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#Post#: 826--------------------------------------------------
'Walking Dead' Boss Defends Cliffhanger, Fan Baiting; Answers Bu
rning Season 7 Questions
By: Ickray_Imesgray Date: April 9, 2016, 4:37 am
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HTML http://cdn1.thr.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/scale_crop_768_433/2016/04/twd_616_gp_1112_0227-rt-h_2016.jpg
Showrunner Scott M. Gimple addressed Negan's deadly arrival and
previewed what to expect from the AMC zombie drama's October
return during a conference call Monday.
[Warning: This story contains spoilers from the season six
finale of AMC's The Walking Dead, "Last Day on Earth," and the
comic book series that the show is based on.]
AMC's The Walking Dead capped its sixth season with as big of a
cliffhanger as it possibly could deliver.
The series, based on the comics created by Robert Kirkman,
finally introduced villain Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and, in a
nearly frame-for-frame re-creation of its shocking 100th issue,
left the fate of one of 10 survivors to be revealed in season
seven.
Left in the lurch are: Rick (Andrew Lincoln), Michonne (Danai
Gurira), Glenn (Steven Yeun), Daryl (Norman Reedus), Rosita
(Christian Serratos), Carl (Chandler Riggs), Maggie (Lauren
Cohan), Aaron (Ross Marquand), Eugene (Josh McDermitt), Abraham
(Michael Cudlitz) and Sasha (Sonequa Martin-Green). The 11 were
all lined up on their knees in front of Negan, with the
charismatic leader of the Saviors swinging Lucille, his baseball
bat wrapped in barbed wire, at one of them before the series
changed its point of view to that of the victim. With blood
dripping down the screen, the series cut to black and viewers
heard the jarring and repeated sounds of Lucille crushing
someone's skull.
Showrunner Scott M. Gimple met the press corps Monday during a
conference call with reporters, including THR, where he both
defended the cliffhanger (as he did Sunday during Talking Dead)
and previewed what to expect from season seven. Here are the
highlights:
Why end with a cliffhanger? And will that graphic death actually
be shown in season seven?
On Monday, Gimple mirrored his comments from Talking Dead and
said that the season finale marked the end of the story where
Rick was torn down from his powerful perch. "Where Rick winds up
is completely different from where he started in [episode 601]
and where he started in [episode 609]. I know — and have for a
while — what is in 701. To show what happened in full force is
the beginning of the next story," he told THR during the call.
Asked specifically if the series would depict the "incredible
work of gore" from the comics, he noted that he was "certain
that we will be pushing some boundaries with it."
"We definitely anticipated" blowback.
Gimple was upfront that producers "definitely anticipated" some
blowback from fans. The showrunner, who co-wrote the season six
finale, repeatedly stressed that he knows where the story is
going and has known who the victim is for some time and that
this was part of "the greater story we're telling." Rather than
go into specific detail about why he made certain finale
decisions, he opted to protect the story and instead stress that
producers have good intentions and care about their audience.
"We're trying to deliver them an experience," he told reporters.
"I suppose it's good everything is met with skepticism and
people are thinking critically and distrusting things put before
them. I'd love a little more trust, but it's a good thing for
society that people aren't just trusting things coming across
the TV set. It makes the challenge for us to win those angry
people back with a great story — and that's much harder — but
that's the business we're in. We're not trying to do the easy
thing. … I do want to do right by this audience, and I hope to
win them back."
What's with all that baiting?
The 45-minute call was testy at times as Gimple was asked
multiple times to defend the way in which the drama baits fans —
including removing Yeun's name from the opening credits earlier
this season following Glenn's now-infamous dumpster dive. He
asked viewers to give producers the benefit of the doubt and
trust that they do have a larger plan in mind. "I hope with
[episode] 701 people see that it justifies the way we've decided
to tell the story," he said. "I know what 701 is and I feel that
it delivers on what 616 sets up."
