When I talked to Erik King Thursday night at the Outfest Legacy Awards, he had come straight from the set of the Showtime hit "Dexter" where the cast was filming the second season finale. He was even still wearing his wardrobe from the day's shoot!
King plays Sgt. James Doakes on the show and the character is very suspicious of Dexter (Michael C. Hall) who is a forensic expert for the Miami PD by day, and a serial killer by night. But he only kills bad guys. Doakes and Dexter had many confrontations during the show's first season and will have plenty more during season two which premiered last week with the second episode airing tonight.
"Doakes really isn't as tough as everybody thinks he is," King told me. "The reality is, he knows there's something terribly wrong with Dexter. The more he alludes him, the more frustrated he gets. He's a good guy."
I remind Erik that in the show's first season, he does kill a man for personal reasons and lies that it was a justified shooting.
"Yeah, I gotta tell you, he does have a dark past," he says. "He may kill somebody else...anything can happen."
Everything's sort of ratcheted up for all the characters. The first season is a big, broad swipe to get to know everybody. Everybody has chickens that come home to roost for the second season - especially Dexter. Some things that maybe he buried have come to the surface this year and Doakes is relentless. Absolutely."
While Doakes is suspicious of Dexter and wants to bring him down, he is sweet on Dexter's foster sister who is a detective under Doakes. So, will they become romantically involved?
"You know I can't tell you that! But I can tell you that, unfortunately, there's not a lot going on in Doakes' life because he's really obsessed with Dexter. He's determined to find out what the secret is. Dexter comes to a crime scene and seems know everything about the crime scene before all the other cops. And Doakes considers himself an alpha dog so there's no way [Dexter] can be smarter. He does figure some things out this year."
What is it like working opposite Michael C. Hall whose role here is so different from his "Six Feet Under" alter-ego David Fisher.
"He's amazing. Michael is the consumate actor in that he comes in and gets the work done, very professional. Sometimes a little bit distant but only because of the character. He has a wonderfully, generous Southern open spirit. On the show, with all the nuances of his character, it's so important that he's totally there and he really is."
For King, the role on "Dexter" is the most prominent to date for an actor who has been working steadily in television and movies for two decades. He appeared on HBO's prison drama "OZ" for a season and guested on such shows as "The Division," "Malcolm in the Middle," "Charmed," "The District," and "Jag." Feature films include roles in "Ice Princess" and "\National Treasure."