“It changes your perspective — and he’s not used to this,” the actor explained, justifying Batista’s reaction.
The following story contains spoilers for Dexter: Resurrection's penultimate episode
Another one from the original Miami Metro family has fallen. Nine episodes into Dexter: Resurrection, the franchise delivered one of its most heartbreaking twists: the death of fan-favorite Angel Batista.
Some viewers saw it coming—after all, Batista had been relentlessly pursuing the truth about Dexter Morgan. Others, however, were blindsided, convinced that Batista would be the one to finally bring the Bay Harbor Butcher to justice. But as the showrunner and the writers made clear, Batista’s fate was sealed.
Before his death, the tension reached unbearable heights. In a chilling twist, Dexter was ordered by the serial-killer-obsessed Leon Prater to murder Batista in cold blood. This wasn’t just about satisfying the villain’s twisted curiosity—it was about watching the Bay Harbor Butcher kill with his own eyes.
Meanwhile, Batista lay helpless, strapped to the table with duct tape covering his mouth. As he listened to every horrifying word, the truth became undeniable: everything he and his colleagues—James Doakes, María LaGuerta, and of course Angela Bishop—had suspected was right. Dexter really was the Bay Harbor Butcher.
And yet, instead of following the billionaire’s demand, Dexter made a shocking choice. He cut Batista free, refusing to kill someone who didn’t fit Harry’s code. But the relief didn’t last long. In a rage, Batista attacked Dexter, attempting to kill him—an act that would cost him his life only moments later.
Why Did Batista Attack Dexter?
Fans were left questioning why Batista would lash out at the man who had just saved him. In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter after the pivotal episode “Touched by an Ángel”, actor David Zayas shed light on the decision.
Zayas explained that for Batista, lying on that table and hearing Dexter admit the truth was unbearable. It wasn’t just fear, it was the shattering realization that someone he once called a friend was capable of such evil. In that moment, Zayas said, Batista’s reaction was less rational thought and more a kind of temporary insanity.
From Batista’s perspective, waking up drugged, tied down, and seeing Dexter standing over him with a knife was too much to process. He wasn’t thinking logically. He wasn’t strategizing. He was simply reacting to what felt like his inevitable death. When Dexter instead cut him loose, that surge of adrenaline and fear turned into rage. His attack may have been reckless, but, as Zayas put it, it was “totally understandable.”
Batista’s Final Words
In his last moments, Batista didn’t hold anything back. Zayas said he played those scenes with full focus on Dexter—Batista wanted his old friend to understand exactly what he felt in those final seconds. There was anger, betrayal, and a need to release everything before the end.
For Zayas, Batista’s farewell carried almost a paternal weight, like a disappointed father telling Dexter who he really was before the inevitable. Despite the brutality of the moment, it felt deeply genuine and true to Batista’s character: a man who always stood by his principles, even when facing death.
A Legacy That Endures
While Batista’s death shocked the fanbase—some saw his attack as reckless, others as painfully human—David Zayas’s insight helps make sense of it. Batista was a man pushed beyond his breaking point, confronting the horrifying reality of the Bay Harbor Butcher face-to-face.
And as Zayas teased, just because Batista is gone doesn’t mean the character can’t return in memories, flashbacks, or new revelations. In the world of Dexter, the dead have a way of haunting the living.
Photo by Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images