Lila West | Villains Wiki - Fandom

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Evil-doer

Full Name

Lila West

Alias

Lila Tournay

Origin

Dexter

Occupation

Sponsor for Narcotics Anonymous

Freelance sculptor

Powers / Skills

High intelligence

Mastery of psychologyManipulationCharismaSculpting

Goals

Make Dexter become her "soulmate" (failed).

Kill Doakes to protect Dexter (succeeded).

Crimes

Murder

StalkingKidnappingIncriminationReckless endangermentSerial theftSerial arsonProperty damageBreaking and enteringIllegal immigration

Type of Villain

Obsessed Femme Fatale

“	You're going to tell me your deepest, darkest secrets.	„
~ Lila seducing Dexter Morgan.

“	I'm over here. We could have had it all, Dexter.	„
~ Lila leaving Dexter and Rita's children to burn to death.

Lila West is one of the two main antagonists (alongside James Doakes) of Season 2 of the crime drama series Dexter.

She is a pyromaniacal sociopath who hangs out in support groups to vicariously experience emotions she is incapable of feeling; it is there she meets Dexter Morgan and becomes obsessed with him, believing him to be her "soulmate." She eventually kills Doakes to protect him.

She was portrayed by Jaime Murray, who also portrayed the Black Fairy in Once Upon a Time, Carmilla Pines in Sleepy Hollow and Nyssa al Ghul in Gotham.

Contents

• 1 Personality
• 2 Biography
• 3 Victims
  • 3.1 Kills
  • 3.2 Attempted
• 4 Gallery
  • 4.1 Images
  • 4.2 Videos
• 5 Trivia
• 6 External links
• 7 Navigation

Quick Answers

What role does Lila West play in Season 2 of Dexter? In Season 2 of Dexter, Lila West, also known as Lila Tournay, is the primary antagonist. As a sociopath, she frequents support groups to vicariously feel emotions. Her obsession with Dexter Morgan, whom she meets in a group, leads her to employ psychological manipulation to make him her soulmate. When Dexter resists, she resorts to criminal activities including theft, arson, murder, and attempted child murder. Lila is the first antagonist in the series to kill a main character. Provided by: Fandom How does Lila West meet Dexter Morgan? Lila West, also recognized as Lila Tournay, encounters Dexter Morgan in a support group. As a sociopath incapable of feeling emotions, she uses these gatherings to vicariously experience them. Upon meeting Dexter, she becomes fixated on him, employing her manipulation skills and charm in an attempt to make him her 'soulmate'. Provided by: Fandom What character traits make Lila West a sociopath in Dexter? Lila West, also recognized as Lila Tournay in Dexter, is a sociopath characterized by manipulative behavior, psychological mastery, and charisma. She is an obsessed murderer who frequents support groups to vicariously experience emotions. Lila develops an obsession with Dexter Morgan after meeting him in a group. Her sociopathic tendencies are evident in her criminal activities, including theft, arson, incrimination, murder, and attempted child murder. Provided by: Fandom Who portrays the character of Lila West in Dexter? Actress Jaime Murray portrays the character Lila West, also known as Lila Tournay, in the second season of Dexter. She is a sociopath who becomes obsessed with Dexter Morgan after encountering him in a support group. Provided by: Fandom

Personality[]

“	I thought I closed the door to anyone ever seeing me for who I am, but this woman sees me. She doesn't know it, but she's looking behind the mask, and she's not turning away.	„
~ Dexter's description of Lila

At first glance, Lila appears to be a charming, seductive, empathetic, fun-loving, carefree woman; in actuality, she is intensely cruel, manipulative, obsessive, controlling, selfish, wicked, and eccentric. Lila habitually attends support groups not to get help, but to behold emotions in normal people that she herself cannot experience, as she is a sociopath completely devoid of empathy who eventually proves able to murder people without any regret. Lila did struggle with meth addiction for years before getting clean, however. In NA, she met Marco, her boyfriend and drug supplier. After he left her, Lila set his house ablaze while intoxicated and angry, inadvertently killing him, but she spitefully claims he had it coming.

