"The Walking Dead" Premiere's Death Scene Was "Exhausting," Norman Reedus Reveals

CBR

By Kevin Melrose

Published Aug 1, 2016

Returning to film the conclusion of Season 6's cliffhanger was "not a joyous reunion" for the cast," the actor says.

Whatever anxiety some fans feel about the impending resolution of "The Walking Dead's" Season 6 cliffhanger, it's nothing compared to what the show's star experienced when they began production on Season 7.

"It was exhausting, and it was no fun," Norman Reedus told Entertainment Weekly. "You know, we always come back to this show every season, and we're like, 'Yeah, let's get back into it!' You know, all the actors are excited to be here and see each other and get back into where they were. But this was one of those where it's like, 'Oh, fuck. Here we go.' It was definitely not a joyous reunion. I mean, it was nice to see everybody again, of course, but it wasn't the same as in previous years."

That's because when we left Daryl, Rick and the other survivors, they were at the mercy of the menacing Negan (played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and his barbed wire-wrapped bat Lucille has he played a cruel game of eeny, meeny, miny, moe. In the closing moments of the Season 6 finale, Negan swung his bat, but viewers never saw who the victim was.

It was reported in June that the AMC series shot multiple deaths scenes to help ensure the identity of Negan's victim remains a secret until the Season 7 premiere. Negan's dialogue in the finale makes it clear he didn't settle on Carl (Chandler Riggs), and "The Walking Dead" creator Robert Kirkman confirmed at Comic-Con International that he passed up Rick (Andrew Lincoln) as well. That leaves nine other possibilities.

Reedus said the death will have a deep yet different effect on each of the remaining survivors.

"Some relinquish power. Some accept it. Some fight it," he revealed. "There are people questioning it. There are people pointing their fingers. There are people blaming themselves. Other things happen that completely destroy people. The group is completely broken apart at this point. Negan has come in and completely shaken up everything. Loyalties are broken, belief in one another, belief in ourselves. Each individual is completely broken, and they don't all handle it the exact same way."

"The Walking Dead" returns Oct. 23 on AMC.