'Dexter: New Blood' Not Canceled, But Season 2 Won't Be Coming Soon
Update, Feb. 11: It appears reports of Dexter: New Blood's demise have been greatly exaggerated. On Monday, The Wall Street Journal talked with Chris McCarthy, the head of Showtime, and reported that the "sequel saga is likely to continue in the future." However, it is just not next on the Dexter franchise docket for Showtime. Instead, the network is working on a prequel and exploring spinoffs, such as one about the Trinity Killer, played by John Lithgow in the core Dexter show.
Original Story: Much like many of Dexter Morgan's victims over the years, Dexter: New Blood is dead. Despite being a huge success for Showtime, it appears the minds behind the show won't be continuing it. While the series effectively wrapped up the story of serial killer Dexter (Michael C. Hall), there was still a road forward by following what happens to his son Harrison (Jack Alcott) after he (spoiler alert) kills his father in the Season 1 finale.
TV Line reported this week that a follow-up to the Dexter sequel series was "in development" but scrapped. The outlet says it would have shown "Harrison picking up where his late father left off." (Harrison has murderous urges of his own but has some different, well-intentioned thoughts on "Harry's Code" for killing.) Instead, Showtime is exploring other ways to expand the Dexter franchise — namely a prequel featuring a young Dexter Morgan.
While the prequel talk grabbed headlines, it's only one option at play. Deadline followed up on TV Line's reporting to stress that "there have been talks about expanding the Dexter universe but that's all they are for now — talks. One of the ideas that has been discussed is a prequel but nothing is solid at this time."
Hypothetically, there are plenty of ways a new Dexter show could go. If you want to leave Dexter himself behind, there are several interesting characters you could follow, like Angel Batista (David Zayas), Angela Bishop (Julia Jones) and Lumen Pierce (Julia Stiles). (We also are curious as to what Yvonne Strahovski's Hannah McKay was up to while raising Harrison — or if she's even actually dead.)
If you're sticking with Dexter, author Jeff Lindsey wrote eight novels and two Marvel comic book series featuring the character. While the first novel, Darkly Dreaming Dexter, is mostly adapted in Season 1 of Showtime's Dexter, the show took on a life of its own and took the plot and characters in different directions. That leaves plenty of fresh material to mine from on-screen, in addition to the neverending possibilities of dropping the Dexter Morgan character into fresh environments. While Dexter: New Blood had plenty of ties to the original eight-season run, it also proved Dexter could be immersed in an all-new setting and thrive.
It does seem that the road is done for Harrison, though. In the meantime, you can see Alcott's talents in one episode of Peacock's new episodic mystery series Poker Face. As for Michael C. Hall, he has been working on his musical project, Princess Goes to the Butterfly Museum.