When people talk about which shows had the worst ever series finales, Dexter often comes up, with the last episode of its eighth season going down as a misfire on all counts. But it looks like we won’t be seeing the drama appear in those kind of discussions anymore as Showtime is resurrecting Dexter Morgan this fall for a limited series revival, with Michael C. Hall back once more as everyone’s favorite serial killer.
And it seems Hall is pleased to be back. While speaking to Forbes, the actor opened up about how “gratified” he is that the “confounding” series finale didn’t “sour” fans on the idea of more Dexter. As he explained:
“I’m gratified, thankful, and relieved? No doubt the way it concluded, if you can even use that word, at the end of the season proper was a way that was, at best, confounding to people. The fact that sense of being confounded didn’t completely sour people to the idea of finding out what the hell happens to the guy was something I’m very grateful for.”
The show’s original run ended with Dexter faking his death following the tragic demise of his sister, Debra (Jennifer Carpenter), assuming the life of a lumberjack in Oregon. The revival, titled Dexter: New Blood, isn’t exactly retconning the finale away but it is moving things in a different direction. Taking place around a decade later, it picks up with Dexter laying low in Iron Lake, a sleepy town in upstate New York.
Hall will be joined by a couple of familiar faces from Dexter’s past. Surprisingly, Carpenter is confirmed to return as Debra, likely through either flashbacks or hallucinations. As is his most notorious villain, Arthur Mitchell AKA the Trinity Killer (John Lithgow). Otherwise, the cast of New Blood is made up of, er, new blood. including Jamie Chung, Julia Jones, Alano Miller and Clancy Brown as new foe, Kurt Caldwell.
Despite Hall’s fears, if anything the disappointment of season 8 probably made fans more eager for a revival than they otherwise would’ve been. In most cases, reboots of beloved shows are viewed with skepticism as fans don’t want to mess up something that worked the first time around. In this case, Dexter needed fixing so most are hyped for New Blood. Catch the 10-part season when it premieres on Showtime this October.