Lila sees through Dexter Morgan's fabricated persona upon meeting him in NA and thus finds herself enthralled by the darkness she can instinctively sense inside him. Though Lila initially clocks Dexter's speech about using heroin as nothing more than a "well-rehearsed spiel," she doesn't discover his true nature until later - by which point she has already become completely fixated on him, apparently sure that the two are destined to be "soulmates." She repeatedly attempts to get the reserved Dexter to open up about himself, though upon hearing that he's the Bay Harbor Butcher, Lila understands why the burden keeps him shut down. Lila believes that she is the only person who truly knows and accepts Dexter for who he is.

Although a reciprocal romance does come about between them temporarily, it ultimately falls apart, not least due to Lila's violent reactions, her disposition toward exploiting other people to suit her needs, and the reality that she doesn't truly care about Dexter as a human being, only as far as he can be of use to her fantasy. An example of her shallow "love" is when she cries during a conversation with Dexter, only to look away with a smug smile as she hugs him. Lila turns more and more desperate and attention-seeking throughout the season, which, on top of her constant aberrant fetish for Dexter, serves as a stumbling block for the stability of his secret life as a serial killer. This volatility eventually drives Dexter away from her. Before Dexter murders her, Lila claims she killed Doakes "for him," but Dexter sees how her actions are self-serving at their core: "Did you try to kill the children for me, too?" Ironically, Dexter spins Lila's hope that he accept his darkness, the one thing he trusts in clarity, as a way to fully embrace killing her.

Lila is also a serial pyromaniac with a penchant for setting fires, of which she has started four: she set fire to her ex-boyfriend's house, which killed him; set her loft on fire to gain sympathy from Dexter when they were drifting apart; caused the cabin in the Everglades to explode, killing Doakes; and again set her loft on fire with Astor, Cody, and Dexter inside in an attempt to destroy them all. She also likes stealing things to use in her sculptures.

Biography[]

“	Dexter: You lied to me. All that time as my sponsor, you said all you wanted was to help me control my addiction.Lila: We did control it.Dexter: Oh, but that's not what you really wanted. Was it?Lila: What do you think I wanted?Dexter: To know what it's like. To feel something, that deeply. Anything. That's why you hang out in recovery groups. You're emotionally colorblind. You use the right words, you pantomime the right behavior, but the feelings never come to pass.Lila: That's not true.Dexter: It is, Lila. You know the dictionary definition of emotions. Longing, joy, sorrow. But you have no idea what any of those things feel like.Lila: You're wrong! I have feelings for you.Dexter: You want to have feelings for me. But they're just impulses.Lila: Enough!Dexter: They're primitive responses to immediate needs.Lila: Stop it, stop it. Don't do this, don't do this.Dexter: You know all the words, but you can't hear the music. Lila, I'm just like you.	„
~ Dexter and Lila's conversation in the aquarium

Lila is originally from England, possibly London, and was born July 21, 1976. In Dexter, Lila initially went by the pseudonym Lila Tournay and served as Dexter Morgan's sponsor in the Narcotics Anonymous group, with Dexter being the first person she ever sponsored. She states that she is a recovering meth addict and pyromaniac who accidentally killed her boyfriend Marco after setting fire to his apartment while high. She works as an artist, often stealing items to use in her work.

She meets Dexter after he joins the group at the behest of his girlfriend Rita Bennett, who believes he is addicted to heroin - unaware that Dexter is in fact a serial killer who set up her abusive ex-husband Paul Bennett to go to prison, where he is subsequently murdered. Lila volunteers to be Dexter's sponsor and senses right away that he is lying about being a heroin addict. She also senses a darkness in him that she can't define and encourages him to let his guard down.

When he tells her that he has found his mother's killer, Santos Jimenez, she advises him to seek closure - which he does by viciously attacking Jimenez, an attack that Lila interrupts by calling him and convincing him to turn away before he takes it too far. Afterwards, he runs to Lila for comfort, where she discloses her past to Dexter, who assures her that Marco deserved his death. Later on, Lila is invited to dinner by Rita's mother and meets her family, where she seemingly wins their respect. However, she later leaves a message for Dexter bringing up their night in the hotel, causing Rita to believe that Dexter cheated on her and in turn break up with him. When Dexter later meets Lila to vent his frustrations, they end up having sex and become lovers, much to the dismay of Dexter's foster sister Debra.

