The serial-killing journey of Dexter Morgan begins in this new prequel
Every so often, a story comes along that grips a generation. For many, one such story follows a vigilante serial killer named Dexter Morgan. A semi-sympathetic figure, Michael C. Hall’s iconic character from the 2006-’13 series Dexter walked a razor’s edge between chilling and likable. The Dexter fans know and love is getting a different treatment this time around, as viewers are transported back to a simpler, less criminal time for the budding moral avenger in Dexter: Original Sin.
While Hall returns to the project — which should come as no surprise given his ongoing ties to the franchise, reprising the role in 2021’s Dexter: New Blood — his involvement is limited to narration duties as the actor passes the baton to The OA’s Patrick Gibson. Gibson, who also appeared in the 2019 film Tolkien and the Netflix fantasy series Shadow and Bone, takes young Dexter back to a place of uncertainty while he grapples with strange urges bubbling to the surface as he begins work as a forensics intern at the Miami Metro Police Department.
“Set in 1991 Miami, Dexter: Original Sin follows Dexter . . . as he transitions from student to avenging serial killer,” reads the official Paramount+ press description. “When his bloodthirsty urges can’t be ignored any longer, Dexter must learn to channel his inner darkness. With the guidance of his father, Harry [Christian Slater, Dr. Death], he adopts a code designed to help him find and kill people who deserve to be eliminated from society without getting on law enforcement’s radar.”
The series focuses on Dexter’s descent into the dark world that surrounds his everyday life, from his personal troubles at home to the onslaught of cases coming through the door during his first foray into the professional world at the MMPD. In the trailer, Dexter, voiced by Hall, explains how his unique predilections came to fruition.
“I am a killer, but I wasn’t born this way,” Hall says as Dexter’s conscience, over a series of establishing shots. “I was made — by my history, by the people around me. They say it takes a village to raise a killer.”
Joining Gibson and Slater in the new series are several other big names in cinema and television, including former Grey’s Anatomy star Patrick Dempsey, Christina Milian (Meet Me Next Christmas), Evil’s Molly Brown and Reno Wilson of Good Girls.
Some fans, however, are most excited for the return of another recognizable figure to television: none other than Buffy Summers herself, Sarah Michelle Gellar. While the former Buffy the Vampire Slayer star will, understandably, not be portraying the snarky, vampire-fighting high schooler of 1990s cable in Original Sin, Gellar’s return to series television remains highly anticipated.
Announced as a guest star, Gellar plays young Dexter’s boss, crime scene investigation chief Tanya Martin. And although Gellar hasn’t been completely absent from television in recent years — the actress has voice-starred in everything from The Simpsons to Masters of the Universe: Revelation and appeared in streaming-only series such as Paramount+’s Wolfpack — her casting announcement sent a wave of excitement through the ranks of the diehard Buffy fanbase. Gellar, too, has shown much excitement for the role she referred to as her “dream job” at San Diego Comic-Con in July.
“We’re playing in the ’90s,” says Gellar, who shot to fame in Joss Whedon’s cult classic series in 1997. “I’m used to playing these formidable women and [Tanya Martin] is no exception . . . because women didn’t run departments in those jobs. They certainly didn’t run the science departments, and they certainly didn’t do it in Miami.
“She’s gotta be pretty tough to be able to hang with the guys,” Gellar continued while appearing at Comic Con’s Variety booth. “I’m on set all day long and I’m the only girl.”
Following the San Diego-based convention this past summer, Variety also announced that another sequel series, Dexter: Resurrection, set to take place in the present day, will debut some time in the summer of 2025.
Meanwhile, it’s worth noting that the Dexter franchise has seen a resurgence in popular culture as of late, with the original series ranking second for overall streams in late June of this year.
Dexter: Original Sin premieres on Friday, December 13, on Paramount+