Andrew Lincoln on Negan Being Horrific and His Effect on Carl in THE WALKING DEAD
The mid-season premiere of The Walking Dead is almost upon us, and as you know, the second half of season six is going to introduce audiences to the villain Negan. This is one hell of a bad dude, and the whole dynamic of the series will change wince he’s introduced, just like his introduction to the comic.
During an interview with TV Insider, Andrew Lincoln talked about what we can expect from the upcoming episodes, what a horrific person Negan is, and how Carl is going to handle the introduction of this person in his life. When describing what the second half of the season will be like, Lincoln said:
“It's radically different from the first eight episodes, although I would say that Episode 9 is almost a chapter finish. The third act in Episode 9 is a radical shift in a lot of things. Then the next seven episodes are this crazy race to a new world order.”
He explained that the upcoming episode nine is a “crazy-ass” amazing script and that it’s one of his favorites. “It's big, like the Magnificent Seven. It's everything I love about our show, when we're spinning all the plates.” When talking about the introduction of Negan, Lincoln said:
“Very much in the manner that it changed the characters within the book. This is probably one of the most important castings other than Rick. He's a beloved fan-favorite, but also a huge foil to Rick and his family. Everybody needs a good baddie, and this is the one that a lot of people have been waiting for for quite some time.”
He compared Negan with some of the past villains we’ve seen in the series and said he’s interesting in seeing how the relationship between Carl and Negan develops:
“The Governor was magnificent and David did a beautiful job playing him. But Negan is horrific. He is this incredible tyrant and this very charismatic, funny, brutal beyond words sociopath. I'm interested in the relationship between Negan and Carl and Carl and Rick. There's a very complicated, extraordinary psychology between those characters. I'm just thrilled that we are getting to a place where it feels very deep, dark, thrilling and dangerous.”
If you’ve read the comics then you know the two characters have an interesting dynamic. Here’s a little tease of where they could go with that.
Rick has a very rough road ahead of him, and things are going to get more insane than they’ve ever been. Summarizing the character’s journey this season, Lincoln said:
“Rick learns a heck of a lot about himself as a leader. He has to make some incredibly difficult decisions, and I think the audience will be shocked by some of the things that happen. You see Rick in a place that you've never seen him before by the end of this season. You see, yet again, a changed man.”
The Walking Dead returns on February 14th, and it will just be the beginning of Negan’s madness.