[This story contains major spoilers from Dexter: Resurrection season one, episode nine, “Touched By An Ángel.”]

Another longtime Dexter character finally knows, without a shadow of a doubt, that Dexter Morgan and the Bay Harbor Butcher are one and the same. Unfortunately, that same character is no longer alive to enjoy the bragging rights.

Alas, as of the latest Dexter: Resurrection episode, it’s an official wrap on David Zayas, who has starred in the Dexter franchise as sharp-dressed detective Angel Batista since the very beginning. The one man truly on Dexter’s tail all season long, Angel finally met his maker in the aptly titled “Touched by an Angel,” in which the character winds up on the wrong side of Dexter’s killing table.

But it’s not Dexter who kills Angel. Angel’s death comes about as he seeks an unlikely ally in Leon Prater (Peter Dinklage), the über-rich philanthropist with an apparent connection to Dexter. Angel miscalculates, however, not realizing Prater is a serial killer obsessive, and wants to bankroll Dexter’s future operations as the Bay Harbor Butcher, with just one catch: Dexter has to kill Angel to get him off the scent. Dexter arrives in a makeshift killing room with Angel strapped to a gurney by Prater and his stooge Charley (Uma Thurman), but instead of plunging the knife into his old friend, Dexter releases Angel, thinking they might join forces against Prater in this dark hour.

But that’s not how it goes. Instead, Angel sees red, lifts off the table and tries to choke the life out of Dexter, summoning the ghosts of his old friends who died because of Dexter’s actions. It’s the perfect set up for Prater to shoot Angel in the back, riddling him with bullets before running away with Charley. Dexter tries to tell a dying Angel that, yes, he is the Bay Harbor Butcher, but he didn’t kill Angel’s ex-wife Maria or ex-partner Doakes. Angel doesn’t care; even if Dexter didn’t wield the murder weapon against them, his very nature as the Bay Harbor Butcher is why they died. With one last unflinching look at his old colleague turned final nemesis, Angel utters his dying words: “Dexter Morgan… fuck you.” 

Below, Zayas joins The Hollywood Reporter to break down that deadly final moment and to look back on his extensive run playing one of Miami’s finest for nearly two full decades.

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David, what a bummer!

Yeah, well, hey. It’s great TV, isn’t it?

It’s a heck of an ending for a character you’ve played for 20 years now, signing off with some iconic final words.

That’s it, man. That’s A to Z right there. As we both know, though, you don’t have to be alive to be on this show. There are some characters who have never been alive on this show! So, I always have hope!

A literal angel Batista?

Never say never. (Laughs.) I’m always open to new ideas.

When you signed on for Resurrection, did you know you were going to die?

Yes. When I first got asked to do the show, I knew the whole storyline from the beginning to the ending. And all I could say was, “Wow. That’s really good.” It really puts a powerful punch here at the end. 

Over the years, you must have thought about what it would be like for Angel to finally know about Dexter’s secret. How did the reality of playing it out match up with your imagination?

I always thought about that even from season one of the original. I always thought about what happens. Because they wrote this amazing character of Angel, who’s got a big heart, who’s an honest cop and who is flawed, but who takes responsibility and is committed to his friends. I always wondered: What if he found out the truth about Dexter Morgan?

It became something in the back of my mind, so when they called me for Resurrection, I was like, “Okay, this is an opportunity to bring some new characteristics to Angel Batista,” especially with the information that he has, particularly Dexter being the Bay Harbor Butcher, or even being alive. Angel thought his friend was dead for the past 12 years. That would change anybody in the way they approach certain things. So there is an innocence that’s been chipped away. Angel is darker, he’s less trusting, but he’s still focused on wanting to do it the right way. So it was an interesting journey, particularly being in a city where I don’t have authority. Angel Batista doesn’t have authority in New York City, so he’s got to try and convince other people of this information. That gave me a lot to work with.

What did Angel do wrong here? Should he have called in Quinn (Desmond Harrington) or another Miami Metro colleague to help him on the hunt? Is there something he could have done to avoid this fate?

If you remember the end of Dexter: New Blood, Angel gets the call saying Dexter is still alive, and he sees the picture. That’s when I felt Angel was on a mission. He was on a mission to corroborate the evidence and then bring Dexter to justice. I feel that Angel would not want to involve other people in his journey. He didn’t know where it was going to go, and he’s doing it after he’s retired from the police department. He’s not supposed to be doing this, but he does it anyway because of his strong moral code. I know he understands the danger and fear of this, but he’s past all that. He’s on a mission to seek — I never call it vengeance — to seek justice, but he’s going to still try and do it the right legal way. If I had any advice for Angel Batista, I probably would’ve said, “Don’t worry about the legal way. (Laughs.) Just figure out what you’re going to do!” But that’s not his character. He’s always been someone trying to do the right thing.

If there wasn’t that history between them, I think he’d probably say, “This isn’t my fight. I don’t want to get killed.” But there is that history and he knows deep inside that Dexter was fond of Angel. There was a moment in the original series when I get in trouble, Dexter gets me out of trouble and we have a coffee and he tells me, “If there’s anybody else I’d want to be like, it would be you.” I responded, “I don’t know what that means, but I appreciate it!” Well, now he knows what that means. 

Tell me about getting onto the iconic table.

Well, it was very uncomfortable, first of all. But then there’s this realization for Angel what he’s about to experience at the hand of someone who was once his friend. I think it would drive most people insane. It’s too much to take in. That’s why I reacted the way I reacted afterwards [choosing to attack Dexter immediately].

It feels like a temporary insanity almost.

Yeah. If there’s a knife over you? It changes your perspective. And he’s not used to this! He was stabbed in the first season, sure, but he wasn’t stabbed by his friend! It makes a big difference. Angel’s never been in the kill room, except for episode eight when he got there and it was too late. There’s never been an opportunity for him to actually experience [the Bay Harbor Butcher side of Dexter]. It’s all new. There’s got to be this moment when Angel, after getting drugged, wakes up and sees the situation. He sees Dexter, he knows who Dexter is and he’s coming at him with a knife. Right now, Angel must just be thinking: “This is it. This is it for me.” So the moment he instead releases me? I’m going to respond in maybe an illogical way, but a totally understandable way.

In your final moments as the character, Angel doesn’t hold anything back. How did it feel to play that side?

I was really having myself focus on Dexter. Batista’s there, knowing he’s about to die. He wants to express to Dexter what he’s feeling. The anger. He wants to let everything go, knowing he’s not going to last long. For me, as Angel, it was about connecting with Dexter in those last moments. The deed is done. What’s done is done. I want him to connect with Dexter, at least on the way out. I’ve always maintained the truth and integrity of what I believe and what I want. I’ve always let you know who I am. And I’m letting you know now who I am — and that this is who you are. And you know what? F-you. Even though it’s a bad word, I found it very genuine.

It felt paternal to me, almost like a disappointed dad.

Yes. It was like that. There was a lot going through my mind at that time. But, what a way to go. And again! You don’t have to be alive to be on this show. The door is still open for sure. One hundred percent.

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Dexter: Resurrection new episodes release on Fridays, streaming on Paramount+ for Paramount+ with Showtime subscribers and a linear debut Sundays at 8:00 p.m.