You can look at Julie Benz’s career from three aspects: movies, TV dramas, or supernatural fare. While not exactly a scream queen like Rachel Nichols or Sarah Michelle Gellar, Julie has thrived in such sci-fi projects as “Roswell” and “Taken.” But it was ice skating and not acting that was Julie’s initial passion. Following in the skates of her older brother and sister, the Pittsburgh-born Julie pursued such skating competitions such as the 1988 U.S. championships in junior ice dancing before a stress fracture halted any more twirls.
So it was off to New York University for Julie where she studied acting. The standard move to Los Angeles followed school and in the early 1990s Julie was popping up in cameos on “Married with Children,” “Boy Meets World” and “Diagnosis Murder.” A substantial break came with a brief but memorable appearance opposite Jack Nicholson in “As Good As It Gets,” but it was as Kathleen Topolsky for seven episodes on “Roswell” that established Julie’s affinity for the offbeat supernatural.
Her roles as Darla on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and the spin-off series “Angel” only furthered her career, and when that series folded in 2004, Julie still bounced around as a visiting performer on such projects as “8MM 2” and “Law and Order.” Sylvester Stallone tapped her in the lone female role of “Rambo,” but it was “Dexter” that provided consistent work and exposure for Julie. It has not only been her longest involvement with a production, but it also won her a Satellite Award in 2006 for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.
Interview
Bullz-Eye Interview
Will Harris chats with Julie Benz about “Rambo” and “Dexter.”
Julie on Video
Julie on Craig Ferguson
Julie visits in January 2008.
“Rambo” Interview
Julie gives a brief interview on making “Rambo.”
Julie on the Screen
She’s Betty for Dario Argento in “Two Evil Eyes” in 1990, Babs Nielson for 14 episodes of “Hi Honey, I’m Home,” credited as Sexy Woman in the 1995 TV movie “The Barefoot Executive,” Joanna on the “Sea No Evil” episode of the Rick Springfield/Yannuck Bisson series “High Tide,” and the Receptionist in “As Good As It Gets.” Steven Spielberg cast her for two episodes of his miniseries “Taken,” she voices Miranda Keyes in the video game “Halo 2,” is Sarah in “Rambo,” Brit in “Saw V,” and Rita in “Dexter,” now in its third season.
Julie Says
On the great issue:
“The meaning of life…I think the meaning of life is…I think it’s love.
On Stallone:
“He works harder than anybody I’ve ever met.”