Dexter: Resurrectionbrings the titular serial killer back to his primal urges, though Michael C. Hall wasn’t immediately ready to take back up the mantle. Picking up a few weeks afterDexter: New Blood’s ending, this latest spin-off of the comedic thriller franchise follows Hall’s titular character to New York City to find his son, Harrison (Jack Alcott), after he miraculously survives being shot in the chest by him.
While Dexter’s motive for venturing to the Big Apple is to reconnect with Harrison, his past follows him like a shadow. As much as he attempts to move forward with his life and prioritize being a father,Dexter: Resurrectiontrailer footagehas already revealed that the title character will bring out the saran wrap and knife once again, his go-to method of execution in his kill room in the originalDexterseries, while also having David Zayas' Captain Angel Batista hunting both he and Harrison down.
Ahead of the show’s premiere,ScreenRantinterviewed Michael C. Hall to discussDexter: Resurrection. The executive producer/star opened up about his initial reservations about returning to the character after his apparent death inNew Blood, as well as the emotions Dexter finds himself experiencing as he returns to the rituals of his kill room seen in the original series as he heads to New York.
Michael C. Hall Opens Up About Dexter’s Return To Ritual
“It’s A Release Of An Undeniable Building Tension…”
WhileNew Bloodmay have seen him trying to keep his past where it is,Dexter: Resurrectionseesthe old-school Dexter Morganback in action, complete with bringing back some of the rituals of his iconic kill room,particularly the use of saran wrap for his victims and tormenting them beforehand. Though there have been some variations in the franchise’s past, with certain victims getting more brutal treatments than others, he still often utilizes the rapid form of execution with one fell swoop of a stab to puncture their heart.
“It’s sensual. It’s a release,“Hall shared.“It’s a release of an undeniable building tension that exists within him and that he manages and focuses on what he does. I think for Dexter to really return to his fully realized ritual is sublime.”
“I think that moment right after the deed is done is a rarefied, magical moment, and it’s also one that is immediately followed by a sense of kind of loneliness at the end of that.”
Dexter: Resurrectiontrailer footage has shown the return-to-ritual stabbing as being quite rapid. This could indicate that the kill seen is one more out of necessity rather than one for pleasure, but given Dexter’s facial reaction and Hall’s"sensual"descriptor, it’s clear that he still feels something satisfactory within the action.
Dexter’s Latest Faked Death Hesitated Hall At First
“It Felt Like A Crazy Proposition…”
But just because Dexter cancome back to life, there is still the point of whether he should. That’s a question Hall himself asked before signing on forDexter: Resurrection, as he feltthe character’s ending inDexter: New Bloodwas quite permanent,but became intrigued by the “increasingly interesting proposition” of how the sequel show could explore how that’s changed him.
“I thought he was dead too, and I think Dexter did too, but some time passed,“Hall said.“He wasn’t shot in the head. The possibility always remained that that gunshot didn’t kill him, even though it seemed definitive and it became an increasingly interesting proposition. If it didn’t kill him, what would that look like? How would that change his world? How would it change his approach to being alive, being given a second chance like that?”
Even though those questions intrigued him, Hall still had hesitation about whether those hypotheticals needed to turn into reality. Admitting to having had “misgivings” about the show, particularly ashe feltNew Bloodhad endedhis arc “definitively”, the EP/star recalls feeling it to have been a “crazy proposition” when first approached. What eventually turned Hall’s questions from “what if?” to “what can be?” was the idea that this particularly faked deathwould spark a"second chance"that sees Dexter make some course corrections, while still remaining true to what makes him himself.
“The key for me to making it feel worthwhile is he’s not just still alive, [but] he’s reborn or has a genuine second chance at life,“Hall emphasized.“One that sees him able to put down a lot of what he’s been dragging around. All the collateral damage of his life and [to] reclaim himself in a more kind of streamlined, vital way as a killer. But [he] also experienced a sort of undeniable connection to his human side through a re-commitment to his son. And all of that seemed like a worthwhile launching pad for the story to continue.”
Dexter: Resurrectionpremieres its first two episodes on Paramount+ with SHOWTIME on Friday, July 11.
Dexter: Resurrection
Cast
Dexter: Resurrection follows Dexter Morgan as he awakens from a coma to discover his son, Harrison, missing. His search leads him to New York City, where he confronts his past and the challenges posed by Miami Metro’s Angel Batista, as father and son face their shared darkness.
