‘Dexter’: Who’s Returning, Release Date & More — What We Know So Far About The Killer Revival

Original cast member Jennifer Carpenter is set to return as Deb Morgan in the upcoming revival. Get all the latest updates about the premiere date, cast, and more.

Dexter is returning for season 9 and isn’t holding back on the star power whatsoever. The Dexter revival surprised everyone when it was announced in 2020, and now fans are anxiously awaiting Dexter’s next chapter. Your favorite serial killer will be back for the limited series as well as his sister Deb Morgan.

Jennifer Carpenter is expected to reprise the role of Deb Morgan in the revival. As Dexter fans know, Deb died in the show’s series finale. So, is she alive? From filming news to a possible release date to the storyline, there are a number of things we already know about the Dexter revival. HollywoodLife is breaking down all the crucial updates.

New ‘Dexter’ Teaser

The new teaser opens with Dexter walking down a snowy street in a small town. Everyone calls him “Jimmy” or “Mr. Lindsay,” so it’s clear his new alias is Jim Lindsay. Dexter (as Jim Lindsay) is a sales associate at Fred’s Fish & Game in this small town.

There's something about a small town. #Dexter pic.twitter.com/27m4m364ve

— Dexter on Showtime (@SHO_Dexter) May 27, 2021

Dexter continues to walk past everyone but stops when he sees a knife on display in a window. Dexter knows a thing or two about knives. Dexter is entranced by the knife. He doesn’t say anything, but he does take a deep breath. “There’s something about a small town,” the tagline for the teaser reads.

Jennifer Carpenter, who played Deb in the original series, posted the teaser on her Instagram page and wrote, “I haven’t even watched this one yet—— I just shared it immediately!”

First Teaser

He’s just a soul whose intentions are good.

See what #Dexter has been up to when he comes home to SHOWTIME this Fall. pic.twitter.com/Bh8UC83qn0

— SHOWTIME (@Showtime) April 29, 2021

Showtime released the very first teaser for Dexter season 9 on April 29. The footage, which has Nina Simone’s “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” playing in the background, features Dexter starring out the window into the snow-covered forest, where there’s a fire going. In the reflection of the window, you can see something squirming. You can faintly hear the person screaming. When Dexter turns around, he gives the camera his signature smile. Dexter doesn’t seem to be a lumberjack anymore! No flannel in sight!

Nature is calling. #Dexter pic.twitter.com/tX92KWHZLI

— Dexter on Showtime (@SHO_Dexter) April 22, 2021

A week before the first teaser dropped, Showtime hinted that footage was on the way. Showtime posted a 10-second video the included an ax. “Nature is calling,” the caption read.

Filming

The news of a Dexter revival was announced in Oct. 2020 by Gary Levine and Jana Winograde, Presidents of Entertainment, Showtime Networks Inc. Dexter originally came to an end after 8 seasons in 2013. The new limited series began filming in early 2021.

Release Date

Filming began in early 2021. Showtime initially said that the revival has a tentative premiere date of fall 2021. The April 2021 teaser stressed that the Dexter revival would premiere in fall 2021. The Dexter revival will consist of 10 episodes.

Cast

Michael C. Hall, who played the one and only Dexter Morgan, will return for the limited series. However, he won’t be the only familiar face coming back for the revival.

Jennifer Carpenter, who played Deb Morgan, will return for the Showtime limited series, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Jennifer and John Lithgow, who played the Trinity Killer in the original series, are “expected to appear in flashback scenes as the Dexter update has no plans of re-writing the show’s original canon.”

Jennifer left the door open just a crack about reprising the role of Deb in a series finale post-mortem interview with THR. “[It would take] an extraordinary script many, many, many years from now,” she said. “I don’t know if that’s possible because people don’t come back from the dead.”

John let it slip in an interview with Deadline that Jennifer would be returning for the revival as well. “It was just wonderful to rejoin that gang—including Michael and Jennifer Carpenter and [showrunner] Clyde Phillips,” the Emmy winner said.

Back in 2018, Michael told our sister site Variety that he did not have “any immediate, definitive plans” to return to the character of Dexter Morgan. Over the two years since that interview, the showrunner and Michael found a story worthy of reviving the series.

“We would only revisit this unique character if we could find a creative take that was truly worthy of the brilliant, original series,” Gary, President of Entertainment for Showtime Networks Inc., said in a statement. “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!”

Jamie Chung and Oscar Wahlberg have joined the cast of the revival, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Jamie will play Molly, a “true-crime podcaster from Los Angeles.” Oscar is set to play Zach, the “captain of the Iron Lake High School wrestling team. He’s a bit of a bully, but generally the go-to-guy to have a good time. He’s the gateway to the in-crowd, which includes the daughter of the chief of police.”

The cast also includes Paralympian Katy Sullivan, who recurs as Esther, the “dispatcher at the Iron Lake Police Station.” Clancy Brown will play the show’s main villain. Julia Jones is the town’s chief of police, Alano Miller is a sergeant/high school wrestling coach, Johnny Sequoyah is the chief’s daughter, and Jack Alcott will play Randall, someone whom Dexter has a “meaningful encounter” with in the revival.

Storyline

Dexter was presumed dead after his boat capsized during a hurricane in the series finale. In the show’s shocking final moments, Dexter was revealed to be alive and living a solitary life as a lumberjack in Oregon. The series finale was very controversial, with fans unsatisfied with Dexter’s ending.

The revival will take place 8 years after the Dexter finale, with the serial killer living in a new place “we’ve never seen him before,” executive producer Clyde Phillips told TV Insider. Clyde also hinted at a lot of death in season 9. “Dexter always has what we call ‘the dark passenger’ living inside him,” he continued. “He is more grounded than he’s ever been, but that dark passenger is a voice he cannot deny. This is Dexter. People are going to die.”

The official logline for the revival reads: “Set 10 years after Dexter Morgan went missing in the eye of Hurricane Laura, the revival sees the character now living under an assumed name in a world away from Miami.”

Will There Be A Season 10?

Nothing has been said about extending the revival beyond one season. Since this is television, anything is possible. However, Clyde noted in his interview with TV Insider that the show is “moving forward to an ending that will be surprising but inevitable.” Sounds like the 10-episode revival may have a very definitive ending.