After a shocking cliffhanger to end season four, "Dexter" came back to big ratings for the season five premiere.
In its initial airing Sunday night at 9 p.m., "Dexter" was watched by 1.77 million viewers, up 16 percent from last year's premiere episode. "Dexter" brought Showtime its highest ratings for the season premiere of an original series since "Outer Limits" in 1995.
With an encore at 11 p.m., a combined total of 2.34 million viewers watched "Dexter" on Sunday. It was the largest premiere night audience in the history of the series.
The season five premiere of "Dexter" now ranks as Showtime's top telecast of 2010 so far.
