Summary
Sarah Michelle Gellar has recently been cast in the upcomingDexterprequel series, as a character called Tanya Martin. She joins fellow big name actors, Christian Slater and Patrick Dempsey inDexter: Original Sin. Gellar’s casting is a major coup for the show, with her iconic status bound to attract viewers to Showtime’s newest iteration of the serial killer with a code.
Sarah Michelle Gellar is best known for her role as Buffy Summers inBuffy the Vampire Slayer,but she’s racked up an impressive resume of other acting performances since her breakout role as the slayer. She starred inScream 2,I Know What You Did Last Summer,Cruel Intentionsand The Scooby-Doo movies, and was most recently seen in the Paramount + series,Wolf Pack, but it was canceled after only one season.
Who is Sarah Michelle Gellar playing in Dexter: Original Sin?
Sarah Michelle Gellarwill play the CSI Chief at the Miami Metro Police Department and, most notably, Dexter Morgan’s new boss as he embarks on a forensics internship. Gellar’s character, Tanya Martin, will be a recurring guest star inDexter: Original Sin, but if the character is a hit, it could see her being bumped up to a series regular as the show progresses.
Nina L. Diaz, the president of content and chief content officer of Showtime released a statement on the casting:
Sarah Michelle Gellar is a pop culture icon who perfectly rounds out our best-in-class cast featuring Christian Slater and Patrick Dempsey, among others. We’re thrilled to have her return to the SHOWTIME/MTV Entertainment Studios family and join the origin story of the Dexter franchise.
Sarah Michelle Gellar also commented on her casting inDexter: Original Sinon herInstagram page:
It’s going to be a bloody good ride.
Not much else is known about Gellar’s character, Tanya Martin, outside of her being Dexter’s boss, but she is bound to feature in many scenes with Patrick Gibson, who is playing the young Dexter Morgan. It’ll also be interesting to see how she interacts with Vince Masuka, who is bound to have a crush on his boss, if his behavior in the original show is anything to go by.
Sarah Michelle Gellar’s casting is a big deal for Dexter: Original Sin
It’s been a big week of big casting news forDexter: Original Sin, withGrey’s Anatomyactor,Patrick Dempseybeing announced to join the cast as the Captain of the Miami Metro Homicide division, followed by another television icon, Sarah Michelle Gellar, joining him in the star-studded cast.
Gellar has had a stunning career in television, theater and movies, with a Daytime Emmy Award to show for her exploits. She bagged the Emmy for her portrayal of Kendall Hart in ABC’sAll My Childrenin 1995, but this was just the beginning of her outstanding string of popular characters. It was her role inBuffy the Vampire Slayerin 1997 that made her a household name, and gained her iconic status. It ran for seven seasons and ended in 2003, but she hasn’t stopped working since.
Gellar’s casting inDexter: Original Sinis a very big deal for the prequel series, as it looks to emulate the success of the originalDexterseriesand its spin-off follow up,Dexter: New Blood.Buffy the Vampire Slayerwas one of the biggest television series of all time, with a legion of loyal fans still picking apart the many plots and theories from the show. Many fans aren’t totally convinced that aDexterprequel series is necessary, but Gellar’s casting is bound to entice a slew ofBuffyfans to the new series.
Despite her role as Tanya Martin starting off as a recurring guest starring role inDexter: Original Sin,her popularity could lead to a bigger role in the seriesif the show progresses past its debut season on Showtime. Tanya Martin wasn’t mentioned in the originalDexterseries, so the possibilities are endless for her character.
Dexter: Original Sinneeded to create new charactersto add stakes to the show, and Gellar’s casting as Tanya Martin, alongside Patrick Dempsey’s role as Aaron Spencer, will surely do just that. The creative team behindDexterare clearly keen to expand the universe, and if these new characters are well received, they could potentially feature in spin-off shows. Gellar is no stranger to leading roles, so it’s more than possible that her casting in a recurring role could lead to her fronting her own show in the future.
Gellar has had a successful career sinceBuffy the Vampire Slayerended, but nothing has come close to the cultural phenomenon of that show, and after her last show,Wolf Pack, failed to live up to expectations and was canceled after one season, she is in need of a big hit, andDexter: Original Sinwill likely put her back on the map.
