Seven different actors have played Dexter Morgan inDexterand its spinoff shows, and all of them brought something unique to the iconic serial killer. Afterfour distinctDextershows, the franchise has shown several different moments in the titular serial killer’s life. From the birth of his Dark Passenger to his recent “rebirth” inDexter: Resurrection, we’ve seen a lot of Dexter Morgan.
Showing so many different moments in Dexter’s life - over the course of nearly two decades, no less - is no easy feat.Dexterhas had to recast Dexter several times with younger actors, and after 19 years, there have been seven different people who played Dexter at some point in time. From rising stars to child actors, here’s everyone who played the Bay Harbor Butcher.
7Michael C. Hall
Dexter, Dexter: New Blood, Dexter: Original Sin, & Dexter: Resurrection
The man who played Dexter Morgan first, longest, and most memorably is none other than Michael C. Hall. From the pilot ofDexterin October 2006 to the latest show,Dexter: Resurrection, in 2025, Hall has been playing the Bay Harbor Butcher for almost 19 years. Hall was born in February 1971, meaning he’s been playing Dexter from age 35 to age 54, and presumably longer.
Michael C. Hall has mostly played Dexter as an adult in the four shows he’s starred in so far. However, he also briefly played Dexter as a young adult just out of college with the help of a shaggy wig in the original series. Hall also starred inDexter: Original Sin, though aside from some scenes following up onNew Blood’s ending, he only lent a voice-over to the prequel show.
Dexter Morgan is, in many ways, the role of Hall’s career. He received huge acclaim for his nuanced take on the darkly comedic serial killer, and he’s either played or voiced Dexter in every single show, including theforgottenDexter: Early Cuts. While Hall has made other movies and shows, his returns inNew BloodandResurrectionprove that he can step right back into the role.
6Patrick Gibson
Dexter: Original Sin
The only other actor to play Dexter for more than a few brief scenes is Patrick Gibson.Gibson began playing Dexter Morgan in the prequel seriesDexter: Original Sinat the end of 2024. SinceOriginal Sinfollows Dexter’s first few kills while he’s in his early 20s, the series decided to pass the mantle onto the younger Gibson while Michael C. Hall lent his voice as Dexter’s inner monologue.
Though Gibson’s tenure as the Bay Harbor Butcher has only just begun, it’s already set to continue.Original Sinseason 2has already been confirmed, and Gibson is set to reprise his role as Dexter in the new season. Gibson was also born in April 1995, meaning he started playing the 20-year-old Dexter when he was 29 and will be playing him for an indeterminate amount of time.
Many of the reviews for Original Sin praised Gibson and called him a worthy successor to the role of Dexter Morgan.
Michael C. Hall left massive shoes to fill, but Patrick Gibson has already proven himself up to the task. Many of thereviews forOriginal Sinpraised Gibson and called him a worthy successor to the role of Dexter Morgan.Outside ofDexter, Gibson is known for shows likeThe OA, and he’s even set to play James Bond in the upcoming video game007: First Light.
5Dominic Janes
Dexter Seasons 1 & 2
The second person to ever play Dexter Morgan after Michael C. Hall was Dominic Janes.Janes played Dexter as an adolescent boy for five episodes ofDexterseasons 1 and 2. At that time, most of Harry Morgan’s (James Remar) scenes in the show were flashbacks to Dexter’s childhood rather than hallucinations experienced by Dexter as an adult, so younger versions of Dexter were more commonly seen.
Dominic Janes began playing Dexter in 2006, when he was 12 years old, and had his final scene in 2007. Though Janes was a fairly prominent child actor - he appeared in shows likeERandOut of Jimmy’s Head- he stopped acting in 2009.Dexterwould mostly move away from flashbacks in general, but Janes was eventually replaced by a younger actor.
4Nicholas Vigneau
Dexter Season 7
As previously mentioned,Dextermostly moved away from flashbacks in season 3.However, inDexterseason 7, Nicholas Vigneau had a few brief appearances as adolescent Dexter.Dexterseason 7 saw Debra Morgan (Jennifer Carpenter) learn that Dexter was a serial killer, so the show included a few flashbacks to moments in their childhood where he almost let his secret slip.
Since he was a child actor, there isn’t much information about Nicholas Vigneau, including his age.Vigneau played Dexter in his pre-teen years, but as his two episodes ofDexterseason 7 were Vigneau’s only acting credits, he never had another role.
3Maxwell Huckabee
EveryDexterfan knows the story of how Dexter got his Dark Passenger.Dexter was trapped in a shipping container while his mother, Laura Moser, was murdered, and the actor who took on that scene was Maxwell Huckabee. Dexter was about four years old when Laura died, so Huckabee played the youngest version of the character we’ve ever seen.
While he was only featured in a handful of flashbacks without any audible dialogue, Maxwell Huckabee’s portrayal of Dexter Morgan proved to be rather important. For years, Huckabee was the face of the greatest tragedy in Dexter’s life and the start of his homicidal tendencies. WheneverDexterneeded an emotional punch, it used footage of Huckabee sitting in a pool of blood.
For years, Huckabee was the face of the greatest tragedy in Dexter’s life and the start of his homicidal tendencies.
Not much is known about Huckabee outside of acting, including his age.Huckabee was a rather prominent child actor, as he appeared in a handful of guest roles on shows likePretty Little Liarsand also portrayed Robert Draper inMad Menseason 1. Since 2012, however, Huckabee hasn’t had another acting role and has mostly retired from showbusiness.
2Devon Graye
Certainly the most prolific actor to portray Dexter Morgan, aside from Michael C. Hall and Patrick Gibson, is Devon Graye. Devon Graye played Dexter as a teenager inDexterseasons 1 and 2, at the same time that Dominic Janes was playing the adolescent Dexter. Graye’s scenes saw Dexter buck against the Code of Harry and try to start his career as a serial killer.
Graye was 18 years old when he played Dexter, who was between the ages of 14 and 18 during Graye’s scenes. Many of Graye’s flashbacks reference Dexter’s struggles to fit in at high school and his growing desire to kill. Interestingly, no one else has portrayed Dexter as a teenager aside from Graye: every other actor was either a child or an adult.
Like Dominic Janes,Devon Graye was phased out ofDexterafter season 2, when the show began using James Remar as a hallucination instead of a memory. Since then, Graye has gone on to have a fairly prolific acting career in movies likeNopeand shows likeThe Lincoln Lawyer. He also had a memorable role on the CW’sThe Flashas the Trickster.
1Eli Sherman
Dexter: Original Sin & Dexter: Resurrection
Maxwell Huckabee’s portrayal of Dexter Morgan as a toddler stood unopposed for a long time, untilOriginal Sin.Eli Sherman played Dexter as a four-year-old inOriginal Sin, and the prequel series went into much more detail about Dexter’s childhood than the original show did. Sherman did redo Laura Moser’s death, but he also had moments with Brian Moser, Harry, and more.
Interestingly enough,Eli Sherman is also the only actor other than Michael C. Hall to portray Dexter in more than one show. He played the young Dexter inOriginal Sin, butDexter: Resurrectionhas also used footage of Sherman sitting in the shipping container where Laura Moser was killed. He’s also one of just three actors to appear in bothOriginal SinandResurrection.
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Based onOriginal Sin’s renewal andResurrection’s strong start, it also looks like Sherman will have a chance to play Dexter for a long time coming.Original Sinis almost sure to dive deeper into Dexter’s childhood, andResurrectioncould easily reference some of those moments. For now, at least, it looks like the list ofDexteractors is going to remain stable.
