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After a cat and mouse game spanning several episodes, Dexter Morgan finally got Kurt Caldwell on his table this week. In “The Family Business,” the penultimate episode of Dexter: New Blood, he and Harrison Morgan subdued and killed Kurt to avenge the deaths of several women in Iron Lake. But some viewers are questioning whether Kurt acted alone. Did he have an accomplice? The answer seems to lie in the scene of Kurt Caldwell’s death.

[Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for Dexter: New Blood Episode 9.]

Clancy Brown as Kurt in Dexter: New Blood. Kurt wears his snowsuit and white ski mask and points a rifle at someone.
Clancy Brown as Kurt in ‘Dexter: New Blood’ | Seacia Pavao/Showtime

Kurt Caldwell was killed for murdering a string of women in ‘Dexter: New Blood’

Viewers were first introduced to Kurt in Dexter: New Blood Episode 2, when he arrived in Iron Lake to assist in the search for his son, Matt, who, unbeknownst to him at the time, had been killed by Dexter. He was the owner of the local truck stop and a seemingly upstanding member of the Iron Lake community. But in a surprise twist, Kurt was also revealed to be a serial killer.

He preyed on women who were transients and runaways, kidnapping and killing them in a ritualistic way. Dexter and Harrison came across Kurt Caldwell’s trophy room in Dexter: New Blood Episode 9, giving them the evidence needed to act and finally kill Kurt.

Did Kurt Caldwell have an accomplice?

Although Kurt claimed responsibility for the women before his death, telling Dexter on his table that it was “all [him],” some fans thought he was possibly covering for someone. Edward Olsen, the billionaire from earlier episodes, was one of the characters that fans felt could have been working with Kurt. But Clancy Brown, who played the serial killer, has confirmed that Kurt worked alone.

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“I was kind of relieved that he didn’t have any partners in this crime,” he told Collider. “He didn’t have anybody covering up for him. I mean, I guess there was Elric [Kane] that was a henchman in a way, but I don’t think Elric was really smart enough to know exactly what was going on. Maybe he was, but we’ll never know.”

Brown noted that he hadn’t seen the final cut of the episode at the time of the interview but said he knew all along that Kurt would die.

“I mean, it’s Dexter. He’s not going to survive,” he continued. “We know he’s not going to survive. We don’t know how, but we know he’s not going to make it. The last episode, I don’t know what happens in it. That’s been completely redacted from me. Which is fine. I’m looking forward to seeing it. But I read through Episode 9. I read up until then. And I think it started to get redacted right after I got killed. It gives me a reason to tune in.”

The finale of ‘Dexter: New Blood’ airs on Sunday

After Kurt’s murder, Dexter and Harrison returned home to find their cabin had been burned down. Audrey Bishop invited them to her and Angela’s place for breakfast, where Angela found a letter from someone claiming Dexter killed Matt. What she does with that information remains to be seen. But fans will find out when the Dexter: New Blood finale airs on Showtime on Sunday, Jan. 9.

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