-Holy crap! It is so great to be back live and in studio
For the "season 11 preview special."
We hope you're having a wonderful and safe summer.
I am thrilled to announcer that our guests tonight are
Showrunner angela kang, daryl himself, norman reedus,
And michael james shaw, who plays the new character mercer.
So we have multiple sneak peeks, we got interviews from the cast,
We have a ton of info about what to expect
From the final season of "the walking dead,"
Which, by the way, premieres next Sunday, August 22nd,
But, you know, it's been a minute
Since we've had new episodes.
So, let me get you up to speed on a little season 10 recap.
[knuckles crack] there's a lot to cover.
I'm gonna try to do this as fast as I can.
Here we go. [inhales deeply]
Alright, it all started -- this big satellite fell from space,
Igniting a forest fire,
And our group crossed into whisperer land,
Putting out the fire, and all hell broke loose!
Negan escaped this cell and joined the whispers,
Then he was sent by carol to kill alpha
In exchange for his freedom!
But then we're gonna find out more about that later.
Okay, so, eugene starts this long-distance love affair
Over the radio with a stranger named stephanie.
Who is she and what's she up to? What's her angle?
Michonne went on a solo mission to discover the signs
That this guy named rick may still be alive,
And she went to find him.
Carol tried to kill alpha, but instead got trapped in a cave.
Then she blew up the cave with dynamite,
Trapping connie and magna inside,
Causing major tension between daryl and carol.
It's sad when they fight.
Negan took his sweet time, but succeeded in killing alpha
And delivered her severed head to carol -- you're welcome.
Beta amassed a super herd to kill our group,
But then they all fought back,
And even maggie returned to join the fight.
Daryl defeated beta in epic hand-to-hand battle
While carol and lydia led the rest off a cliff.
Aww, bye. There goes the horde.
But the season wasn't done yet.
We learned that maggie was being hunted
By a terrifying new group called the reapers.
What are they up to?
We were introduced to little hershel.
Maggie and negan had a major stare-down.
And we found out who lucille -- who lucille was named after,
Which is very bittersweet, very beautiful and sad.
And to cap it all off,
We saw eugene, ezekiel, princess, and yumiko captured
By storm troopers of some sort from an advanced community.
And we learned that daryl has met dog!
We learned how that happened.
Now that you're all caught up, I need a break.
That was my cardio for the week.
I am chris hardwick, and this is
"the walking dead season 11 preview special" live!
[cheers and applause]
♪♪
Gosh. That was a lot of -- that was a lot of talking.
The ca-- I hope there weren't any spoilers.
But if you're worried about spoilers,
Why are you watching this?
The show's just beginning. We want to hear from you.
Tweet us or hit us up on instagram -- @amctalkingdead.
Go to the "talking dead's" facebook page.
And you can go to twdu.Com/deadlive
To vote on our polls and make your voice heard.
Before I introduce our amazing guests,
I wanted to show you the latest epic trailer
For the 11th and final season of "the walking dead."
Here it is.
-If we live, we live.
For them.
♪♪
-We gotta get through this together.
-I don't leave anybody behind. Not ever.
[walker snarling]
♪♪
-The only way this works is if we trust each other.
[walker snarls]
-This is a path you don't wanna go down.
♪♪
-These people...
They won't stop.
-Oh! [walker growling]
[gunshot]
♪♪
-That is what's out there.
♪♪
[walker screeches]
-I've done worse.
[walker growling]
♪♪
[walker growling] [gunshots]
♪♪
-God isn't here anymore. [gun cocks]
♪♪
[cheers and applause] -alright.
By the way, michael james shaw
Will be joining us later in the show,
But right now, please welcome angela kang
And norman reedus, via satellite, in atlanta.
And by the way, audience, how are y'all doing?
Are y'all good? [cheers and applause]
Oh, thank you so much for being here.
It's so surreal to be back, although I'm not going to lie --
It was not the worst thing in the world to walk down
And do the show from my basement.
But it is nice to be here in my fake loft apartment.
So, angela, you know how "the walking dead" ends.
