Julie Benz

Rita Bennett on Dexter, then leads on No Ordinary Family and Defiance and a long list of TV and film roles.

After the show

Benz played Darla across both shows, from the first episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer in 1997 to her final Angel appearances. In 2006 she landed her best-known later role as Rita Bennett, the girlfriend and eventual wife of Michael C. Hall’s serial killer, on Showtime’s Dexter. She was a series regular for four seasons and returned as a guest in season five in 2010. The role earned her a Satellite Award in 2006 and a Saturn Award in 2009.

She moved quickly into other series. She recurred as Robin Gallagher in season six of Desperate Housewives (2010), then led ABC’s superhero family drama No Ordinary Family (2010 to 2011) as Stephanie Powell, a scientist who gains super-speed. She recurred on CBS’s A Gifted Man (2011 to 2012) and starred as Mayor Amanda Rosewater on Syfy’s Defiance for all three seasons (2013 to 2015).

Later TV work included a recurring role as Abby Dunn on Hawaii Five-0 (2015 to 2017), a main role as Holly Butler on CBS’s Training Day (2017), and guest appearances on Love, Victor (2021) and 9-1-1: Lone Star (2022).

On February 14, 2021, after Charisma Carpenter’s statement about Joss Whedon’s conduct on Buffy and Angel, Benz posted: “My heart goes out to all victims of abuse. Sending love to my fellow Buffy and Angel survivors.”

Lately

Benz plays Ms. Devaney, the school guidance counselor, in The Midway Point, an independent drama written and directed by Lucca Vieira about a high schooler on the autism spectrum, co-starring Wes Studi and Thora Birch. The film wrapped production in 2022, played the festival circuit, and is available on Apple TV as a 2026 release.

Benz has said in a podcast interview that she was not asked to film new scenes for the 2025 revival Dexter: Resurrection, which used a clip of Rita instead.

Off screen

Benz was married to actor John Kassir from 1998 until their divorce, which she filed for in 2007. She married Rich Orosco in 2012. She has joined Buffy and Angel fan watch parties on Twitter.