Lila becomes possessive and erratic, however, at one point setting fire to her own loft to prove to Dexter that they are soulmates; she believes that they are closest during times of crisis. When he breaks up with her, she retaliates by ingesting Rohypnol and having sex with Dexter's friend and coworker Angel Batista to frame him for date rape.

Later, Debra runs a background check on Lila and discovers that her real last name is West and that she is residing in the U.S. illegally. Debra threatens to have Lila deported unless she leaves Dexter and Batista alone. Lila nevertheless keeps stalking Dexter, who has reconciled with Rita, and follows him to his cabin in the Florida Everglades, where he has coincidentally imprisoned his nemesis, Sgt. James Doakes. When Doakes tells her that Dexter is a serial killer, the infamous Bay Harbor Butcher, she decides to kill him in order to protect Dexter and starts a propane fire that destroys the cabin and Doakes with it.

Dexter meets with Lila under the pretext of wanting to run away with her; he is in fact luring her in to kill her. She discovers the truth after finding knives and syringes in Dexter's overnight bag and seeks revenge by kidnapping Astor and Cody, locking them in her loft and setting it on fire. Dexter saves the children, however, and Lila flees to Paris to escape him; Dexter soon tracks her there. As Lila checks her mail and a postcard from Miami with Doakes' picture on it, Dexter sneaks up and injects her with an epidural so she can't move, and lays her on the couch. Lila begs for her life, but Dexter stabs her through the heart. He wraps her body in a plastic garment bag.

Victims[]

Kills[]

• Marco - Her ex-boyfriend; accidentally killed after setting his house on fire.
• James Doakes - Blown up after Lila let gas from a stove fill the room, which eventually explodes.
  • Total - 2

Attempted[]

• Dexter Morgan
• Cody Bennett
• Astor Bennett - Attempted to kill all three by setting her loft on fire.
  • Total - 3

Gallery[]

Images[]

Lila with Dexter at night.Lila in Paris during her attempt to escape Dexter's vengeance.Dexter avenges James Doakes by stabbing Lila in the chest, killing her.

Videos[]

Dexter & Lila’s Relationship Timeline 🔥

Trivia[]

• Along with Miguel Prado, Lila has the lowest kill count of all main antagonists in the original series, with only two confirmed victims.
• Lila is the first main antagonist to kill a main character in the series, and the only main antagonist to kill another main antagonist (James Doakes for both).
• Befitting of their shared role as Season 2's main antagonists, Lila and Doakes are both characterized by their unique ability to recognize Dexter's darkness.
• Lila is one of only two female main antagonists in the show, the second being María LaGuerta.
• Lila is the only known victim of Dexter Morgan to be killed outside of the United States.
• Lila is the only lover Dexter has killed, as he spared both Lumen Pierce and Hannah McKay.
• Despite their characters' mutual hatred, Rita and Lila's actresses, Julie Benz and Jaime Murray, are best friends in real life.
• Debra has a strong dislike for Lila, giving her nicknames like "Little Miss Pardon My Tits" or "Elvira," and referring to her insultingly as a "skank" and "gross, English, titty vampire." When reporting on her appearance, Debra makes sure to emphasize that Lila is as pale as a corpse.
• Lila is mentioned once by Rita and once by Vince Masuka in season 4. Rita uses Lila as an example of Dexter's lies. Vince calls Dexter a “pure jungle cat" and fills in Joey Quinn about her.

