INTERVIEW: The Walking Dead’s Pollyanna McIntosh spills the beans on THAT meat grinder scene

The Walking Dead is back from its midseason break with villains, violence and gore-aplenty.

In the recent tenth episode of the new series, ‘The Lost and the Plunderers’, the Walking Dead‘s most enigmatic newbie has revealed the truth behind the facade. The Scavenger leader, Jadis, hit rock bottom as her entire community was executed. However, she soon took charge of the situation – in one of the show’s most grim scenes to date.

We sat down with Jadis actor Pollyanna McIntosh to talk about Jadis’s backstory, what’s next for the character and filming THAT meat grinder scene.

What backstory did you have for Jadis before you started the show?

I had what you saw in [episode 10 – ‘The Lost and the Plunderers’]. I had that much. I didn’t know it was going to come out in this way because I didn’t know what was going to happen in the future. I did know she was an artist and she had an artistic community. I know a little bit more than that, but I didn’t know that we were going to hear that in tears on top of a dump in a white dress.

How was it to film the meat grinder trash compactor scene?

A pleasure. I’ve played a lot of characters who have gone through awful things and people are always asking [if it was hard]. Honestly, if you’re feeling those awful emotions and you’re going through the horror of it, truly, then you’re happy as Larry, because you know it’s going to work. There’s always a fear for an actor: am I going to be able to cry? Am I going to be able to feel this for an extended period of time?

For me anyway, I’m trying to calibrate myself so it’s there when it’s needed and but it’s not affecting the whole time. It’s a strange joy to know that you’re feeling awful if you’re supposed to be feeling awful in a scene. It was fun, but just my weird version of fun.

Have we seen a hint as to what she will turn into?

I hope so. We’ve definitely seen a bunch of layers coming off so far. I definitely would hope we get a bit more insight into her and who she is.

INTERVIEW: The Walking Dead’s Steven Ogg on what Simon and Negan will do next

The Walking Dead is back from its midseason finale, and the carefully constructed world of Negan and the Saviours is starting to crumble.

As the Alexandrians turn up the heat, Negan’s methods seem to making things more difficult. Now, in episode 10 ‘The Lost and the Plunderers’, right-hand-man Simon openly defied his leader. Are things going from bad to worse for Negan and the Saviours?

We sat down with Simon actor Steven Ogg to learn what’s going to happen next for Simon and Negan in season eight.

After the events of episode 10, could there be a showdown between Simon and Negan?

I think there’s obviously some disagreement between them, but Simon believes what he’s done is the best course of action at this point. We’ve been trying what Negan has been trying for this amount of time and where have we got? Kind of f***ing nowhere. So Simon’s like okay. Action time. Let’s get this moving. He would rather come back to Negan and explain it on the backhand, as opposed to try to explain it to Negan upfront and disagree.

Early on, you didn’t see Simon and Negan together at all, it’s because Simon was trusted. They have all those outposts and Simon was doing his thing. He was getting the job done because he was trusted. They obviously might have a bit of an argy-bargy, but I don’t think it’s a big concern. I don’t think Simon’s heading back after that and going ‘argh, what’s dad going to say?’. It’s just like, well this is what I did. Now we can get further ahead. Now we can make some progress here because what you’ve been doing hasn’t been working.

What do you think the key differences are between Simon and Negan?

Well, after the last episode, there’s a pretty big difference between them now in the way they’re operating and the way they’re getting stuff done.

Simon’s a peacocker too, but he does it back here, whereas Negan I think likes to peacock out front. I always call him the drummer, because he likes to get shit done without being at the front of the stage. I think that’s the biggest, fundamental difference. It’s not that Simon couldn’t lead, it’s that he’s allowing Negan to lead. Negan doesn’t mind being at the front of the stage, whereas Simon prefers to get stuff done back here. Their position is the biggest difference.

INTERVIEW: The Walking Dead stars on Carl’s death, gay romance and what to expect next

After last year’s shock cliffhanger, The Walking Dead is back for the rest of the season – albeit without one familiar face.

The death of long-term season regular Carl, played by Chandler Riggs, has completely changed the tone of the show. It’s a death that didn’t happen in the original comics and struck fans completely off-guard.

As the Alexandrians and allies inch closer to victory over the Saviours, the new season of the Walking Dead looks to be one of the most intense ever. We sat down with series regulars Austin Amelio (Dwight), Tom Payne (Jesus) and Ross Marquand (Aaron) to discuss the impact of Carl’s death, what’s still to come this season and a certain gay romance that takes place in the comics.

How do you feel Carl’s death has affected you on and off screen?

Tom: It’s a big diversification from the comic books, so it throws a hand grenade into the show from that respect. You can predict certain things from the comic books and certain things have happened and played out, but [Carl’s death] really does change everything up for everyone. I definitely said in the past I thought Carl was the future of the show, and that made absolute sense. It’s a big change.

On the show, when people leave, the group dynamic changes obviously, on screen and off screen and just to not have a young voice… We’ve got Katelyn [Nacon, who plays Enid], but to not have a young voice who’s been there from the very beginning, it’s kind of a weird thing.

Austin: He was one of the original pillars on the show. I think especially for Andy, it’s very tough for him.

Were you surprised then?

Ross: I think I learned about it when I first read the script. I was like, ‘oh my gosh!’. We all thought he was the future of the show, so it’s definitely a massive departure from the comics.

Tom: It’s definitely one of those things you hear and you’re like wait… no… like wow, okay.

What is Dwight’s long-term plan now? Nobody trusts him and his only playing card is the fact he knows how the Saviours work.

