Lennie James on the True Meaning of Morgan’s ‘I Don’t Die’
When fans of Morgan on The Walking Dead heard the character utter three words on Sunday’s episode, a couple of emotions took over. There was fear, the fear that he’d just signed his own death certificate but there was also an underlying sense of power.
‘I don’t die’ can be seen as a promise or a death wish, depending on which way you’re looking at the situation. On The Walking Dead, you never want to say that you’re indestructible because, well, your demise soon follows. However, Morgan didn’t make the exclamation in a moment of heated selfishness or with a prideful heart – he said it in a way that seemed heavy.
Yes, Morgan is happy to be alive, but it’s a double-edged sword. He’s lost the people who meant the most to him before the apocalypse began. He’s lost people who meant the world to him since the apocalypse began, and after last season, we were afraid we’d seen him retreat into himself so much that he’d be unable to get back out.
He doesn’t die. He’s still here. He’s a survivor. Yes, that means every day is a new day for him, it means that he’s winning, he’s finding a way to live in a world that’s hell-bent on destroying him, but at what cost? He watches those he loves as they perish, he walks among the undead, and he fights forces of evil in true human form just to keep breathing.
Lennie James addresses Morgan's line of "I don't die" #WSCAtlanta pic.twitter.com/WML9WrMvTM
— Walker Stalker (@WalkrStalkrCon) October 29, 2017
On Talking Dead, and at Walker Stalker Con this weekend, Lennie James spoke on what Morgan truly meant when he said those three worlds. We were hoping before that they weren’t that death sentence and, after hearing his perspective, we truly believe that he will live, it’s just a matter of in what capacity.
Will he be a killing machine? Will he find it in his heart to forgive again? Will he find peace and sanctuary within himself or will he be relentless in taking out the bad guys until there’s nothing of him left?
We believe, or at least we hope, that he’ll find a way to live and to love again. Lennie spoke about his character and what he wants for Morgan in the future and it’s something we want for him too. He wants Morgan to find and to feel love once again, in a way he thought was gone forever. Clearly, he has to stick around for that to happen.
We’ve seen Morgan be vulnerable in a number of ways, just as we’ve seen him be strong in just as many. Now, we just want him to keep that promise, and to make it to the other side of the apocalypse. Whatever that may be.
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‘…but I knew him’
