Who might portray the notorious serial killer, and how old could he be?
With just two months to go until Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 begins filming, anticipation continues to grow as April approaches. Official announcements are expected to come soon, including new casting additions, but the spotlight is already above on one character who was teased in Season 1: Don Framt.
Publicly linked to the infamous New York Ripper, a serial killer responsible for dozens of murders across New York City, Don Framt is actually expected to play a far more significant role in the upcoming season than originally planned. Showrunner Clyde Phillips recently revealed that the creative team increased the character’s importance because of strong fascination from viewers, meaning that he could become one of the franchise’s most compelling antagonists.
The Season 1 finale delivered a major breakthrough for the NYPD, finally connecting the case pursued by Detective Claudette Wallace for decades, to the name “Don Framt.” Yet, even this revelation actually raised more questions than answers. Many fans suspect the name is incomplete or...an alias, something that reinforces the idea that the story surrounding the New York Ripper is only beginning to unfold.
The biggest question now is simple but also crucial: who will portray Dexter Morgan’s next big antagonist?
Throughout Season 1’s ten-episode run, theories about the Ripper’s identity were everywhere. Speculation centered on both new and returning characters from across the Dexter universe, with fans convinced that a familiar face might actually be hiding in plain sight. Those theories ultimately collapsed once the season ended, and official comments from the writers ruled out every known character. The New York Ripper, it seems, is someone the audience has not met yet.
While the identity remains hidden, subtle clues from Season 1 give enough insight into the character’s age. One clue suggests the killer was already active when Claudette Wallace was trained to join the NYPD in the late 1990s. Additional hints made it actually clear that the Ripper is no longer active in the present timeline, which could indicate advanced age or a deliberate decision to disappear, perhaps because of New York City’s increasingly strong surveillnace landscape.
Placing these clues within the show’s timeline actually offers a clear picture. Season 1 takes place in Spring of 2022, when Dexter Morgan is 51 years old. Given that the New York Ripper was active decades earlier, the character is likely in his late 50s at minimum, and possibly even in his late 60s. This age range definitely helps narrow the field for potential casting choices.
Casting speculation has already become a major talking point, ever since Season 1 ended. Rumors previously suggested that Bryan Cranston was in talks for the role, though those claims were never truly based...on anything. Still, the idea made fans go crazy, mostly because Cranston’s presence would somehow connect Breaking Bad and Dexter, two of the most popular television dramas of the early 2010s.
More recent fan theories have in fact expanded to include high-profile names such as Nicolas Cage and Matthew McConaughey, expectations that were shaped by Dexter: Resurrection’s ambitious casting choices, including the addition of Uma Thurman.
Having the New York Ripper as the main antagonist of Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 actually marks a big change for the show, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this October. For the first time in the series’ history, a primary villain was teased in advance rather than...introduced like in original series.
That deliberate buildup, combined with the writers’ decision to expand the character after seeing fan enthusiasm, actually signals a season designed to amaze us!