David Zayas says fans see a new side to his iconic Miami police detective Angel Batista in Dexter: Resurrection.
In the Showtime sequel, Resurrection, Angel not only knows Dexter is alive, but chases him to New York City because he strongly suspects he is actually the Bay Harbor Butcher.
"It was wonderful coming back. Any time I can explore this character some more, it's always a benefit to me as an actor -- just creating new interesting facts about Angel Batista," Zayas, 63, told UPI in a recent Zoom interview.
"Angel Batista is in a weird place, having the new revelation of Dexter Morgan being alive and the possibility that he might be involved in a lot of murders that Angel knew personally, throughout the years. It's going to be a different Angel and a different vibe going forward this season," he said. "It is really great as an actor to really sink your teeth into something that's really well-fleshed-out with the great writing that we have."
Zayas said he tuned in to Dexter: Original Sin, the 2024 prequel series in which James Martinez played Angel to Patrick Gibson's Dexter."I know the actor that played me 30 years ago, James Martinez, is a wonderful actor and very talented. I've known him for a little while and he did a fantastic job, as did everyone else in the show and complemented the characters that were from the original," he added.
"I'm sure that James did a lot of research with noticing some mannerisms. I'm like, 'Do I do that?' And I went and checked it out and, yes, I do that. So, it was really a great performance by him and just matching the personality of Angel Batista. It was a little surreal, but in a good way, in a complimentary way and I really enjoyed watching it."
After Angel was killed in Resurrection by Dexter's benefactor, Leon Prater (Peter Dinklage), this past Friday, Showtime released a video paying tribute to the beloved character, with the message, "Angel will be missed."
A second season of Original Sin was initially green-lit, but ultimately canceled by the network.
The season finale of Resurrection is to air on Friday.
