Julie Benz was given a copy of the script in 2005, and was asked to audition for the part of Rita Bennett. She was surprised she was asked to audition, because the script was "one of the best pilot scripts ever read." She also read for the part of Debra, and joked that she would have auditioned for Dexter's role had she been able to. Benz had been a "disgustingly huge" fan of Michael C. Hall from his role in "Six Feet Under" and she said in an interview with Vanity Fair that "I was such a fan of his from Six Feet Under, to the point where my cell-phone ring was the show’s theme song. I had to change it once I got cast!". The script was also presented to James Remar, who auditioned for the part of Harry Morgan, because it was a character he "really related to" and had waited for most of his life to play.