Are -- is it stressful,
Are you feeling emotional about it yet,
Or is it still far off for you?
-You know, it changes day by day.
I think, for all of us that are working on the show,
We're still actively shooting and writing...
-Right. -...And editing.
We're kind of -- we're just about at the halfway point
Of filming the season. -Mm-hmm.
-So there's still a long ways to go.
So I think we're all kind of like --
There's moments where it's like,
"oh, yeah, this is bittersweet and sad,"
And other days where we're just kind of like, hour to hour,
Trying to get the thing made for everybody.
-Norman, what have you been most nostalgic about
Shooting this final season?
-Geez, what have -- haven't I been nostalgic about?
You know, like, we were shooting a scene.
I think it was episode 1, and I'm up on this roof.
And I'm -- and it was --
We were shooting night, so it was really late
And the rain was starting to come down.
And I was saying stuff like,
"you know, there used to be a prison here."
And I'd have to explain to some of the new cast members
What the prison looked like.
And I'm like, "oh, yeah, hershel got his head chopped off
Right down there." [laughter]
"I blew up a tank over there."
I'm constantly reminded -- like, you know,
We have so many acres where we film.
So there are so many areas that we've done things at.
I think the last scene I shot before the weekend and did
Was right where carl saw a deer --
Remember that? -- And he got shot.
-Oh, man, I love this... -Way back.
-..."old man daryl" talk. [laughter]
"oh, I remember the day..." -"back in the day..."
-"there was a -- a bloated zombie in a well."
-Yeah. -"and then a..."
-Yeah. Yeah. -"...But a little -- a girl
Looked at flowers, and that didn't turn out well at all.
It was a crazy time." -yeah.
-"and carol..." -it's...
It's kind of like me walking around chinatown.
I'm like, "that used to be a thing,
And that used to be a thing."
-I mean, every -- everything -- -yeah.
-It just like -- we're talking about
Like a decade of -- of show, you know?
Like, this just doesn't happen very much
On television anymore. -Yeah.
-And just some reactions to norman from around the internet.
@316zombie on twitter says, "thank you, norman,
For making us love daryl from the beginning.
Though bittersweet, I'm looking forward to season 11."
@solum-solis on twitter says, "daryl has come a long way
From the scrappy brawler we first saw in season 1
To the fierce leader of season 10.
Thank you for bringing this character to life."
And @wizardroberts on twitter says,
"I love it when norman is on 'talking dead'!"
[laughter]
What can you tease about daryl's story
For the first part of season 11?
-Well, first off, I have to say, this is really weird for me --
"talking dead" -- 'cause you're not in the room.
I'm just -- I'm looking at a tripod right now,
So it -- it's super weird. -Yeah, I know.
It's -- it's -- it -- it is -- it is strange, but it's...
-Yeah. -But -- but we're glad that
Technology has afforded us the opportunity
To have you here via satellite. -Yeah.
Yeah. What was the question? I forgot what you said.
-The question was about daryl's story
In the first part of season 11.
-Yeah, daryl -- well, we're -- we're sort of being drawn --
As you can tell from the trailer -- underground,
And we don't know exactly what's waiting for us.
So it -- he kind of --
I kind of get separated for a bit,
And -- and then just all hell breaks loose.
There -- there's somebody after us,
And we're trying to beat them to the punch,
And we might not.
Um, angela's on the phone. I can't say too much.
[laughter]
-Angela -- well, I-I guess we can talk to angela.
So, the reapers -- are they the group
Wearing the masks in the trailers?
How lethal are they? What can you tell us?
-You know, for those that watched
The season 10 extension last year,
You know, we know that --
That the reapers came after maggie,
That she had tangled with them before.
Daryl was there, kind of seeing, you know,
How -- how dangerous they can be.
And I think, you know, there's a lot
That will be revealed about the reapers in the season.
So I don't want to get too far ahead of it.
But we know that they're incredibly formidable.
-Mm-hmm. -They are --
They are not people who are survivors,
That were just like a teacher and a farmer and whatever
That -- that learned how to be tough.
They were tough coming into the apocalypse.
