Les Moonves says ‘Dexter’ is ending after season eight

(October 22) Actor Michael C. Hall attends the opening night of The Tribeca Theater Festival at Michael Schimel Center for the Arts at Pace University in New York City on Thursday, October 21, 2004. (lde) 2004 (PHOTOGRAPH BY SLAVEN VLASIC/ABACA PRESS)
(October 22) Actor Michael C. Hall attends the opening night of The Tribeca Theater Festival at Michael Schimel Center for the Arts at Pace University in New York City on Thursday, October 21, 2004. (lde) 2004 (PHOTOGRAPH BY  SLAVEN VLASIC/ABACA PRESS)
(October 22) Actor Michael C. Hall attends the opening night of The Tribeca Theater Festival at Michael Schimel Center for the Arts at Pace University in New York City on Thursday, October 21, 2004. (lde) 2004
(PHOTOGRAPH BY SLAVEN VLASIC/ABACA PRESS)

By Patrick Kevin Day
Los Angeles Times via McClatchy Newspapers

LOS ANGELES – Plans for the future of Showtime’s long-running serial killer drama “Dexter” have been vague as the series heads into its eighth season. But in a discussion with Wall Street analysts, CBSCorp. Chief Executive Les Moonves may have revealed when the series will end.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, an analyst’s question Monday about coming programming on the CBS-owned pay channel prompted the exec to say, “We have ‘Ray Donovan’ coming on with Liev Schreiber, which comes on with ‘Dexter’s’ last season starting in June, and then we have ‘Masters of Sex.'”

Though Showtime is maintaining that nothing has been determined about the show’s future, Moonves’ comment seems to confirm what many have suspected: that the time is coming for Miami’s favorite serial killer to hang up his knife.

The show’s eighth season will debut on Showtime on June 30. Despite its age, “Dexter” continues to do well in the ratings. The finale of the show’s seventh season was its highest-rated episode ever (and the highest-rated scripted episode on Showtime), with 2.75 million viewers.

Michael C. Hall, who plays the police forensics expert who does some killing on the side, has been nominated five times for an Emmy award but has never won. His co-star Jennifer Carpenter shared with fans on Twitter that Hall would be making his directorial debut with the second episode of the season.

Charlotte Rampling and Sean Patrick Flannery will join the cast for the season.