Julie Benz

Julie Benz on loving a serial killer and buying new panties with fans

After playing a sadistic vampire on “Buffy” and “Angel,” it’s nice for Julie Benz to play someone a little more demure.

Sure, her character’s the fragile girlfriend of Dexter, the serial killer who preys on bad guys on the Showtime hit of the same name, but that doesn’t stop Benz from sinking deeper and deeper into one of the best characters on cable as the show murders its way to its Sunday debut.

WIZARD: So, “Dexter” Season 2…

BENZ: Just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, it does! This season is not based on the books, so there are no guidelines, and our writing team has been pushing the envelope right and left.

Is it tougher to play the girlfriend of a serial killer or a hot vampire on “Buffy”?

Well, they’re both kind of tough! [Laughs] You know, playing a super-hot vampire is a lot of pressure, because most days I don’t think that I am [super hot].

You’re also starring in “John Rambo.” You’re basically the reason he goes crazy in this one, right?

I’m not a love interest; I play a missionary, and we hire Rambo to take us into Burma—which is a war zone and truly is in real life. It’s genocide and an underreported war going on in the world today. We hire him to take us in and we get kidnapped, and he and some mercenaries try to come in and save us.

Besides running through the jungle and cutting heads off, what’s the craziest thing a guy has done for you?

Nothing! [Laughs] Nothing like that, anyway. I remember in high school, Neil Green broke into my locker and put a dozen red roses in there.

That’s not quite a Rambo stunt, but it’ll do.

Well, there was breaking and entering involved! [Laughs]

You played Darla on “Buffy” and “Angel,” and those fans are rabid. Any strange fan encounters over the years?

Not really. I actually find the fans are always supportive and respectful. A couple times I’ve been approached when I’m buying underwear. That’s more embarrassing for me rather than for them because it’s like, “Oh hello. I’m just buying some panties.”

Well, they weren’t granny panties, I hope.

No, they were little, little tiny ones! But still… [Laughs]