The actor talks about rekindling Dexter Morgan’s journey, why the original series finale was criticized in 2013, and the moral behind playing such a controversial character
After all these years, Michael C. Hall is back in the role that made him a global phenomenon.
The 50-year-old reprises his iconic character of Dexter Morgan—for which he won a Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award—in new series Dexter: New Blood, which follows the journey of everyone’s favorite serial killer, a decade after she goes missing in the eyes of Hurricane Laura.
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In new bloodDexter is now living under a fictitious name in the fictional small town of Iron Lake, New York. But in the wake of unexpected events in this close-knit community, his Dark Passenger inevitably comes to the fore.
Michael, who is currently lead vocalist in the band Princess Goes to the Butterfly Museum, is excited to be back — and he returns in a new iteration alongside Jennifer Carpenter as Dexter’s sister Deb and Jack Alcott, Dexter’s teenage son. Starring as Harrison. With Clyde Phillips also returning as a showrunner for the new series, expectations are at an all-time high.
Excerpts from an interview with the actor:
How did you decide it was the right time for Dexter to return?
I think it’s been enough time for the show to reappear for some surprises, but hopefully not that much time has passed so that we can attract some new people to the show as well as expand the already existing audience. could not take advantage. It was very gratifying to go back and see the character again, and some storytelling opportunities have now surfaced, especially with Dexter’s son reaching a certain age.
still from the show
It was also really nice to be in an environment that was so contextually different, even so unlike what we were used to. It helped to reinforce the change that is happening to the character internally, and the time that has passed.
Despite the fact that he’s doing it under a fictitious name — and pretending to be someone he’s not — Dexter is at the same time making a legitimate effort to be as normal a person as ever. For, trying to have a real relationship and live a life that is as full as he can handle while being sober.
What a lot of fans are most excited about is the reunion of Dexter’s son, Harrison, on the show. Jack Alcott, who plays Harrison, is one of the most exciting young talents in Hollywood. What were the equations between the two of you on the sets?
You know, it’s one of the wild things that we do as actors, jump into something with relative strangers and provide whatever is needed. I was just grateful that Jack is someone who is incredibly talented and has great instincts. I think he’s someone I can trust to be Rita and Dexter’s child. A lot of the experiences or chemistry that exist between us – or have been on set – were all spontaneous and untold. I was happy to share those scenes with an actor who was so cool.
Did you get a lot of negative feedback after how the original series ended in 2013?
Nope, everyone seemed to love it! was a joke (laughs)
Yeah, I think the finale was, at best, mysterious, if not confusing or infuriating to people. We didn’t hear from Dexter in the end, he didn’t say anything we were used to hearing from him, and he didn’t tell us what was going on with him.
He just disappeared, grew a beard and started cutting down trees. This was quite unsatisfactory for people, especially in an environment that has become accustomed to actually finally moving on and being satisfied by them. So yes, I get it. But it certainly set the stage for a return, where we could more definitively answer the question of what ultimately happened, or what happens to Dexter.
How does one prepare to get back in the shoes of an already established character after a decade has passed?
I was preparing for exactly what I did, and whatever time I spent playing the character for that time during the series. Ever since the show ended, I knew at least there was a possibility of a comeback. So maybe, somewhere inside me, he was still… cooking.
Michael: “Even after all that time, I still had an intuitive sense of who and how Dexter was.”
Part of the preparation was also just investing in the new story we were telling. But eventually I had to come on set and just jump back in. And when I did, I found that Dexter didn’t feel like a stranger to me. Even after all that time, I still had an intuitive sense of who and how he was. To consider all the time that has passed, and the fact that we do not listen to every nook and cranny of the details between then and now when we engage with it; It was a fun, imaginative leap.
The opening sequence for the show, where you have Iggy Pop’s passenger As for the score… in a way, it alludes to the fact that you worked with David Bowie towards the end of his life (Michael played the lead in Bowie’s musical) LazarusWhat do you remember about that experience?
Using the passenger Originally there was something that Scott Reynolds (executive producer) suggested. And of course, Dexter has a dark past of his own and felt right. So no seriousness there, it wasn’t my job. But working with Bowie was not only the highlight of my career but also the highlight of my life. To be accused of embodying that character, and a production that was part of the eventual artistic flourish of his life, was humbling and truly unbelievable. It inspired me to pursue music more than I might have otherwise.
He is one of the seminal artists of the last century, and he was also such an incredibly kind and really enthusiastic person.
Lastly, what were your thoughts on revisiting the character of Dexter, in terms of morality?
I never thought of this show which advocates serial killer life. It certainly portrayed someone who was taking responsibility for all of that in his very outward sense of morality and his very deepest impulses. But when we reconnect with him Dexter is in the process of finding out that you can’t run away from your past.
Their appetite for a more authentic human experience of life is good and all, but it’s not something that actually goes hand in hand with killing people. He was convinced that the ending of the original series was, and in a way, showing a sense of long penance.
So, yeah, the moral of the show, I don’t want to speak too definitively about it, because I think that’s part of what makes the experience of watching it interesting. But it’s definitely something I thought about, and that component of the show is on a different ground this time around.
Dexter: New Blood, a 10-episode special event series, is streaming November 8 on Voot Select
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