And so they're sort of a different sort of group
Than our people have ever tangled with before.
-Got it. Well, now it's time to see
What everyone thought at home.
We asked you at twdu.Com/deadlive,
Who are you worried most about this season?
Connie -- she survived off this horde,
But she's not out of the woods yet.
Maggie -- she's been marked by pope,
Which does not sound good.
Negan -- if the reapers don't hurt him, maggie might.
And ezekiel -- we're still very worried about his health.
Or dog -- the yelp from the comic-con trailer...
-[softly] no! -...Did not sound great.
So, while the results are calculating...
Norman, to what lengths would daryl go
In order to protect dog?
-I think he would go to any lengths to protect dog.
You know, he's been out in the woods.
That dog has been his best buddy.
And I -- I think if anybody hurt the dog,
I think he would just go ballistic (no audio)
[light laughter] -well --
-I heard people giggling.
-Well, because I think what we're realizing
Is that 40% of the people were worried the most about dog.
Like, everyone is really... -Me too.
-Like, nothing can happen to dog, angela.
I mean, nothing can happen to dog!
But what can you tease about what's going on
With some of the other characters, like connie?
What can you tease about what's going on with her?
-Yeah, I mean, we're really excited to have
Lauren ridloff back as connie.
You know, she went off
And was in a different cinematic universe for a while.
-[chuckles] -and, you know,
She's been a resilient survivor out in the woods.
And we saw that she crossed with virgil.
-Mm-hmm. -And when we come upon them,
They're just -- they're gonna be in some danger
With some people who are really far gone.
And I won't say much more than that.
But they get to kind of star in their own version
Of a little horror movie within the show.
So it's -- she's -- she's been through a lot.
-Alright. So in the last couple minutes of the --
Before we go to commercial, this is from --
From twitter, from @laurabongiovan9 --
Norman, "if daryl could have a reunion with rick,
How would you want that scene to play out?"
-I think what would happen --
I'd run into rick by accident,
And then he would smile, I would smile,
I'd probably have a little tear form,
And then I'd punch him in the face.
[laughter]
-I would want it to be what you guys did
At that comic-con panel a handful of years ago
Where I think he tried to blow glitter in your face...
-Yeah. -...But it blew back
All into his beard, which was...
-What an idiot. Yeah. -...Which was --
[laughs] ...Which was amazing.
You -- by the way, you can't tell us if rick is --
Can you tell us if rick's coming back
For the final season, or you cannot tell us?
-He's sitting right here, right next to me right now.
-Oh, my god! He's right there, ladies and gentlemen.
Oh, they'll be amazing. You can't --
Can you tell us, or can you not tell us?
-Nope. -Ah, damn it!
[laughter] -no.
-This is like the opposite of rickrolling,
Where we want to see the rick,
And we don't get to -- -there -- there's no rick.
-We don't know if we're gonna get to see the rick.
Coming up, we have interviews with cast members
To get you ready for next Sunday's season 11 premiere.
We'll have not one, but two sneak peeks
From the first part of season 11
That you will not see anywhere else.
Plus, mercer himself, michael james shaw
Will be joining us later in the show.
We will be right back on "talking dead live,"
The way it's supposed to be! [cheers and applause]
♪♪
-This -- this is our longest,
Biggest, most amazing season yet,
And angela kang is bringing the fire.
-It seems to me from -- so far, from the episodes we've shot
And -- and the scripts I've read,
That it's -- it's -- it's gonna build to an incredible crescendo
And then kind of explode, I think.
-The pressures that are on the entire community
Of a lack of food have never been this high.
And now we've lost the hilltop,
And alexandria is in terrible shape.
And this threat of a very militaristic, menacing group
That plans well and attacks efficiently
Is just putting a lot of extra pressure on all of us.
-The -- the threat on our show this year,
At least for the first half,
Has been this group called the reapers,
And they suck.
They're a bad group of people.
-I really am excited to see all the new cast of characters.
I mean, we've got so many new actors
Coming on the show this year,
And it's exciting because we've -- we've never had
This many actors all at once
Coming in to tell this really big story
Right at the end of -- of the run,
And it's -- it's -- it's exciting.
