Dexter co-star Aimee Garcia talks Dexter Season 8, Jamie, Quinn and more for Entertainment Tonight:
What's been your take on Jamie's role in this final season?
Aimee Garcia: I think Jamie serves as a litmus test for how far people have gone in connection with Dexter. In season one, everyone was at their starting points, but as the series progressed, everyone from Doakes to Laguerta to Quinn have had their suspicions and eventually saw Dexter in a different light. Jamie is still in the filter of first season. She sees Dexter how everyone saw him in season one, so she serves as a way to measure how far people have gone in relationship to Dexter over the seasons. On a personal note, she's the only character who doesn't have blood on her hands -- or work with blood -- so I hope the audience sees her as a relatable character. I mean, who'd think, in their wildest dreams, this really nice boss, with this adorable kid, is a serial killer who has killed hundreds of people? I think people can relate to Jamie in the sense that, who would think the worst of people who treat you the best?
Do you think if Jamie were in Dexter's orbit for long enough that she would also put the pieces together?
Garcia: Louis brought up the fact Dexter was purposely ruining his life and she thought it was insane. But, I think given where things go this season for Jaime, she very possibly could in time. If you're around a serial killer that much, you're bound to get dragged onto the dark side. She might start seeing bloodstains eventually. I mean, Harrison's stuffed animal links Dexter to a murder. Obviously Jamie is pretty good at cleaning the apartment, so if she were to find that blood-stained stuffed animal under Harrison’s bed, it would be a good possibility. With Harrison in his life, Dexter is teetering on the cliff. This season is really about seeing if he's going to fall. Read the rest of the interview, after the jump.
Jamie is trying to set him up on dates, is that the ultimate proof she still sees him with those pure eyes?
Garcia: Absolutely. I think she went from part time employee to full time employee to family to friend. She sees that he is charming and successful and a wonderful father, so she thinks he deserves happiness. She saw him fall in love with Hannah, so feels for him and wants to see him happy. Jamie thinks the best way to get over a broken heart is to get back on the horse. She not only wants to set him up, but put him in his place. I think one of my favorite lines in the show, ever, was, "A serial killer abducted by 100 pound nanny." And it's true: he is a vigilante who needed to go to work, but this nanny is scolding him because she thinks she knows what's best for him. I liken it to a powerful CEO who makes all the rules at work, but at home, it's the woman who has the power and Jamie is the closest thing Dexter has to a wife.
Does Jamie want to be Quinn's wife?
Garcia: I think so. She's so young and romantic and full of life and sensuality and hope. Despite dating Louis, she doesn't have much baggage and sees Quinn as someone who can protect her. He's older, sexy, and mysterious but has a lot of baggage. Every girl thinks they can fix a guy. It's the classic good girl/bad boy situation, but she would love to take things further and be a part of his life. Yet there's the Deb factor. That's something that will never sit well with her.
What are you excited for fans to see in the final stretch of episodes?
Garcia: This whole season has been about Dexter really struggling with being a monster and a human at the same time and Dr. Vogel saying, "Don't try to be both. You're a psychopath, you're good at it, stick with what you're good at." But Dexter doesn't see himself as a monster. For the first time he cares more about someone else, Harrison, than himself. What Dexter is learning that being human is painful. He always felt like a fish out of water, walking around like a zombie who only felt alive in his kill room, but he's now liking his humanity, which is complicated. With great joy comes great pain and he's starting to unravel so things are get messy. As a result of that, Jamie gets dragged down the rabbit hole a little bit. She may or may not land on her feet, but either way, it won't be rainbows and sunshine for her as this journey ends. She'll have to come to terms with things that change her forever. Dexter, in some way, plays a very big role in that.
Do you know how the show ends?
Garcia: I have no idea! I try to get it out of Michael [C. Hall], but the man is a locked box. He knows how to keep a secret. I have no idea how it ends and it's driving me insane. I don't know if alternate endings are being shot or if people have shot the final scene without knowing it's the final scene. There is a serious curtain keeping the people in front of the scenes from the people behind the scenes. We will know the final ending for the first time when it airs. So my friends in New York will see the ending before me! [laughs]
What's been your take on Jamie's role in this final season?
