Fans of The Walking Dead mostly agreed that the greatest episode of the series came in the Season 6 finale, when Rick and his group were hunted by the Saviors and came face to face with Negan for the first time. The episode ended on one of the biggest cliffhangers of the decade, with the lives of several major characters hanging in the balance, and a brutal death for at least one fan-favorite guaranteed.
However, the Season 7 resolution, which involved the death of both Abraham and Glenn at the hands – or bat – of Negan became hugely controversial for its gratuitous violence, which generated many complaints. While Abraham’s death was a curveball, Glenn’s violent demise was exactly as it played out in the comics, but for Andrew Lincoln, perhaps the show’s depiction of Glenn’s death was a little too much. Speaking to Empire Magazine earlier this year, Lincoln said:
“I do still think [Glenn’s death] might have been when we over-egged the omelet. Maybe it was lingering too much.”
However, one thing that Lincoln felt even worse about was the fan-hate that was aimed at Jeffrey Dean Morgan following the episode.
“[He is] one of the nicest guys you’re ever going to meet, playing one of the most unpleasant characters. He had to do this extraordinary monologue on his first day at work, and everybody was on their knees and weeping when they weren’t on camera. [Morgan] came over and went, ‘Is this normal?’ I went, ‘Yeah, everybody just keeps going.’ It was an extraordinary night.”
Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s Negan Has Been a Driving Force in ‘The Walking Dead’ Universe
Once he arrived in The Walking Dead, Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s Negan didn’t just become part of the franchise, but was a huge part of the series’ continued success and could have even ensured it survived as long as it did. You could even say that he was the savior of the zombie saga. When an episode of the flagship series did not feature Negan in some capacity, there was something missing, so it seemed inevitable that he would get his own spinoff series.
The Walking Dead: Dead City was the first sequel series to air on AMC after the conclusion of Season 11 of the main show. The ratings were strong, the reviews were even better, and the series has become a thrilling extension of The Walking Dead that focused on the fraught relationship between Negan and Maggie (Lauren Cohen) as they ventured into a zombie-filled New York City to save Maggie’s son, Hershel.
The second season of Dead City concluded in June, but it will not be long before Season 3 rolls out. The next season will have a change of showrunner, with Seth Hoffman taking over from Eli Jorne, who oversaw both of the first seasons. Filming on the next season is set to begin this week in Worcester, which means it is likely that we will see the next chapter of Negan and Maggie’s journey coming sometime in 2026.
Season 3 will pick up after the events of Season 2’s final, when Maggie decides to finally put to bed her understandable grudge against the man who killed her husband, and focuses on building a new community within Manhattan. As expected, though, there will be some significant challenges, and it is likely that there will be some tough times ahead for the pair.
- Release Date
-
2010 – 2022
- Network
-
AMC
- Directors
-
David Boyd, Ernest R. Dickerson, Billy Gierhart, Guy Ferland, Laura Belsey, Jeffrey F. January, Michael Cudlitz, Sharat Raju, Alrick Riley, Michael Slovis, Michelle MacLaren, Rosemary Rodriguez, Seith Mann, Tricia Brock, Daisy von Scherler Mayer, Daniel Sackheim, Fred Toye, Gwyneth Horder-Payton, Jon Amiel, Kari Skogland, Kevin Dowling, Tawnia McKiernan, Larry Teng, Julius Ramsay
- Writers
-
Channing Powell, David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, Glen Mazzara, Jim Barnes, Vivian Tse, Robert Kirkman, Erik Mountain, Evan Reilly, Kevin Deiboldt, Julia Ruchman, Nicole Mirante-Matthews, Nichole Beattie, Eddie Guzelian, Geraldine Inoa, Magali Lozano, Curtis Gwinn, LaToya Morgan, Eli Jorne, Adam Fierro, Frank Renzulli, Ryan Coleman, Jack LoGiudice, Charles H. Eglee
