‘Dexter’ Star Michael C. Hall Recalled Shooting the ‘Trickiest Scene’ in the Revival
Michael C. Hall portrayed the infamous Dexter Morgan for nearly a decade. Now he has returned to the role in the revival titled Dexter: New Blood. Hall is no stranger to filming complicated scenes. For years he has dealt with voiceovers, talking to phantom family members, and dissecting bodies in a kill room. With all this in mind, the scene Hall found the trickiest to film in the revival might surprise you.
[Spoiler alert: This post contains spoilers for the first episode of Dexter: New Blood, released on Sunday, Nov. 7.]
The premiere of ‘Dexter: New Blood’ reunited father and son
Fans of the series can’t forget Dexter’s disappointing ending. After Deb died, Dexter faked his own death, leaving his son Harrison in the care of Hannah McKay. For the past decade, he has assumed a new identity and is hiding in the small town of Iron Lake, New York.
Dexter appears to have shed his past in the premiere of Dexter: New Blood. He has even abstained from killing for nearly a decade. However, everything comes crashing down when Harrison finds him in his new home.
Dexter takes a step forward to greet his son, but the hallucination of his dead sister Deb reminds him what happens to those he gets close to — they all die. Knowing this, he pretends not to know his son and sends him away in a heartbreaking scene.
The knife twists deeper when Dexter finds a photo of a younger version of himself holding Harrison. This scene was difficult for Hall to film for more reasons than one.
Michael C. Hall discusses his character’s reunion with Harrison
Dexter’s reunion with his son Harrison triggered an emotional response from Hall, especially given the fact that he had to turn the young boy away. “It was absolutely heartbreaking. There was one take where I actually got upset,” Hall said on the Dexter: New Blood Wrap-Up podcast. “Marcos was like, ‘Alright get yourself together because you can’t show him that,’ but it was just so heartbreaking.”
As Hall mentioned, the scene was further complicated by the fact that he had to pretend to not know Harrison at all. Therefore, he couldn’t show too much emotion during the reunion. In addition, Hall had to navigate the hallucination of Deb influencing him in this scene. “I think when I read the script, it felt like it was the trickiest scene, you know the most difficult,” Hall continued.
“It’s certainly one of many instances where the presence of Deb in Dexter’s world and in the world of the show really goes such a long way to showing us what’s going on internally.” Harrison actor Jack Alcott also recalled the reunion made him very emotional. Luckily both actors managed to hold it together while filming.
Where to watch ‘Dexter: New Blood’
In the end, Dexter decides to tell his son that he is his father. He stops Harrison from leaving and brings him back home. The pair definitely has a lot to work through now that they are reunited. The first three episodes of Dexter: New Blood have been released, and are available for streaming on Showtime. The premiere episode is also available for free on YouTube.
Dexter: New Blood airs at 9 p.m. ET on Sundays on Showtime.
