Aliens are out there, actress insists

TORONTO — Actress Julie Benz is convinced we are not alone.

The former Dexter star admitted Tuesday she believes in aliens.

“There’s some sort of life out there,” she said. “It would be very narcissitic to think that there isn’t something.”

But Benz isn’t anxious for a close encounter. “I have no desire to meet an alien,” she said. “I hope that if they are out there that they’re very friendly.”

Benz is content to share scenes with other-worldly beings in Defiance, a sci-fi series that debuts April 15 on Showcase (and on SyFy in the U.S.).

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The made-in-Toronto series is set in the future, after aliens known as Votans have settled on Earth following the destruction of their home planets. Benz plays Amanda Rosewater, mayor of the titular town.

“I’ve been fascinated by aliens since I was a little girl, watching every Spielberg movie ever made,” she explained during an appearance on Global’s The Morning Show.

In addition to playing a serial killer’s wife on Dexter — until her character was murdered by another serial killer — Benz had a recurring role (as “a lesbian stripper with a heart of gold,” she said) on Desperate Housewives and starred as a scientist with superpowers in the short-lived series No Ordinary Family.

Her list of credits includes roles in movies like 2008’s Rambo and Saw V.

Benz said she has a good reason to be extra proud of her career.

“I had a teacher who told me I would never be an actress because I have the worst voice ever,” she recalled. “It motivated me even more to succeed. Tell me I can’t do something and I’m like ‘I’ll show you.'”

Showcase is owned by Shaw Media, parent company of Global News.