Aimee Garcia: I think Jamie serves as a litmus test for how far people have gone in connection with Dexter. In season one, everyone was at their starting points, but as the series progressed, everyone from Doakes to Laguerta to Quinn have had their suspicions and eventually saw Dexter in a different light. Jamie is still in the filter of first season. She sees Dexter how everyone saw him in season one, so she serves as a way to measure how far people have gone in relationship to Dexter over the seasons. On a personal note, she's the only character who doesn't have blood on her hands -- or work with blood -- so I hope the audience sees her as a relatable character. I mean, who'd think, in their wildest dreams, this really nice boss, with this adorable kid, is a serial killer who has killed hundreds of people? I think people can relate to Jamie in the sense that, who would think the worst of people who treat you the best?
Do you think if Jamie were in Dexter's orbit for long enough that she would also put the pieces together?
Garcia: Louis brought up the fact Dexter was purposely ruining his life and she thought it was insane. But, I think given where things go this season for Jaime, she very possibly could in time. If you're around a serial killer that much, you're bound to get dragged onto the dark side. She might start seeing bloodstains eventually. I mean, Harrison's stuffed animal links Dexter to a murder. Obviously Jamie is pretty good at cleaning the apartment, so if she were to find that blood-stained stuffed animal under Harrison’s bed, it would be a good possibility. With Harrison in his life, Dexter is teetering on the cliff. This season is really about seeing if he's going to fall. Read the rest of the interview, after the jump.
Jamie is trying to set him up on dates, is that the ultimate proof she still sees him with those pure eyes?
Garcia: Absolutely. I think she went from part time employee to full time employee to family to friend. She sees that he is charming and successful and a wonderful father, so she thinks he deserves happiness. She saw him fall in love with Hannah, so feels for him and wants to see him happy. Jamie thinks the best way to get over a broken heart is to get back on the horse. She not only wants to set him up, but put him in his place. I think one of my favorite lines in the show, ever, was, "A serial killer abducted by 100 pound nanny." And it's true: he is a vigilante who needed to go to work, but this nanny is scolding him because she thinks she knows what's best for him. I liken it to a powerful CEO who makes all the rules at work, but at home, it's the woman who has the power and Jamie is the closest thing Dexter has to a wife.
Does Jamie want to be Quinn's wife?
Garcia: I think so. She's so young and romantic and full of life and sensuality and hope. Despite dating Louis, she doesn't have much baggage and sees Quinn as someone who can protect her. He's older, sexy, and mysterious but has a lot of baggage. Every girl thinks they can fix a guy. It's the classic good girl/bad boy situation, but she would love to take things further and be a part of his life. Yet there's the Deb factor. That's something that will never sit well with her.
What are you excited for fans to see in the final stretch of episodes?
Garcia: This whole season has been about Dexter really struggling with being a monster and a human at the same time and Dr. Vogel saying, "Don't try to be both. You're a psychopath, you're good at it, stick with what you're good at." But Dexter doesn't see himself as a monster. For the first time he cares more about someone else, Harrison, than himself. What Dexter is learning that being human is painful. He always felt like a fish out of water, walking around like a zombie who only felt alive in his kill room, but he's now liking his humanity, which is complicated. With great joy comes great pain and he's starting to unravel so things are get messy. As a result of that, Jamie gets dragged down the rabbit hole a little bit. She may or may not land on her feet, but either way, it won't be rainbows and sunshine for her as this journey ends. She'll have to come to terms with things that change her forever. Dexter, in some way, plays a very big role in that.
Do you know how the show ends?
Garcia: I have no idea! I try to get it out of Michael [C. Hall], but the man is a locked box. He knows how to keep a secret. I have no idea how it ends and it's driving me insane. I don't know if alternate endings are being shot or if people have shot the final scene without knowing it's the final scene. There is a serious curtain keeping the people in front of the scenes from the people behind the scenes. We will know the final ending for the first time when it airs. So my friends in New York will see the ending before me! [laughs]
Image credit: Showtime