About that dumpster dive…
Asked directly if he had any regrets about removing Yeun's name
from the opening credits, Gimple reiterated his remarks from
earlier this season that he had the best interest of the show in
mind. "I know that in my heart, it was about protecting the
audience's experience," he told reporters, stressing that he
could have been accused of being sloppy if he had left Yeun's
name in the credits. "We do care about our audience a great deal
and we don't enjoy the pain they go through, but it is part of a
greater story that they themselves are going through. We're
trying to take them through this journey, and there will be hard
parts and sad parts and happy parts, but we want them to feel
things."
Has the big death already been filmed? Does who dies know?
Gimple remained tight-lipped when it comes to just who met
Lucille during the finale. He dodged the question multiple times
and noted that there were "far too many landmines" to even
broach the topic. Gimple stressed that the series, which is
prone to multiple leaks and photos taken from drones by die-hard
fans camped out near the show's Atlanta set, is going to work
overtime to protect the reveal from leaking. "We're working hard
to put things in place to protect it," he said, noting it would
be hard to keep the secret if the victim booked a follow-up gig
the way Jon Bernthal did before Shane was killed off. "We are
going to try to protect the secret of this and to protect the
audience's experience. I sure hope it doesn't leak, but the
world is what the world is." After Kirkman noted that there are
clues to who is killed off in the finale, Gimple stressed that
he didn't think there is enough information to go on to
successfully figure it out. "There are a couple things in there
that might help people possibly limit the amount of people who
are vulnerable, but I'd encourage people not to go down that
route. I don't think there's a way to puzzle it out
definitively," he said.
How big will the death be?
The showrunner was held accountable for killing off minor
characters this season including Jessie and Denise while keeping
all the central characters alive and kicking. "What's coming up
is going to change everything with the story," he said of the
finale victim. Gimple reiterated what Kirkman and the rest of
the producers have said for years: that all the deaths on the
show have to mean something to the story and the other
characters. "Whether [the finale victim] is a fairly new or a
fairly OG character, there is a long-running plan to this show,
and someone will meet their end."
Will there be stories told from Negan's point of view?
On Talking Dead, producers note that it was quite possible fans
would be rooting for Negan if The Walking Dead had been
following his story for six seasons. Gimple called the character
"very honest" and said unlike David Morrissey's Governor, Negan
is an open book. "With Negan, what you see is what you get," he
said. "With Negan, it's about positive reinforcement. He's
approached the world in a certain way and been rewarded again
and again. We will see stories from his perspective, but the guy
you see is the guy he is. There won't be this reveal [about who
is] behind the mask [like there was with the Governor]."
What's the theme of season seven?
Season six explored two central subjects: the responsibility of
survival (from the first half) and what to do with that power
(the last eight episodes). Gimple said the first half of season
seven is going to open up even more beyond Alexandria, the
Saviors and the Hilltop. "We'll have a wide variety of locales
and tone and characters," he told THR during the call. "There's
going to be … probably the biggest variety of stories we've had
yet. Without spoiling anything, things are going to start off
very, very dark because everybody knows where we're starting.
But that won't be the whole season. It's not going to be
darkness upon darkness upon darkness." The central theme of
season seven, he told THR, is "How do you begin again?" "The
world is not what they thought it was, so how do you start over
in this new world?" That goes for all the characters beyond the
11 lined up in front of Negan. "Even the characters who weren't
in that lineup are in a position where they will learn the world
isn't what they thought it was," he said, noting that would
include both light and dark stories. "For some, it isn't going
to be wholly negative but it will challenge them with how they
chose to move forward and who they want to be."
Prepare for The Kingdom
During the call, Gimple would neither confirm nor deny that the
men Morgan encountered in the season finale were members of the
so-called Kingdom. "Those guys may or may not have been from the
Kingdom and we may or may not see the Kingdom," he told THR.
"But if we do see the Kingdom, it'll be a big reveal and it will
be another new world to inhabit and explore." Clues that the
series would introduce the Kingdom were first offered in the
penultimate episode. In the comics, the Kingdom is overseen by a
George Clinton-like leader named Ezekiel. The former zookeeper
oversees the community with Shiva, his pet tiger. Members of the
Kingdom, like those of the Hilltop and Alexandria, do not wish
to be a part of Negan's reign of terror. Asked if the series
would feature an actual tiger, Gimple remained coy. "Can we have
a real tiger? We can have a lot of things and people will have
to wait and see," he said. "But if I were just watching the
show, I'd want to see that tiger."