-One thing that the fans can look forward to in season 11
Is the commonwealth -- it looks awesome.
-Well, I think what you're gonna see in this season
Is a real mishmash and a kind of explosion
Of two worlds -- like, the old and the new.
We see this wonderful return of -- of maggie
Back to the community,
But the community has been devastated.
And then we have our group that have exploded
Into this new community, the commonwealth.
So I think everyone should be really excited
And be really gearing up for something truly spectacular
In this season.
♪♪
[applause]
[cheers and applause]
-Hello and welcome back to the "season 11 preview special,"
Which is live!
That was a cast teasing
What the fans can expect from the final season,
Which premieres next Sunday on amc.
We're back with angela and norman.
So, what can you tease about the commonwealth,
This new community?
-Well, the commonwealth is --
It's one of the final big communities
That comic-book fans know
That our -- our heroes come across.
And it's -- it's got very particular rules.
They've tried to kind of put the world back a certain way,
And it's revealing some cracks
In the way that a government can work.
And it's large -- it's like 50,000 people.
And so that just means
That everybody's experience of this place
Is going to be a little bit different,
Depending on who they're interacting with,
Like, where they come from.
And so, there's a variety of stories
That kind of take place within this larger community.
-Norman, how -- how would you compare the sets and the stunts
This season to past seasons?
-Oh, wow. Um...They're --
I mean, the sets are -- are really huge,
And, I mean, this is coming from like
Hilltop was huge to --
All of our sets are really big,
But this time they're sort of in technicolor.
It's kind of like we -- we took some --
We took the wrong mushroom.
You know what I mean? [laughter]
Uh. You know...
I'm -- I'm looking for a golden ticket.
It -- they're -- they're big. They're colorful.
The stunts are larger.
There's more stunt men and women this year,
Which is great, 'cause it's like 200 degrees here,
So I'm not complaining.
But, yeah, it's just -- it's bigger.
It's -- it's grand.
It -- everything is -- is --
Is "wizard of oz" right now.
So it's different.
-Um, angela, what can we --
Talk a little bit about maggie and negan
And that dynamic this season
And how much that's gonna factor into this final run.
-Yeah, I mean, I think maggie, having just come back,
Just a big part of -- of the emotional story is,
How does this character mesh or not mesh
With negan, who killed her husband?
And I think, you know,
We've been watching negan on this journey
Where he's trying to integrate in with our -- our group.
He's trying to find some redemption,
But he still, you know, his negan edge.
-Mm-hmm. -And I think, you know,
We just got interested in these questions of, like,
Can somebody redeem themselves?
Can there be forgiveness? Is forgiveness owed?
Like, is there an apology that needs to be made?
Can enemies work together in a productive way,
Or are you always doomed to repeat the same patterns
That got you to become enemies to begin with?
And so there's no kind of easy answer
To those kinds of questions.
They're things that society deals with.
And so we thought that that was just really interesting
To delve into with those two characters.
-Excellent. Well, now we're gonna see
What everyone thought at home
When we asked you at twdu.Com/deadlive,
What would it take for maggie to forgive negan?
Negan saves hershel would be a thing --
Of course, hershel's maggie's world.
Negan saves maggie --
Can you stay mad at someone who saves your life?
Or negan just apologizes --
It takes some beach balls to say "I'm sorry" in this instance.
Or never gonna happen --
There's no way possible that she will ever forgive him.
While we're calculating the results,
Norman, do you think daryl wishes maggie had gone through
With killing negan a few seasons back?
-You know, I think at the time that everything happened
At that tree with rick and negan, yeah.
I think he was sort of team kill negan.
After everything -- he's done a lot of good stuff now.
He's -- you know, he's taken care of judith.
He's done a -- he's done a lot of things
That's kind of redeeming.
And, you know, people in that world, they always --
You -- they always do horrible things.
And it's -- you know, it's all about perspective.
From negan's perspective,
We went and slaughtered all of his people.
So I think there's -- there's -- there's a world
Where there's forgiveness, I think.
