Quick Links
For over six suspenseful years, premium cable audiences were allowed a glimpse inside the mind of a very charming but twisted individual. With the cunning character of Dexter Morgan being played by award-winning actorMichael C. Hall, Showtime’s crime dramaDextereasily became a must-watch show from 2006 to 2013. He appeared to be your average, everyday forensic expert who could intelligently play out crime scenes in his head with just some bloodstains. But, there was much more than meets the eye with the eccentric man.
Wherever the justice system failed with regard toputting serial killersbehind bars, he would step up and put a stop to them himself – by murdering them. Sometimes, it was an end-of-life nurse who took pleasure in going too far, a self-adorned family man who attacks violently but then cries over dead bodies, or even Dexter’s own brother who drained the blood from his victims to toy with Hall’s character. Week after week, our favorite serial killer’s dark monologues about who he wanted to kill and how he would do it helped viewers unearth a little more of Dexter Morgan than they knew before.
Over time, though,some major inner conflicts of his were revealed, such as his terrible overwhelming urge to kill, which he deemed “The Dark Passenger,” as well as his overall struggle to lead a normal life. This complicated character and the chilling situations he found himself in (most of the time) gave way to a continuation in 2020 with a limited series,Dexter: New Blood, and an upcoming prequel series,Dexter: Original Sin.While we could dive even deeper into Michael Hall’s legacy as Dexter Morgan, ascience fiction film(of all genres) that was made and released at the height of the show’s popularity provides a view intowhat would happen if Dexter let the dark passenger take overand consume his mind.
Gamer’s Ken Castle Is a Lot Like Dexter
While 2009 had its fair share of dystopian-centric movies likeDistrict 9,Moon, andWatchmen, there was something a bit too familiar about Michael Hall’s role in the hectic action flick calledGamer. While the movie is most well known for its over-the-top run-and-gun stylistic sequences (most of them are dizzyingly fast), the plot’s theme about real people being used as online avatars is haunting enough.
Actor Gerard Butler plays John “Kable” Tillman, a convict who is one of the many people placed into athird-person shooter gamecalled Slayers. His distant wife Angie works day to day in another game called Society, where her body is virtually controlled by a disgusting slob of a man in a wheelchair. While both the future concepts ofGamerand the visual approach are appreciated more these days than the highly offensive dialogue throughout,Hall plays the main antagonist of the film: a rich genius and creator of both Slayers and Society, Ken Castle.
Dexter Prequel Series Find Its Leads, Including Christian Slater
Dexter: Original Sin will take place 15 years prior to the events in Dexter, and also feature Patrick Gibson as a young Dexter Morgan.
The first thing to point out betweenDexterandGameris the timing. The Lionsgate movie was filmed between November 2007 and August 2008. The second and third seasons ofDexterwere filmed during that same time, too.There will naturally be some overlap between Hall’s different personas as an actor. Even though histelevision-based personalityis conflicted with his own skills sometimes, Dexter and Castle are manipulative and ruthless when it comes to goals. Hall brings the creepiness and intensity up a notch with Castle. His personality is, unsurprisingly, also on a switch. Castle is charming and delicate in front of the public eye but so easily hides his true intentions from everybody around him.
Michael Hall Helps Make Gamer Memorable
The psychopathic billionaire doesn’t care about the amount of money he has to spend to have everybody’s body under his control. He’s so nonchalant about it that he performs a rendition ofI’ve Got You Under My Skinby Frank Sinatra when confronting Gerard’s character, using his controlled puppets as backup dancers.Castle’s eyes inexplicably turn black a few times, making him look even more lifeless. Hall’s overall experience regarding conveying a kind of twisted,almost insane characterimmensely helps the sequence to stand out. Both Gerard Butler and Amber Valletta’s performances don’t come close.
Dexter: Michael C. Hall’s Best Moments as Dexter
Michael C. Hall stars as Dexter Morgan, a serial killer from Miami known as The Bay Harbor Butcher
Without actually any kills to his name,this could very well be aversion of Dexterin an alternate universewhere his police career didn’t work out. Both personas are very smart and calculative, and they know how to manipulate employment opportunities. Dexter uses his place in the police department to get closer to criminals, and Castle uses advanced nanite technology (and his two games) to slowly take control of the entire country. Even though there are multiple reasons that warrantGamer’s flop at the box office (both with ticket sales – $42 million box office total against a $50 million budget – and critical responses), it’s a shame that many are still not familiar with Hall’s rendition of a crazy and disconnected computer programmer.Gameris available to stream onStarz.