Let's talk about Carol (and Morgan)
Gimple stressed that the series isn't done exploring Carol's
evolution and the fact that she's reached a point where she
doesn't want to be around people she cares about so she doesn't
have to kill to protect them. "She's reached a point where she's
comfortable with dying. She has a road to go down and she wants
to be alone. That's what that character wants and what she's
going after. It will be interesting to see if she gets what she
wants and if she can live with that," he said. As for Morgan,
who broke his no-kill philosophy to save Carol from death by
Savior thus proving Carol's point, he hasn't settled anything.
"Morgan faced that directly," Gimple said, noting season seven
will explore how they chose to move on from that.
Can Maggie and the baby survive?
While Maggie appeared on the verge of having a miscarriage in
the finale, Gimple remained mum on the character's fate and only
said that her exact diagnosis "will be shared one way or the
other."
Carl and Negan's journey
In the comics, Carl and Negan have a very unique relationship
where Negan takes a liking to Rick's son. Gimple said that
relationship would be featured in season seven but, as he tends
to do with the source material, may be remixed a bit. "It may be
very brief, but we will absolutely see them have a pretty
intense moment," he said. "There's going to be a bit of remixing
and there may be another character involved who takes some of
it. That relationship will be absolutely shown. Whether it's
with Carl or not, I cannot say. But I absolutely want to explore
Negan having that kind of respect for someone, which is the
hallmark of that relationship."
#Post#: 827--------------------------------------------------
Re: 'Walking Dead' Boss Defends Cliffhanger, Fan Baiting; Answer
s Burning Season 7 Questions
By: Rapscallion Date: April 9, 2016, 10:49 am
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Scott Gimple also had this special message for fans of the
Walking Dead.
HTML https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLWsogg7a3g
#Post#: 828--------------------------------------------------
Re: 'Walking Dead' Boss Defends Cliffhanger, Fan Baiting; Answer
s Burning Season 7 Questions
By: Ickray_Imesgray Date: April 10, 2016, 1:04 am
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After reading this interview I am now fully convinced that Glenn
is getting the death.
#Post#: 833--------------------------------------------------
Re: 'Walking Dead' Boss Defends Cliffhanger, Fan Baiting; Answer
s Burning Season 7 Questions
By: Rapscallion Date: April 10, 2016, 10:21 am
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Like LMT wrote on the other forum, it's notable that "the
45-minute call was testy at times."
#Post#: 835--------------------------------------------------
Re: 'Walking Dead' Boss Defends Cliffhanger, Fan Baiting; Answer
s Burning Season 7 Questions
By: Ickray_Imesgray Date: April 10, 2016, 6:52 pm
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[quote author=Rapscallion link=topic=214.msg833#msg833
date=1460301685]
Like LMT wrote on the other forum, it's notable that "the
45-minute call was testy at times."
[/quote]
He knows he fucked up.
#Post#: 837--------------------------------------------------
Re: 'Walking Dead' Boss Defends Cliffhanger, Fan Baiting; Answer
s Burning Season 7 Questions
By: Rapscallion Date: April 10, 2016, 7:11 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
[quote author=Ickray_Imesgray link=topic=214.msg835#msg835
date=1460332374]
He knows he **** up.
[/quote]
More likely he thinks we're too stupid to get how brilliant the
cliffhanger is.
#Post#: 838--------------------------------------------------
Re: 'Walking Dead' Boss Defends Cliffhanger, Fan Baiting; Answer
s Burning Season 7 Questions
By: Ickray_Imesgray Date: April 10, 2016, 7:34 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
[quote author=Rapscallion link=topic=214.msg837#msg837
date=1460333470]
[quote author=Ickray_Imesgray link=topic=214.msg835#msg835
date=1460332374]
He knows he **** up.
[/quote]
More likely he thinks we're too stupid to get how brilliant the
cliffhanger is.
[/quote]
Well what he thinks is "brilliance" is actually stupidity. I
can't believe he even defends the dumpster BS with Glenn too.
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