But I d-- but, like, you know, that question you just asked,
I don't know what that would take, to be honest.
-Well, 59% of people said negan saves hershel,
Which makes a lot of sense. -Mm.
Only 3 people thought -- only 3% of people thought
That him saving maggie would have
Any effect whatsoever, but I would agree.
And 35% said never going to happen.
But I agree with the -- with -- with the hershel answer there.
And then very quickly for norman on instagram,
So ciara says, "do you think daryl and little hershel
Will have a strong connection like daryl had with karl
And has now with judith?"
-Yeah, I do. I can -- I can safely say
That's -- that's a thumbs-up.
-Alright, good. -Right? Angela, can I say that?
-Yeah. -I think so.
-I mean, it's nice
When we can -- definitive answers are nice
On this show, in a way, because so often it's like,
"oh, I don't -- you gotta --"
So I think we'll take the thumbs-up as a --
As a positive response.
Coming up, michael james shaw,
Who plays mercer, is going to be joining us.
We'll be right back on "talking dead live."
[cheers and applause]
♪♪
-Now...
I know you're holding back.
You know you're holding back.
I'm going to give you two questions.
You're going to give me two answers, truthful ones.
You do that, you get to go.
You get to see your friends again.
Everything will be okay.
-[breathing shakily]
-It's that simple.
Ready? -[whimpers]
-Where is your settlement?
And why were you at that train station?
Mm, eugene, if you lie,
I'll know.
[cheers and applause]
-Alright.
Welcome back to the "season 11 preview special."
That was a sneak peek from this season
Featuring the newest "walking dead" character,
Mercer, and now it is my pleasure
To welcome for the first time mr. Michael james shaw
To the program, who plays mercer.
-Hey. Hey, how's it going?
-Man, it's good to see you. It's really good to see you.
Thank you for being here.
-Thank you for having me. -Absolutely.
So can you talk a little bit about the experience
Of portraying, I mean, really,
An iconic character from the comics, mercer?
-In a way, it's kind of like going full circle, you know,
From the fat kid who used to read comic books.
I used to love image, top cow, michael turner, marc silvestri,
And now I get to actually portray the characters
That I love so well.
Yeah, it's -- it's -- it's surreal.
[chuckles]
-What can you tell us about mercer's role
Within the commonwealth?
-Mercer -- that's general mercer to you.
-I apologize. I apologize.
That was my -- that was my bad.
-Mercer is the head of the military at the commonwealth,
And with that -- some responsibility -- with that,
He also has to act as security detail for the elite,
You know, but he is a west point graduate and former marine
And pretty badass.
[laughter]
-Angela, what -- what made michael perfect
For the role of mercer?
-You know, a lot of incredible actors auditioned for this role,
But there was just something about michael's audition
That just kind of caught all of us,
Like, just our imaginations.
You know, he just made such interesting choices as an actor,
And, like, that's -- that's always exciting
When there's a piece of writing and you're, like,
"oh, I didn't think that the actor was gonna do it that way,
And it's like so much better
Than I could have imagined the read could be."
So I just think michael's one of those actors
That just brings, like, really cool,
Nuanced ways of playing the character.
He had the toughness, but he also had to do a scene
That was very vulnerable.
He nailed that, too.
Could be scary.
Could -- could do all of the things,
'cause this character needs kind of such a range.
And, also, like, in a cast of people who are really,
Really physically fit, I mean, like, he -- he is like --
Looks like he is going to kick your ass,
Which was really important for this role,
So just was perfect from day one.
-I mean, prob-- probably helped
That he was such a comic fan, too,
And just understood the nuances of --
And the levels of the characters.
And so, you know, I always say, like, when --
If someone tells you when you were a kid and reading comics,
They go, "you're wasting your time reading comics,"
You go, "shut up, I am not." [laughter]
"this is going to lead to something," and it does.
-Does. -Absolutely.
Norman, can you talk about what you've learned
About yourself playing daryl all these years?
I mean, this is over a decade now.
-Wow.
You know, I didn't think I loved the business
All that much before I got this job.
I really got into being an actor,
Having a camaraderie with people on the set,
I love going to work now.
It's changed me in so many different ways.
I'm a professional now, chris.
[laughter]
I'm a professional damn hollywood actor now, chris.
No, I-I just -- I-I care more.
It's one of those jobs I really loved from the start.
I've loved every day since.
I've really fought for it.
You know, I care.
I care a lot.
Sometimes I care too much.
But it's taught me a lot.
It's been a life lesson.
I think I'm a better friend to my friends.
I mean, in every single way you can think of it
Helping a person, it's helped me.
So I'm -- I feel very blessed.
I feel very grateful.
You know, it's -- it's great.
I have no complaints about it other than it's hot in georgia.
But even that, who cares? You know what I mean?
-That's really beautiful. I love you so much, man.
I just love you. I just love you so much.
-I might cry right now. -No.
Well, it is -- I mean, you know,
Like, we are deferring the tears.
Like, all jokes aside, we are deferring the tears.
We have a -- we have a solid basically year or so
Before we really have to be dealing with it,
And I'm just not thinking about it.
When people say, like, "oh, it's the final season."
I'm like, "da-da-da-da-da.
We still got a lot of episodes."
I'm not -- just, emotionally, I'm not there yet,
But, yeah, I think this has, like --
This has been probably the most significant experience
For all of us in our lives,
And it's, like, how do you --
How do you say goodbye to that?
So we're not going to talk about that yet,
But we have a little bit of time,
So I just want to give a question to michael
From @carolnegan on twitter.
"is it challenging to come on to film as a new character
During the final season of the show?"
-It's actually been quite a joy stepping on a set
And, from top to bottom, everyone is so kind,
And it really is a family.
Like, this past couple weeks has been really fun.
We have been kicking it and getting the work done,
But having a lot of fun while doing it.
I don't think I've ever had that much fun on a set before.
And, yeah, I'm really thankful to be a part of this.
Yeah, and that, you know, we get to tell
Such a beautiful story. -Mm.
-Well, we're thankful to have you here,
So welcome to "the walking dead" family, mr. Shaw.
-Coming up... -Thank you. [chuckles]
Another exclusive sneak peek
Of what's to come in the final season of "the walking dead."
But, first, I want to remind you
You can keep the conversation going by following
Twduniverse on twitch.
They are live four days a week.
So make sure to check that out. That's on twitch.
We'll be right back on "talking dead live."
[cheers and applause]
♪♪
-The first thing I'd ask mercer is,
How'd you get that suit on?
Do you roll it up like a sock and just -- real tight
And just start with one toe and work your way up?
I mean, that's got to take at least 70 minutes.
I don't see no zippers. I don't see no buttons.
I don't know how he does it.
Honestly, I think that's how he stays in just good shape,
Is just from putting the suit on
And taking it off every day and every night.
That's a workout. Have you seen that dude?
I'm telling you, guns.
Guns for days.
[cheers and applause]
-Welcome back to the "season 11 preview special."
That was khary payton discussing mercer's amazing-looking
And meticulously detailed suit.
We're back with angela, norman, and michael.
Michael, can you talk about the suit and your reaction
To seeing that, mercer's uniform for the first time?
-When I first tried it on, I thought
He was from a galaxy far, far away.
Initially, I tried on one of the white trooper suits,
But the minute I stepped into it I was like, "okay, this is fire.
I can get into this."
Later on, like, once I got to georgia,
We had a fitting with greg nicotero,
And we had made some adjustments to --
I like to call the orange suit the mr. Sherbert.
[laughter] so...
Usually, it's time to get into sherbert, you know?
So we had done some adjustments to the leg pieces
And whatnot, and I was kind of feeling the vibe,
So I took it out for a spin in the parking lot at the studio.
Yeah, it felt good. We were doing some action moves,
Some karate, just kind of messing around, you know?
It was good first spin for the suit.
-Well, just to -- just to answer khary's question,
How long does it take to put on mr. Sherbert?
-Oh, so the sherbert takes about
Maybe 5 to 10 minutes depending on the day, you know?
