Dexter series finale, he sailed into a hurricane and was presumed dead but revealed to have begun a new existence as a lumberjack. And at the end of Dexter: New Blood, he instructed Harrison to shoot him, and showrunner Clyde Phillips clarified to viewers, “Dexter is dead.”
Well, the joke was on us, and that’s alright. Not only will Dexter: Original Sin (in which Michael C. Hall will provide the voiceover while his younger self is portrayed by Patrick Gibson of Shadow and Bone) arrive in late 2024 to show us how the vigilante serial killer got his start living by the Code, but Dexter: Resurrection will bring Hall’s character back from the grave. It’s gonna be wall-to-wall Dark Passenger content, y’all, so let’s discuss what we can expect from the revival/sequel series.
Our dude sure was looking dead up there, right? Michael C. Hall has done his best to explain this unexpected outcome by telling Variety, “I don’t know what I am authorized to say other than, it’s really cold out there.” So, we’re expected to believe that the icy cold weather in Iron Lake, New York was enough to slow his blood down and prevent the gunshot from being fatal.
In other words, we’ve got ourselves a case of plot armor because the series has found new life (and death) with the binge-happy Netflix audience. This also provides plenty of fuel for Showtime Entertainment chief Gary Levine to retract those words following the Original Sin finale, which he called “a profoundly powerful conclusion to our beloved and extraordinary series.”
Dexter’s New Start
In Resurrection, Dexter will resume his story “right where we left off” and with multiple seasons in mind. He will naturally need to choose a new home after wearing out his welcome (and the justice system) in both sun-drenched Miami and chilly upstate New York. I’m guessing that Clyde Philips will choose to paint over the lumberjack past and give Dexter a wholly new profession, and Showtime has not clarified whether he will be back in communication (or even in cahoots) with Harrison (Jack Alcott) after the events of Original Sin. If those two are back together, the franchise will have no excuse not to follow up on the flagships series’ most excruciating scene, which might have done as much damage to Harrison’s psyche than being “born in blood.”
The Future of Dexter
For now, concrete plot details are being kept under lock and key, but the series has a significant choice to make: continue in the tradition of delivering gut-punch finales, or decide to deliver a satisfactory outcome for viewers? Heck, Showtime could have a blast eventually making Dexter endure nine lives.
Why We Can't Quit Dexter
Upon announcing this series, Hall did concede that his return was “unbelievable,” but he knows why people can’t quit this TV serial killer:
“I think there’s many different ways this show appeals to people as there are people who watch it. But I think maybe a biding thing is, in a world in which we feel a sense of being out of control people like spending time with a character who’s taking his own, unique control of his little corner of the world. I think we all have our shadow side that we contend with and Dexter’s is obviously a little weightier than most. People enjoy spending time with someone who is doing his best to take responsibility for that side in his sort of outside-the-box way and morally grey way … maybe contending with it in a way that is arguably admirable — even though he’s doing what he’s doing.”
A Familiar Face?
Michael C. Hall would be the only essential ingredient in this series, but it would be nice if Jennifer Carpenter could give him more hell as Debra’s Ghost, and Harrison would feel like a natural continuation of Dexter: New Blood.
The Countdown to Resurrection
Dexter: Resurrection will surface in Summer 2025, which is a quick turnaround but also timed to follow Dexter: Original Sin’s December 2024 arrival.
No dice yet, but seriously, watch this treadmill scene again:
