Christian Slater Reveals What He 'Had to Say' to Michael C. Hall as a 'Huge Fan' of “Dexter” (Exclusive)

Christian Slater kept his cool when he finally met Dexter in real life — but there was something he just had to say.

Slater tells PEOPLE he was a "huge fan" of Dexter when it was airing, so stepping in to play a younger version of the titular killer's father Harry Morgan in the new prequel series, Dexter: Original Sins, was "pretty exciting."

"I mean, being — seriously — a huge fan of the original show and getting a chance to be a part of this world was great," Slater, 55, says. "And to play great characters like this, it was a wonderful opportunity."

Related: Dexter: Original Sin's Patrick Gibson Says His Similar Looks to Michael C. Hall 'Definitely Came Up' on Set (Exclusive)

Given his love of the show, when the opportunity arose to tell Dexter himself just how big a fan he was, Slater couldn't pass it up. "When I met Michael C. Hall at Comic-Con, I had to say, 'Thank you for being so great,'" Slater says.

He makes sure to give credit to James Remar, who played Harry in the 2006 series, too, calling him "an actor that I have always loved and respected" as he says of the original cast, "All these actors were so great."

"I definitely felt like Harry was a very interesting character that you only got to see glimpses of [in Dexter]. So this was an opportunity to explore that character some more and see the challenges that he went through in his younger days, and the mistakes that he made and the traumas that he suffered," Slater says. "And I think all of those things kind of added up to a lot of the decisions and choices that he makes with his son later."

Shadow and Bone alum Patrick Gibson plays the younger version of Dexter, while Molly Brown plays a young sassy Deb, the role Jennifer Carpenter originated.

Related: Sarah Michelle Gellar Thinks She Manifested Her Role in Dexter Prequel as a 'Big Fan' of the Original (Exclusive)

The prequel series was helmed by Clyde Phillips, who was a showrunner on the original drama, and Hall was also involved as he narrated the show via Dexter's inner monologue. Phillips said that was a "crucial" piece of the puzzle.

"It's important," Phillips told PEOPLE at the show's premiere in New York City on Wednesday, Dec. 11. "It's important to me creatively. It's important to me as his friend. And it's important because I know the impact it will have on the audience."

Recalling Hall's appearance at Comic-Con in San Diego in July, Phillips said that the fans' response to Hall's involvement really sealed the deal for him on the prequel. "We were sitting with Christian Slater, Molly Brown and Patrick Gibson and then Michael walked out with a box of doughnuts like from the OG show and the place went crazy."

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. 

Dexter: Original Sins premieres Friday, Dec. 13 on Paramount+ with SHOWTIME Plan.

Read the original article on People