Skip to main content

Dexter fans guessed pretty early on that Kurt Caldwell was the villainous masked gunman in Dexter: New Blood. However, the reason for Kurt’s very specific M.O. has been left a mystery until episode 7. Now fans know why Kurt kills his victims in such a specific manner. However, there are still a few unanswered questions about Kurt’s methods.

[Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for Dexter: New Blood Episode 7.]

Clancy Brown as Kurt in Dexter: New Blood Episode 7. Kurt sits at a table at the diner and smiles, looking up at something.
Clancy Brown as Kurt in ‘Dexter: New Blood’ Episode 7 | Seacia Pavao/Showtime

Kurt Caldwell targets runaways by luring them to his cabin

Kurt has a very specific M.O. He identifies a young runaway passing through Iron Lake and offers her food, money, or some other “kind” gesture. Kurt then lures the woman back to his cabin where he imprisons and observes her.

While Kurt has a victim locked up, he enters into a euphoric mood. Kurt goes to the bar and plays the song “Runaway” by Del Shannon and dances with the bartender. Eventually, Kurt releases his captive, only to shoot her in the back with a rifle as she tries to run away.

‘Dexter: New Blood’ Episode 7 explained Kurt Caldwell’s M.O.

Dexter: New Blood Episode 7 showed a flashback of a young Kurt killing his first victim. This victim was none other than Angela’s friend Iris. Kurt picks up Iris, who intends to run away from Iron Lake, and gives her a ride in his truck. However, Iris gets angry when Kurt says that he should take her home.

A struggle ensues when Iris attempts to jump out of the truck, and she bites Kurt’s hand. Iris escapes the truck and begins to run, but Kurt shoots her in the back. This explains Kurt’s strange M.O. of shooting his victims as they run away.

In an interview with TV Fanatic, Executive Producer Scott Reynolds also explained that Kurt specifically targets women who try to take advantage of him or refuse his help. “If he gives them money and they leave town, they’ve left town. If he offers them a job and they take the job — we did have a sequence where someone took the job, maybe Susan was that person — then everything’s fine,” Reynolds said.

Related

‘Dexter: New Blood’: Clancy Brown Talks Playing a ‘Worse Sociopath’ Than Dexter

“But If they try to sink their hooks into him because they think he’s a good get for money, that’s when it changes for him.” This trend likely stems from Iris refusing to let Kurt take her home where things would be safer.

Dexter: New Blood Episode 7 also explains Kurt’s obsession with the song “Runaway.” When he was a little boy and his father would pick up and abuse sex workers, Kurt would play that song to drown out the noise.

‘Dexter: New Blood’ Episode 7 leaves a few loose ends untied

Although Dexter: New Blood Episode 7 explained Kurt’s bizarre M.O., there are still a few unanswered questions about his methods. Kurt cleans and embalms the bodies of his victims, and it’s important to him that his victims’ faces remain intact.

Many fans have guessed that Kurt is selling the bodies as trophies, perhaps to oil tycoon Edward Olsen. Or maybe, Kurt embalms his victims because Iris became partially mummified in the caves where she was left to die. It’s not clear where Kurt puts the rest of his victims and this could be extremely important later in the series.

New episodes of Dexter: New Blood air Sundays at 9 p.m. on Showtime.

Best in Entertainment