Julie Benz

Often mentioned by Supernatural’s writers and producers as an episode which explored deeper and more political aspects of the show’s world than most, ’Faith’ featured a young woman with terminal cancer, Layla Rourke, whose quiet trust in a higher power helps revitalise Dean Winchester’s faith in his absent father. I spoke to Julie Benz about playing Layla, and about her role as Rita, the single-parent girlfriend of a friendly serial killer on Dexter.

Sequential Tart: You’ve been involved in an extremely wide variety of projects which are in some way scary or supernatural - everything from the horror-lite of Buffy to the darker-than-dark drama-comedy Dexter. What frightens you?

Julie Benz: Politicians ... oh, and the original Exorcist ... when her head spins around .... Scary ....

ST: Layla on Supernatural and Darla on Angel were both terminally ill characters, and Rita on Dexter is just starting to get back on her feet after major trauma. What do you think it is about yourself that allows you to tap into the fragility and vulnerability these roles require?

JB: Life experience ... not to say I’ve had a brain tumor, killed people or suffered abuse, but I feel I’m able to relate to these characters through my own experiences - also, I try not to pass judgement on a character .... Many people view Darla as an evil, blood sucking vampire (and I’m not saying she wasn’t) but she was also a woman who deeply loved a man who did not love her back in the way that she desired .... To me, she was the jilted ex-wife who would never get over the divorce and she would do whatever it took to win Angel back ... that was what motivated her.

ST: Your appearance on Supernatural played heavily with notions of religion, trust, morality and faith. What was your view on the episode, and on your character?

JB: I found it a challenge to play a character who had such a strong faith. I felt Layla possessed an inner peace that allowed her to accept her fate. The key for me was when she says, "I guess if you’re gonna have faith, you can’t just have it when the miracles happen ... you have to have it when they don’t." That’s a very powerful statement, and it revealed to me how deep Layla’s faith was.

ST: Can you talk a little about how you got the role of Rita on Dexter, and your thoughts about that series?

JB: I read the script and I loved it! It was the best pilot script I’ve ever read. I went in and auditioned many times and when I finally read for the network, they thought I looked too pulled together to be believable as a struggling, single mother of two. So they asked if I would come back the next day with no make-up on. So I did. I didn’t shower the next morning nor did I wear any makeup - which is a risky move in Hollywood - and I wore the clothes that I wear when I feel sick. So, I’m sitting in the waiting room waiting to go in and the producers came out and said, "We know she signed in, but where is she?" They were absolutely shocked at my transformation - to the point where I thought maybe I had gone too far - they basically gave me the job on the spot. What I love the most about the series is the perfect blend of dark versus light. The writers take you to some very dark places, but then balance those moments out with vulnerability and humanity. And I also love the moral ambiguity of the show. You find yourself rooting for Dexter and yet he’s a serial killer - but a serial killer with his own moral code - the show lives in the grey and I like that ... that interests me.

ST: Do you find that you prefer one type of work over another, like comedy, or sci-fi?

JB: I just love to work. Sometimes when I’m working on a drama, I will walk around saying, "I just want to do a comedy" but then when I’m working on a comedy, I’ll say, " I want to do something dark and edgy." I love being able to stretch both muscles ....

ST: If you could have any role in the world, what would she be like? What kind of project would it be a part of?

JB: I would love to star in a big, romantic comedy opposite Hugh Grant for example ... but I would also love to do a period piece with Anthony Hopkins ... and I would love to do something dark and edgy with Philip Seymour Hoffman ... and I think it would be fun to be in a western .... Basically, I just want to experience it all!