Clyde Phillips On How The Taylor Sheridan-Verse Impressed ‘Dexter’ Franchise Enlargement

SPOILER ALERT: The next reveals main plot factors from Showtime‘s Dexter: Unique Sin premiere episode.

Everybody’s favourite serial killer Dexter Morgan is again within the premiere of Showtime’s Dexter: Unique Sin, the franchise’s first prequel at present accessible to stream through Paramount+ with Showtime.

From creator Clyde Phillips, showrunner on the primary 4 seasons of the OG collection Dexter, Unique Sin is ready in 1991 Miami. It follows a younger Dexter (Patrick Gibson), as he transitions from scholar to avenging serial killer. When his bloodthirsty urges can not be ignored, Dexter should study to channel his interior darkness.

With the steerage of his father, Harry (Christian Slater), he adopts a Code designed to assist him discover and kill individuals who should be eradicated from society with out getting on legislation enforcement’s radar. It is a specific problem for younger Dexter as he begins a forensics internship on the Miami Metro Police Division.

Phillips spoke to Deadline at a junket and the present’s premiere in New York Metropolis this week the place he revealed what impressed him to journey again in time and increase the universe.

“After we wrote [Dexter: New Blood], Chris McCarthy from Paramount and MTV Leisure got here in and mentioned, ‘You realize, I’m a Yellowstone man. I do prequels not sequels, like 1883 and 1923.’ Because it seems, I had seen Yellowstone, 1883 and 1923; I simply love these exhibits,” shared Phillips.

“So Chris requested if I may give you a prequel within the subsequent 10 days. I sat with a few writers and we discovered ourselves actually excited in regards to the alternative to return to the roots and discover how Dexter is fated to be who he’s,” he added.

Phillips notes that after displaying Showtime’s Gary Levine and McCarthy their work, the latter mentioned, “Go ahead, phenomenal. Let’s do it.”

To additional connect with the Taylor Sheridan-verse, Phillps revealed they used Yellowstone‘s casting administrators, John Papsidera and Kim Winther’s firm to forged Unique Sin.

Michael C. Corridor, who famously performed grownup Dexter within the mothership collection, dedicated to the prequel as an govt producer and the present’s narrator, it was introduced at SDCC earlier this yr. He additionally makes a short look within the premiere episode of Unique Sin displaying the connection between it and New Blood.

“I don’t see how we may’ve performed this with out Michael’s participation,” Phillips shared. “Michael is the chief producer of this present and he brings us dwelling. It makes the viewers come again. Once you hear Michael’s voice, you lean ahead. And I would like the viewers to be leaning ahead all through the entire present.”

He continued, “Michael C. Corridor’s voice additionally has humor and resonance. You get the sense that Patrick Gibson is fated to change into Dexter, there’s no escaping it. As a result of we’re listening to Michael’s voice and watching Patrick, if you already know in regards to the OG present, you already know that Dexter survives and that’s vital. It offers us extra possibilities at extra storytelling.”

The Unique Sin premiere “And within the Starting…,” picks up moments after the occasions of New Blood after Dexter has been shot by his now grownup son Harrison (Jack Alcott). Whereas the finale led viewers to consider Dexter had died, it was by no means confirmed. This tactic was definitely used to see whether or not there was an urge for food for extra tales and there completely was. The restricted collection was topped Showtime’s most-watched collection in historical past, averaging over 8 million weekly viewers throughout all of the premium cabler’s platforms.

Again to the premiere of Unique Sin, Dexter’s physique is discovered after having been shot and rushed in a police automobile to the native hospital within the small fictional city of Iron Lake, New York the place he had been residing as an area wilderness retailer clerk, Jim Lindsay. As an apart, the surname of Lindsay is a nod to the writer Jeff Lindsay who wrote the collection of novels that impressed the mothership collection which ran for 8 seasons from 2006 to 2013.

Current day Dexter results in the emergency room the place he’s in important situation together with his survival wanting bleaker by the minute. Abruptly, issues take a flip for the higher as medical doctors revive the serial killer’s heartbeat.

“It truly is like they are saying, your life flashes earlier than your eyes…,” says Dexter because the scene pivots to the second of his beginning.

“To an ideal extent, that’s what now we have completed and what we got down to do,” mentioned Phillips of the distinctive method of tying the exhibits collectively. “100 years in the past, I needed to finish [Dexter] with him on the execution desk together with his life flashing earlier than his eyes however that by no means occurred. In an odd approach, we acquired to make it occur anyway.”

Whereas it is likely to be doable to start your Dexter franchise journey with Unique Sin, it will be greatest to binge Dexter after which New Blood, in that order. After Unique Sin is over, it’s going to make approach for the brand new collection, Resurrection, which can go into manufacturing in early 2025. To be clear, Resurrection is ready within the current day and can star Corridor with narration by Gibson.

Unique Sin additionally stars Reno Wilson, Christina Milian, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Molly Brown, Alex Shimizu and James Martinez.

For followers of the unique collection, there are many Easter eggs scattered all through Season 1. By going again in time, the writers are in a position to resolve theories as soon as and for all like Dexter’s true parentage, which will probably be tackled in a later episode.

“It was liberating; there’s a lot secrecy on a serial killer present,” he mentioned with a smile when requested how he felt about resolving the theories. “For individuals who like Easter eggs, that is an Easter egg hunt. Within the writers room, now we have a blast with this. There’s a scene the place—wait, I can’t give that one away. Folks from the previous, their presence is felt, identified, or secretly seen on this present. And since we happen in two time intervals, we are able to do flashbacks inside our personal present. We’re in 1991 however flashback to 1973 and see Harry and Laura Moser get collectively, study their affair and meet Child Dexter. You’ll study what’s change into folklore; study the lore of the present which is that Dexter is certainly fated. His future is ready and there’s nothing he can do about it,” Phillips concluded.