Erik King (born April 21, 1963) is an American actor, best known for his portrayal of Sergeant James Doakes on Showtime's television series Dexter and for his role as Moses Deyell on Oz.
King attended Morehouse College, where he won a varsity letter in track and field and graduated summa cum laude. For his honors thesis, he adapted the 1985 film Krush Groove as a stage musical. Erik's father was a policeman. King survived a serious auto accident that threatened to end his acting career early.
Early roles for King were in TV series such as Matlock, NYPD Blue and JAG. He appeared as Moses Deyell in HBO's television series Oz. Other episodic work includes Malcolm In The Middle, Charmed and CSI: Miami. King appeared on The District as Travis Hayward, as well as CBS' Touched by an Angel.
King has appeared in multiple feature films, including the adventure film National Treasure and the thriller Desperate Measures.
King's prominence rose with his role as police detective James Doakes in the Showtime TV series Dexter. He starred in 24 episodes from the pilot in 2006 to the last episode of Season 2 in 2007. For his portrayal as the main antagonist of the show, he received a Saturn Award nomination in 2008 for Best Supporting Actor on Television. He said of his role that: