Greg Nicotero: The Actors Don’t Even Know Who Died
“I think it’s the perfect ending to this season: watching everyone on their knees, stripped down to the barest vulnerability, and
knowing that the cavalry’s not coming over the hill. Our group has never been in this situation before, so I think it’s the perfect opportunity.” – Nicotero.
Greg Nicotero, executive director for The Walking Dead, also directed the finale and says that the cast is in the same boat as the fans: they
don’t know who died.
“It [the finale] was specifically written that way. The POV shot looking up at Negan in that last moment, I don’t think anyone on that knew
what happened. As a matter of fact, if I’m not mistaken, I think we had wrapped all of the actors… and we didn’t have anybody there because we didn’t want even somebody on the crew or somebody there to go, ‘Oh I get it, I know what’s going to happen.’ So I think they were all gone. We built a little rig for Jeffrey to hit so that there would be impact with the baseball bat.” – Nicotero.
Knowing that we, the fans, are very observant and WILL try to piece together clues as to who died, Nicotero comments on how tricky it was
to shoot this scene.
“…in terms of what the background was, even editorially, you can see that they picked up the pace when he starts doing eeny meeny miny moe — we start picking up the pace, so you see the baseball bat in front of every single person’s face, and the duration of the cuts gets
faster, faster, faster until we cut to looking up at Jeffrey and him saying, “You are it,” and swinging the bat at the camera.”- Nicotero.
But what about all of that backlash? Fans are pissed! There are petitions and theories galore!
“I was very passionate about ending this season on a cliffhanger and not knowing, because I feel like it propels us into next season in a great way. So people can be upset…It’s unfortunate that some people are very vocal and very negative about the choices that we make, but
the bottom line is that this is a show I would watch. The graphic novel is going into a dark, dark place, and Kirkman said it himself: in the graphic novels, every one of them ends with a cliffhanger, and it is dark. That’s what this story deserves. I know everyone’s anxious to get back to work and everyone’s very excited about where the show is going, all the way from Andrew Lincoln and down. It’s like we’re starting
over again and it’s great.” – Nicotero.
Scott Gimple was on Talking Dead after the finale on Sunday and he made it a point to say that he is confident that they will deliver in season 7. Nicotero, who added that he hasn’t read the script yet, agrees 100%.
“Without a doubt it’s going to be an amazing season premiere…Nobody loves Walking Dead more than Scott Gimple. You can quote me on that a thousand times over, because we’re making the show that we want to watch.” – Nicotero.
In another interview, as we previously reported, Scott Gimple teased that those armored men who saved Morgan and Carol may or may
not have been from the kingdom. Nicotero comes straight out and says his opinion.
“I don’t think they look similar to the people from The Kingdom, I think they look exactly like the people from The Kingdom. Again, our world is growing and it’s very, very exciting. What I love about that little bit of the storyline isn’t so much introducing those people, as what Morgan has to do.” – Nicotero.
He is right, this was a major turning point for Morgan. Morgan has spent the season trying to convince the group that all life is precious and
killing shouldn’t be the first response. But he had to do what he vowed never to do- and that’s what Carol has been doing all along. Morgan, although disappointed in himself, now understands Carol more and understands that she wasn’t just killing to kill, she killed to save those she cared about. As he just did.
While we still have to wait until October to find out who died, we aren’t the only ones mad at the show right now. Nicotero’s parents are too!
“My mom and dad called this morning and they were like, “We had nightmares last night. You gotta tell us who it is.” My mom pulled
the whole, “Gregory, this is your mother, you need to tell me who dies.” I’m like, “Mom I’m not allowed to tell you that.” So my mom and dad aren’t talking to me right now.” – Nicotero.
That’s too funny.
When Beth “grows up” she wants to see her creations appear on the screen and stage. In her free time, Beth blogs about her love of craft beer and writes screenplays. She received her bachelors in journalism from Youngstown State and received her masters in communication from The University of Akron. She is honored to be a part of the FanFest family.
What is The Walking Dead? Oh ya it’s
that crappy little cable
show
that pulls gimmicks on its viewers. Screw you aholes I’m one of millions
that flushed your shity little
poorly written show for much better
entertainment.
What are you sore about Mark.
What a sore loser^
Love ,love
,love Greg Nicotero what
amazing work he does for this show !