‘Dexter: New Blood’ Fan Theory Predicts Unexpected Adversary Will Return

Dexter: New Blood is just a few weeks away, and fans are eager to learn what’s next for Michael C. Hall’s Dexter Morgan. The upcoming Showtime show is billed as a standalone property instead of Dexter Season 9, but it will share continuity with the original show (just like Showtime revival of Twin Peaks). That rule means anyone from the initial Dexter run could appear, including villains. While a couple of returns have already been revealed, Reddit users theorized that another antagonist might pop in. This theory proposes that bounty hunter Jacob Elway (Sean Patrick Flanery) could be back to track down Dexter.

“I’ve rewatched the entire series looking for clues about the 9th season,” one fan wrote. “The trailer says ‘you can hide from your past but you can’t run away. Well, the only characters that know who Dexter is are Lumen and Jonah Mitchell. Since Dexter didn’t kill him, he kinda has motive, but I think it’s not him or Lumen. I believe that Elway will kickstart the hunt, since he couldn’t get Hannah on the bus in the last episode. That man’s pride has been shattered right there. I believe he will hunt and find Hannah and, from there, he will know about Dexter.”

It would canonically make sense, for sure. Dexter and his girlfriend, Hannah McKay (Yvonne Strahovski), were the ones that got away for Elway. Hannah fled the country while Dexter disappeared and faked his death. If he caught wind of Dexter being alive, he’d likely go after him to settle the score.

There’s just one problem, though. Flanery has actually gone on record to say he wasn’t invited back for New Blood. In fact, he delivered that disappointing news to us here at PopCulture.com in an interview about his recent movie Born a Champion.

“Man, I had a ball doing that character. I really did. I think there’s so many unexplored avenues to what drives that cat. But no, I hadn’t been approached at all,” Flanery said. “I’m sure they’re going in a very different direction. No idea. I haven’t spoken to anybody about it. But yeah, I don’t know many people that would turn down an opportunity to be on a hit show. You know? I’m sure a lot of people try to sound cool and (downplay it). Come on, man. It’s Dexter. (Laughs) No, I haven’t heard anything about it, other than what I’ve heard on social media and whatnot. But they have me as a viewer, for sure.”

So, unless Flanery was fibbing, it seems that this fan theory is a bust. However, there’s no way to tell until Dexter: New Blood premieres. Stay tuned for more updates on the new show ahead of its premiere on Nov. 7.