‘Dexter’ Revived at Showtime, Michael C. Hall to Return

Showtime’s murder-centric series, Dexter, came to an end after eight seasons in 2013. Nearly a decade later, the premium cable platform is bringing Dexter Morgan back for a limited-run 10-episode series. More importantly, star Michael C. Hall will return to his role as the blood splatter analyst for the Miami Metro Police Department who moonlights as a serial killer.

According to TVLine, Hall is not the only original key person returning for the Dexter revival. Original executive producer Clyde Phillips is also coming back. He will serve as the showrunner for the revival. The continuation of Morgan’s story is set to begin production this winter. The show has an expected release date sometime in fall 2021.

“Dexter is such a special series, both for its millions of fans and for Showtime, as this breakthrough show helped put our network on the map many years ago,” said Showtime president Gary Levine in a statement. “We would only revisit this unique character if we could find a creative take that was truly worthy of the brilliant, original series. Well, I am happy to report that Clyde Phillips and Michael C. Hall have found it, and we can’t wait to shoot it and show it to the world!”

Dexter originally aired, starting in 2016, as a Showtime-exclusive series. It ran for eight seasons before airing a controversial series finale. Spoilers ahead for the end of Dexter. At the end of the show, Morgan fakes his own death and moves to the Pacific Northwest to begin a life as a lumberjack. He left his son, Morgan, with Hannah McKay (Yvonne Strahovski). Fans criticized the ending while proclaiming that it was unsatisfying.

Showtime has long discussed the idea of bringing back Dexter following the controversial ending. Former president David Nevins touched on the idea in 2014 following a panel about Homeland. He said that a spin-off would only take place if Hall agreed to join the project. “It would have to involve Michael… If we were to do it, I’d only do it with Michael,” Nevins said at the time.

Along with Hall as Morgan and Strahovski as McKay, Dexter included a stacked cast of regulars and guest stars. Jennifer Carpenter played Det. Deb Morgan, David Zayas played Sgt. Angel Batista, C.S. Lee played fellow lab analyst Vince Masuka and James Remar co-starred as Morgan’s dead father, Harry Morgan. Julie Benz, Desmond Harrington, Erik King and Luna Lauren Velez also had key roles throughout the show’s run.