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On Tuesday, during the UBS Global’s media conference in New York, Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish suggested that Showtime is no longer capable of standing on its own within the company. He also revealed that Paramount is planning to franchise out some Showtime IP in the upcoming year. And considering the huge success of Dexter: New Blood which was the most watched TV show in the history of Showtime, a prequel or a spinoff series announcement is just around the corner!
“It doesn’t make sense to run Showtime as a 100% standalone organization, certainly the brand is valuable, certainly it stands for a certain type of programming with consumers and its going to continue to and we’ll lean into that — but we don’t have to do it as a standalone, we’re doing it as a part of an integrated strategy and that’s both true on the traditional television side and streaming.”
He added: “It doesn’t make sense to have a fully built-out streaming infrastructure separate for Showtime than Paramount+, so we’re going to bring that together and there are economic benefits associated with it. But I want to be clear, the brand still matters. And if anything, I can promise you the slate is going to matter even more. In fact, another thing we’re going to do there is lean more into franchises. We haven’t announced anything on that but we will as we move into 2023.”
Back in late August, now former Showtime President David Nevins revealed network's plans about a Dexter continuation: "There are a lot of things that I am working on. I don’t want to mention things until they are ready. There are a lot of things. What is the future the Dexter franchise? I am actively working on that."
What do you think is Showtime's plan for Dexter? A prequel, a sequel, or... a remake? Time will tell! Be sure to check out this article about everything we know thus far about the continuation of the franchise.