Fans of Showtime’s Dexter may be in for a chilling treat. According to Deadline, a prequel series focusing on the infamous Trinity Killer is reportedly in development, with the original showrunners, Clyde Phillips (Feed the Beast, Dexter: Original Sin) and Scott Reynolds (Jessica Jones, Iron Fist) in charge of the production.
According to Deadline, Arthur Mitchel, played by John Lithgow (The Old Man, 3rd Rock From the Sun) first appeared in the original series for 12 episodes, and then reappeared in the sequel series, New Blood, for two. Arthur has a deep connection with Dexter, played by Michael C. Hall (Stars vs The Forces of Evil, Six Feet Under) as the two try to outsmart each other.
“We wrote the entire Trinity Killer series. At the moment, it is on the back burner,” Phillips shared with Deadline. “John Lithgow has agreed to be the voice of his younger self the way Michael Hall is doing for [Original Sin]. There’s that and we’re doing another show with Michael C. Hall, [Resurrection]… We were writing that while shooting Original Sin, so that’s fairly busy. We begin shooting [Resurrection] in January and it will air in June 2025.”
According to Deadline, Phillips created Arthur Mitchell specifically for the show and was not pulled from the novels by Jeff Lindsay (Dexter by Design, Dexter Is Delicious). Other than the few details of the character’s traumatic childhood revealed in the original series, the prequel show will develop more of his backstory.
This update comes amidst rumors the prequel series was dead, according to Deadline. However, scripts had been written this spring moving the project forward at Paramount+. The prequel series joins the currently running Original Sin, which follows a young Dexter Morgan’s journey to becoming the visceral killer of serial killers. Set in the 1990s, Patrick Gibson (The OA, Shadow and Bone) has taken on the role of the budding murderer.
Premiering this month, Dexter: Original Sin has already garnered 2.1 million global viewers between the two streaming platforms within the first three days of the series premiere, via Deadline. Paramount also relayed it is the platform’s most-streamed premiere. Soon the show will be joined by the continuation of Dexter: New Blood titled Dexter: Resurrection which will see the return of Hall.
The prospect of a Dexter prequel exploring the Trinity Killer has generated significant buzz among fans. While waiting on further information on the prequel’s development, the original Dexter series is available to stream on Netflix and Paramount+ With Showtime. Dexter: New Blood is available on Paramount+ With Showtime; Original Sin airs new episodes on Fridays at 10 p.m. ET.