Actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan recently discussed why he returned for The Walking Dead Negan and Maggie spinoff show. Based on the popular comic book series of the same name, the survival horror television series first aired on AMC in October 2010 and centered on a small group of survivors at the beginning of a worldwide zombie apocalypse. Now, with The Walking Dead coming to its conclusion after 12 years, two of the show's stars are set to begin a new journey in their own spinoff show, The Walking Dead: Dead City.
Originally called the Isle of the Dead, the upcoming series will focus on Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and Negan (Morgan) as they venture northeast and enter the island of Manhattan in New York. Following the initial outbreak, the borough was cut off from the mainland, trapping its surviving residents with the undead. Recently, Morgan shared an image of episode 1's script to commemorate the start of production as Dead City is expected to debut on television in 2023.
In a recent interview with EW, Morgan discussed why he decided to stay in the world of The Walking Dead with his upcoming spinoff show. The actor explained that after so many years on the original series, he had never considered reprising his villainous role once again following the series finale. However, Morgan admitted that the story for Dead City is "so good and worth telling," the actor felt compelled to sign on for more The Walking Dead. Read what the actor said below.
"If you had told me that a year ago that I would be doing it, I would've said, 'There's no way. I'm going to end this and walk away.' The new adventure awaits doing something else.'"
"I think that The Walking Dead ending and walking away from it would've been a noble thing for us all to do. But the story was so good and so worth telling that it simply came down to, I couldn't say no. And I felt invigorated and wanted to continue it."
Morgan joined the series in 2016 and has been a core part of the show from season 7 on to its conclusion. It is understandable that the actor would desire to be done with the show after more than half a decade of committing to one role. However, Morgan's decision to return to The Walking Dead for the spinoff series indicates that Dead City could take the character into exciting new territory that the actor feels impossible to resist. With Negan finally finding some redemption in the final season and Maggie coming to grips with the loss of her husband, Glenn (Steven Yeun), and the rage that it had caused inside of her, Morgan's comments indicate that the new show will explore the characters in challenging new ways.
Dead City is shaping up to be one of the more fascinating series of upcoming The Walking Dead spinoffs that AMC has planned for the near future. The show is set to take Negan and Maggie, along with long-time viewers, outside their usual comfort zone of walker-infested small towns and wilderness into the vast concrete jungle that is Manhattan. With its unique neighborhoods, tall skyscrapers, and dark tunnels that twist underneath, Dead City is set to be the one The Walking Dead show that audiences shouldn't miss.
Source: EW