EMMY(R) AND GOLDEN GLOBE(R)-WINNER JIMMY SMITS JOINS THE CAST OF SHOWTIME'S PEABODY AWARD WINNING SERIES DEXTER

Emmy(R) and Golden Globe(R) award-winner Jimmy Smits will wade into the murky world of Miami�s most notorious serial killer as he joins the cast of SHOWTIME's top-rated drama series DEXTER. Smits will be featured in ten of the third season's 12 episodes which are scheduled to premiere this fall on SHOWTIME.

Smits will portray Miguel Prado, an ambitious, charismatic assistant district attorney who comes from one of Miami's most politically powerful and beloved families. Dexter will join forces with Prado � who's risen in the ranks due to his aggressive stance against crime � in the pursuit of a murderer who affects both of their lives directly.

Best known for his many prominent television roles from L.A. Law, N.Y.P.D. Blue and The West Wing, Smits has enjoyed a diverse career in television and film. He earned eleven Emmy(R) nominations, including a win for Best Supporting Actor in Drama Series for his work on L.A. Law. Additionally, he has been nominated four times for a Golden Globe(R), winning once for Best Performance By An Actor In A Television Series - Drama for N.Y.P.D. Blue. Other recent TV credits include CANE, on which he also served as Executive Producer, and the award-winning movie Lackawanna Blues. His film credits include Mi Familia, Price of Glory, Star Wars: Episode II and III, The Jane Austen Book Club and is currently filming the independent Mexican film "Backyard" from director Carlos Carrera.

One of the most acclaimed series on television, DEXTER stars Michael C. Hall (two-time Golden Globe(R)-nominee) as a complicated and conflicted blood-spatter expert for the Miami police department who moonlights as a serial killer. The show will receive a prestigious Peabody Award later this month and was twice named one of AFI's top ten television series. The show also stars Julie Benz, Jennifer Carpenter, Lauren Velez, David Zayas, C.S. Lee and James Remar.