Austin: I don’t think he has a long-term plan right now. He’s kind of living day to day. He knows that he could go at any moment, with the moves he’s making. He’s a good guy and a bad spot. If he knows his time is coming, he wants some redemption and he wants to do some good for the world and I think that’s getting rid of Negan. That’s consuming his mind right now.

There’s no thought of finding Sherry?

Austin: I mean, long-term, sure. A nice honeymoon with Sherry would be nice. He would like to get back to his wife, but we’re living in a pretty dangerous world so I think he’s just focusing on what he can do right now.

Could we talk about Aaron’s personal journey in season eight?

Ross: I think the loss of [Eric] – I think it hit him like a ton of bricks. It’s affected him in that he’s living with more immediacy. I think he’s taking in every moment as it comes and just realising if he leaves that community, the Oceansiders, without them getting on board, he will have failed. The whole mission was to get them on the side of the Alexandrians so that we could all fight. He needs to get them on side so they will win this.

Otherwise, his life has no purpose right now. Gracie was a mission, he had to take this baby somewhere. Now he’s done that, he’s like, ‘what else can I focus on?’ because he can’t focus on the loss of Eric right now. He needs to focus his energy into something positive.

Aaron and Jesus have a romance in the comics. Is that something you would like to happen in the TV show?

Tom: We just chatted about that at lunch! First of all, [Aaron’s] boyfriend just died. We both find it funny when people approach us about that, it literally just happened, his boyfriend just died.

We also thought it might be quite lazy if that happened. It might be fun, actually, if we did a kind of a riff on it and had a funny conversation about it and just be like, ‘you know, everyone kind of thinks we should like…’ and just put it in the show. I think that would be quite funny. Not everyone on the show has a romantic relationship, there aren’t that many. It’s like Michonne and Rick and that’s it right now?

Austin: Dwight and Sherry.

Tom: She ran away. She’s gone.

Austin: In my eyes, she’s out there somewhere.

What can you hint about the rest of the season?

Ross: I think the conclusion to the war is the thing that’s most exciting to me, because the communities do come together at the end of the season in a really cool way.

Tom: Yeah, the war does end this season. Can we say that?

Ross: We can say that.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan pays emotional tribute to Walking Dead co-star Chandler Riggs

Jeffrey Dean Morgan has paid an emotional tribute to his Walking Dead co-star, Chandler Riggs.

The Walking Dead‘s biggest ever goodbye finally took place this week, as long-term star Riggs left the show. Riggs’s character Carl suffered a fatal bite by a walker last season, which was revealed in the show finale. Riggs has played Carl for eight years, from the tender age of ten.

The departure is a turn away from The Walking Dead comics, where Carl remains alive and a vital part of the story.

Morgan, who plays bad guy Negan in the drama, posted an emotional tribute to Riggs on his Instagram – expressing his regret that the show only scratched the surface with Negan and Carl’s relationship.

Writing on Instagram, he said: “@chandlerriggs5 man…. what a pleasure. Not only getting to work with you… but, getting to know you. You, my friend, are an incredible young man.

“Well before joining this cast I was a fan… a fan that loved watching you grow up in front of a camera. From the moment you first put on the way too large sheriffs hat as a boy… to the end, the hat so befitting of the man Carl had become. Wiser and more compassionate than all of us. You held all of our hearts.

“Honestly… a huge reason I wanted so badly to join this band of misfits… was because I was such a fan of the Negan Carl relationship in the comics… that storyline was one of my favorites, as I know it was one of yours. I’ll forever be dissaponted we only scratched the surface of what could have been.”

In the comics, Negan and Carl shared a complex bond that continued even after the defeat of Negan.

REVIEW: The Walking Dead S8 E9 ‘Honour’ is needlessly long and miserable

The Walking Dead is finally back from the winter after that cliffhanger – and ‘Honour’ is about as joyful as one might expect.

Those hoping for a Jon Snow-style resurrection twist will be disappointed, as this episode does seem to confirm we’ve seen the last of Carl. His departure was every bit as depressing as actors and showrunners hinted it would be, fully fleshed out for maximum emotional impact in a feature-length opening episode.

‘Honour’ starts by going back in time and showing us Carl’s final days, from the fatal bite to his last letters to his burgeoning friendship with Siddiq. This extended sequence, which, like the episode, is longer than necessary, is set to the inspired choice of song ‘At the Bottom of Everything’ by the Bright Eyes. With a jovial tune and lyrics such as ‘We must rip out all the epilogues / From the books that we have read’, it’s oddly fitting.

There are two very satisfying reveals in this episode. Firstly, that Carl did not sacrifice himself for anyone – Siddiq seems an all round good guy, who also happens to be a doctor. Secondly, the ‘Old Man Rick’ timeline is finally explained. It’s not Rick’s fantasy for the future, it’s Carl’s. It a painful and beautiful resolution, one of The Walking Dead‘s more poignant plot twists.

Elsewhere, we learn how the Saviours escaped and how Morgan and Carol were able to rescue Ezekiel. Morgan’s transformation is beautifully contrasted with Carl’s. As Carl relays how easy it is to lose humanity in the new world, Morgan relapses into killing machine mode. This is surely the beginning of whatever it is that will cause Lennie James to leave the show and join spin-off Fear The Walking Dead.

For a goodbye episode, ‘Honour’ is about as drawn out as it gets. There’s plentiful misery, crying, and wise last words from Carl. It’s not necessary – this episode, including both Carl’s death and Morgan’s relapse, could have easily been handled in a normal-lengthed episode. It would have still been painful. The appeal of the end result thus depends on how much you like relentless misery.