Patrick Dempsey Joins ‘Dexter’ Prequel Series Alongside Christian Slater

After playing Dr. Derek Shepherd on 11 seasons of Grey’s Anatomy, Patrick Dempsey isn’t afraid of a little blood. 

Dempsey, 58, has joined the cast of Showtime’s Dexter prequel series, Original Sin, as a series regular. The actor will play Aaron Spencer, the Captain of the Miami Metro Homicide who has a decades-long friendship with Harry Morgan, played by Christian Slater. 

Original Sin is set 15 years before the events of Dexter, which starred Michael C. Hall as the titular murderer. Patrick Gibson plays Dexter in the prequel, which tells the story of how Dexter made the transition from “student to avenging serial killer.”

“When his bloodthirsty urges can’t be ignored any longer, Dexter must learn to channel his inner darkness. With the guidance of his father, Harry (Slater), he adopts a Code designed to help him find and kill people who deserve to be eliminated from society without getting on law enforcements’ radar,” the show’s official logline reads. “This is a particular challenge for young Dexter as he begins a forensics internship at the Miami Metro Police Department.”

The original series aired on Showtime for 8 seasons from 2006 to 2013. The limited series Dexter: New Blood — which featured Hall reprising his role — aired for one season in 2021.

“Patrick Dempsey is a beloved actor who is internationally known for the iconic characters he has played and his performances,” Paramount Global co-CEO Chris McCarthy said in a statement. “We are thrilled to have him join our all-star cast of Dexter: Original Sin, the highly anticipated origin story of the franchise.”

Dempsey made a surprising return to Grey’s during the season 17 premiere in November 2021. The appearance was particularly shocking because Dempsey’s character Derek is, well, dead. 

In the episode, Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) was found passed out in a parking garage. While unconscious, her thoughts drifted to her late husband Derek, who appeared to Meredith in a vision on a beach. 

Since leaving Grey’s full-time in 2015, Dempsey has appeared in movies like Bridget Jones’s Baby, Disenchanted and Ferrari. He was also a series regular on the Italian drama Devils, which aired its second season on Sky Atlantic in 2022. 

Dexter: Original Sin, which began production in Miami earlier this month, does not yet have a release date.