WARNING: SPOILERS ahead for Dexter and Dexter: New Blood.

The fast-approaching Dexter sequel series, Dexter: Resurrection, must avoid making the same mistake that the original series and the first sequel series, Dexter: New Blood, made in their respective finales. While the first four seasons of Dexter are widely considered some of the best television of the 21st century, Dexter seasons 5-8 are comparatively less effective, with the series finale often considered a major letdown for Dexter fans. While the franchise was thought to be over for years, showrunner Clyde Phillips brought Dexter back to life for Dexter: New Blood in 2021.

Dexter survived the gunshot at the end of Dexter: New Blood. Hall, who provided the voiceover narration to Patrick Gibson's portrayal of Dexter in Original Sin, was shown in the back of a police car, alive but bleeding, likely on the way to the hospital.

Dexter Already Had Two Poorly Received Finales

The Original Series & New Blood's Finales Were Both Disappointing

Both the original Dexter and Dexter: First Blood finale episodes failed to deliver satisfying conclusions, which fortunately has inspired more attempts to expand the franchise and eventually close it out properly. While First Blood seemingly killed Dexter after just one season, his brief return in Dexter: Original Sin and confirmed role in Dexter: Resurrection thwarted all fears that New Blood's ending would stick. Many fans believed that New Blood, somehow, made a worse finale than Dexter season 8's infamous hurricane and lumberjack ending. Following the release of New Blood, Phillips and Hall even confirmed that Dexter was dead, only to (fortunately) walk that claim back.

Both Dexter: Original Sin and Dexter: Resurrection plan to run for multiple seasons, offering more glimpses into Dexter's backstory while also moving his coded serial killer character to a brand-new chapter. Resurrection will feature Dexter waking up from a coma and searching New York City to find his missing son, Harrison, only to be confronted by his old Miami Metro colleague, Angel Batista.

The sequel series will also see the return of James Remar as Dexter's guide from the dead, seemingly replacing Dexter's sister, Deb, who took his place in New Blood.

Resurrection will also feature an exciting ensemble cast of new characters, including Krysten Ritter, Peter Dinklage, David Dastmalchian, Uma Thurman, and Neil Patrick Harris. The sequel series will also see the return of James Remar as Dexter's guide from the dead, seemingly replacing Dexter's sister, Deb, who took his place in New Blood. This should make Resurrection feel like a more familiar season of Dexter than New Blood, which notably took place thousands of miles from Miami.

Dexter: Resurrection Needs To Stick The Landing

If Resurrection Is The Final Sequel Series, It Has To Nail Dexter's Ending

With Dexter: Resurrection intending to last beyond a single season, it needs to come to a satisfying end while also avoiding dragging on for too long. It's possible that Dexter: Resurrection could last one season under that title, only to spawn another sequel series under a different title. Regardless, whether Resurrection is two seasons long or matches the eight-season run of the original series, the most crucial aspect of its creation will be finally nailing Dexter's ending. After casting him into obscurity in the original series and "faking" killing him in New Blood, Dexter's potential Resurrection demise calls for a Breaking Bad level of execution.

With the proven streaming success of Dexter: Original Sin, which did such a great job of recreating that classic Dexter feel, Resurrection should be just as popular, if not more. Original Sin is sort of off the hook in of its ending, since so much of Dexter's backstory is already established, and it can only go up to the first scene of Dexter season 1. The pressure is certainly on the Dexter: Resurrection writing staff to get Dexter's conclusion right this time around. The good news is, they should have at least a couple of seasons to figure it out.