With Dexter: Resurrection on the horizon, we caught up with David Zayas (“Angel Batista”) and Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine (“Blessing Kamara”) to discuss their roles in the highly anticipated continuation of the series. The duo reflected on Batista’s long pursuit of justice and Blessing’s unique connection with Dexter Morgan.
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ROHAN: David, Batista clearly has some unfinished business with Dexter. How has his perspective changed since essentially Season 8? Batista has been chasing answers for a long time. What does it mean for him to finally be getting close to the truth?
DAVID: I think it's brilliant that it's the character of Batista that they give this new revelation to because Batista has always really, really had his integrity, and he's been an honest cop all these years. So, he's not just going to want to go and get Dexter. I think he wants to do it in a legal way. He wants to do it the right way, and now he's got to figure out how to do it in a different city where he doesn't have the authority he had in Miami Metro. So, I think it's going to be an interesting cat and mouse game and finding out how he could actually get justice for what he's discovered.
ROHAN: Ntare, Blessing becomes one of Dexter’s new allies—though, as David might tell you, that can be risky. What draws Blessing to Dexter, and what does he see in him?
NTARE: I play the character of Blessing, and I think he finds that he loves people. I play a taxi cab driver, and he's the kind of person who just befriends everyone in his car. But there's something about Dexter that sort of - he brings him into his home, literally, and welcomes him as part of the family. And I think it's been something refreshing, because I don't know that, as you said, that people get that close to Dexter on the show, we'll find out if that has grave consequences for my character or not. But I think it's been really interesting that the writers chose to pair him up in this way.
ROHAN: David, as Batista starts piecing things together, he ends up face-to-face with Harrison. What do you think Angel is hoping to get through to him—truth, justice, or something more personal?
DAVID: With Harrison, you know, in the back when we did Dexter originally, Jamie, Batista’s sister was babysitting Harrison. So, I watched this child grow up, until what happened in the eighth season, and then he disappeared. So, to watch him, to find out about him, and then confront him and speak with him is very interesting, and it's also very confusing, you know, and it's always you want to find out exactly where they're coming from. And, when Batista speaks to Harrison, he wants to find out where he's at in his mind, because he has affection for Harrison. He doesn't have any malice towards Harrison. He wants him to, you know, continue on the right path.
DEXTER: RESURRECTION, a continuation of DEXTER®: NEW BLOOD, takes place weeks after Dexter Morgan (Hall) takes a bullet to the chest from his own son, as he awakens from a coma to find Harrison (Jack Alcott) gone without a trace. Realizing the weight of what he put his son through, Dexter sets out for New York City, determined to find him and make things right. But closure won’t come easy. When Miami Metro’s Angel Batista (David Zayas) arrives with questions, Dexter realizes his past is catching up to him fast. As father and son navigate their own darkness in the city that never sleeps, they soon find themselves deeper than they ever imagined—and that the only way out is together.