A ‘Dexter’ Cast Member Has Contradicted A Report That Original Cast Members Won’t Be Returning

When Showtime announced that it would be bringing back its all-time biggest hit, Dexter, back in 2020, the assumption at that time would be that the series would return to its former locale in Miami and simply pick up back there nearly a decade later. However, we have since learned that it will be set in upstate New York (but filmed in Western Massachusetts) and that Dexter himself has recently relocated from Canada.

The relocation made it seem less likely that many of the original series stars would be returning (and that might be a good thing). James Remar, who originally played Dexter’s father/his Dark Passenger, even said as much, saying that the revival “didn’t ask any of the original cast back,” even though there is some evidence that Jennifer Carpenter’s Debra Morgan has been seen on the set.

This week, Lovecraft Country’s Jamie Chung — who has been cast as a true-crime podcaster in the revival — made some news by suggesting that the new season will be “darker than the original” and “have a different vibe.” That’s not all Chung said, however. She also added that people have been “stalking the set” and “production is being very diligent about hiding and whatnot.”

That diligence may, in fact, extend to asking potential returning cast members, like James Remar, to keep mum on their returns, because Chung also added that the revival will “have a lot of fresh faces, but a lot of familiar ones,” too. “A lot” of familiar faces seems to suggests that there will be more returning characters besides Dexter himself, or even Debra Morgan. “A lot of familiar ones,” in fact, seems to imply more than a few returning characters. She added, “I think it will certainly satisfy everyone’s appetite, especially if you’re a big Dexter fan.”

A “big Dexter fan” would probably not be “satisfied” without the return of Dexter, Debra, and Masuka, at the very least, and if they were really going to be satisfied, appearances from Batista, Quinn, Hannah, and Dexter’s son, Harrison, would probably also be in order.

In other words, while Chung made some news by saying the revival would be “darker” than the original, the more interesting detail is the one that contradicted earlier accounts that there would be no original cast members returning. Given the level of secrecy on the set, it’s hard to say whether Chung misspoke or Remar was fibbing.

No return date has been set for Dexter, but Showtime has tentatively stated that it could return in the fall.