External links[]

• Lila West on the Dexter Wiki

Navigation[]

Protagonists Morgan Family Dexter Morgan (Television, Novels) | Debra Morgan | Harry Morgan Miami Metro Joey Quinn | María LaGuerta Others Evelyn Vogel | Hannah McKay | Zach Hamilton Television Villains Dexter Season 1 Brian Moser | Paul Bennett | Neil Perry | James Doakes | Carlos Guerrero | Jeremy Downs | Emmett Meridian Jorge and Valerie Castillo | Matt Chambers | Jacques Bayard | Norberto Cervantes | Mike Donovan | Jamie Jaworski | Ricky Roberta Perry | Alex Timmons | Gene Marshall | Cindy Landon | Mary Season 2 Lila West | James Doakes | Santos Jimenez | 29th Street Kings (Little Chino) | Ken Olson | Benjamin Alvaro | John Henry Jose Garza | Cal Rooney | Curtis Barnes | Jimmy Sensio | Esteban and Teo Famosa | Roger Hicks | Carl | Juan Ryness Season 3 Miguel Prado | George King | Ramon Prado | Oscar Prado | Freebo | Ethan Turner | Clemson Galt | Albert Chung | Nathan Marten Billy Fleeter | Fiona Kemp | Juan Ryness | Season 4 Arthur Mitchell | Christine Hill | Johnny Rose | Nikki Wald | Zoey Kruger | Jonathan Farrow | Timothy Brand | Andy Brightman Benito Gomez | Stan Beaudry | Lloyd Paulson Season 5 Barrel Girl Gang (Jordan Chase, Boyd Fowler, Cole Harmon, Dan Mendell, Alex Tilden) Stan Liddy | Carlos Fuentes | Marco Fuentes | Robert Brunner | Barry Kurt | Lance Robinson | Marcetti Season 6 Travis Marshall | Steve Dorsey | Beth Dorsey | Louis Greene | Walter Kenney | Locos (Julio Benes, Leo Hernandez, Nick) | Alberto Kaitlyn Watson | Ben and Roger | Joe Walker | Norm | Restaurant Shooter | Mister Season 7 Koshka Brotherhood (Isaak Sirko, George Novikov, Jurg Yeliashkevych, Viktor Baskov, Oleg Mickic, Benjamin Caffrey) Maria LaGuerta | Hector Estrada | Ray Speltzer | Joe Jensen | Wayne Randall | Clint McKay Andres Rodriguez | Phillip Barnes | Unnamed Hitman Season 8 Oliver Saxon | Jacob Elway | Max Clayton | A.J. Yates | Miles Castner | Andrew Briggs Shawn Decker | Ron Galuzzo | Javier Guzman New Blood Kurt Caldwell | Elric Kane | Matt Caldwell | Jasper Hodge | Miles O'Flynn | Wiggles the Clown | Ethan Williams Original Sin Aaron Spencer | Brian Moser | Hector Estrada | Levi Reed | Tony Ferrer Nurse Mary | Santos Jimenez | Anthony Moretti | Raul Martinez | Juan Pablo Aliso Resurrection Season 1 Prater's Club (Leon Prater | Charley Brown | Mia LaPierre | Lowell Sloane | Al Jolly | Gemini Killers | Ronald Schmidt | Keith Bauer) | Ryan Foster New York Ripper | Cooper Morris | Vinny Valente | Salvatore Perrone Early Cuts Season 1Alex Timmons | Gene Marshall | Cindy Landon Season 2Peter Thornton | Robert Milson | Jenna Lincoln Season 3Max Lindquist | Coleman Lindquist | Sam Duke | Tony Rodriguez Dexter: The Game Xandro Lopez | Sergei Schevchenko | Jamie Jaworski | Mike Donovan Book Villains Tamiami Slasher | Jamie Jaworski | Father Donovan | First Nurse Dearly Devoted DexterDr. Danco | Randy Macgregor | Steve Reiker Dexter in the DarkMoloch | Cult of Moloch (Professor Wilkins, Darius Starzak, Alexander Macauley) | Carl Dexter by DesignBrandon Weiss Dexter is DeliciousThe Coven(Alana Acosta, Bobby Acosta, Victor Chapin) Double DexterBernard Elan | Steve Valentine Dexter’s Final CutRobert Chase | Patrick Bergmann Raul | Detective Anderson | Frank Kraunauer Comic Book Villains Volume 1Steve Gonzalez | Deveaux | Octavio | Mustached Victim | Volume 2Bruce Grigsby