[laughter]
The problem is, I can't put it on by myself.
-Oh, got you.
-So I have a lovely costume-- costumer named dana
Who helps me out and takes care of it for me.
-Excellent.
Angela, are there other new characters
That you can tease since this is the preview special?
-Yeah, we've got a bunch of new characters coming on
This season.
From the commonwealth, we have --
Laila robbins will be playing pamela milton,
And she is the leader of this big community.
She's from a political dynasty in our show,
So imagine, like, a family like the kennedys
Or the bushes or whatever.
And she's quite formidable.
The actress is amazing, so we're excited to have her.
We have a character named lance hornsby
Based on a character from the comics
To be played by the wonderful josh hamilton.
Hornsby's a bit of a fixer for the community,
And, you know, he's got his hands
In a lot of pies where he is.
And then we have a character to be played
By the wonderful actor ritchie coster,
And he plays a character named pope.
I don't want to say too much about this character,
But those who saw an episode called
"home sweet home" will remember that maggie was marked
By somebody named pope. -Okay.
-And so we will learn more about what that means.
-Excellent.
Thank you for sharing all of that.
This is for norman from @70squeen- on twitter.
Norman, "considering daryl's beginnings as a loaner
Who resisted affection,
What do you think was the catalyst
That allowed him to evolve emotionally?"
-Wow.
First off, angela, you gave a lot away right there.
I was shocked. [laughter]
-She's the showrunner. She gets to do that.
-Yeah. Um, I think it was rick.
I think -- I think rick was what broke daryl
Out of his -- his emotional jail cell.
Uh, you know, he really --
He really let daryl in as a brother.
I think the brother thing really hit, especially after merle.
But with rick's explosion on the bridge,
I think that really let him know that, you know, life is short
And you never know who's going to go when you are going to go,
And I think that with a lot of carol nudging
Sort of broke him free a little bit.
He's still kind of closed off, though.
-This is from -- this is for michael
From coach freddie on instagram.
Michael, you mentioned the suit from a galaxy far, far away,
So this question is, does the commonwealth's version
Of stormtroopers actually hit things they shoot at?
[laughter]
-I'll have you know that I have trained my troopers very well.
[laughter] -okay. Fair.
-Although they may not be a dead shot,
There's a bayonet on the end of that rifle,
And they can take out walkers very well.
[laughter] -alright. Excellent question.
I hope -- I hope, coach freddie,
That this answers your question.
Coming up, we have that exclusive sneak peek
Of the final season of "the walking dead."
We will be back on "talking dead live."
[cheers and applause]
♪♪
-Hey, y'all, it's jerica from missouri.
If I must pick one favorite moment from "the walking dead,"
It has to be when rick wakes up in the hospital.
From that point on, it just drew me in.
Like, I had to know, does he make it out of the hospital?
Does he find his family?
Like, what happens next?
It just pulled me right in.
So, from that moment on, I knew I had to find out
What happened in this apocalyptic world.
Thank y'all, and I cannot wait for season 11.
[cheers and applause]
-Welcome back to the "season 11 preview special."
That was this week's featured fan, jerica,
Describing her all-time favorite "walking dead" fan moment.
I mean, hearing her describe that, I was, like,
"oh, yeah, that was this show. Wow, that was a long time ago."
So, for the rest of the final season,
We're gonna be featuring you, the fans,
Sharing what "the walking dead" means to you.
So if you want a chance to be featured
On an episode of "talking dead" like jerica,
Send us a 30-second video of yourself
Explaining how "the walking dead"
Has impacted you over the years
To fansubmission@talkingdead.Tv.
So now jerica's actually going to follow it up
And ask a question.
-My question is for norman.
In the history of the show,
Who has made you laugh the hardest during a take?
-Ooh.
-[chuckles]
-Um, probably scott wilson.
Scott used to do a little joke
That involved pulling his finger at the worst times ever.
[laughter]
And also melissa. Melissa's really funny, too.
And then andy and I would do things
Where it'd be a really serious scene,
And I'd lean over and go, "love you."
And then he'd lean over and go "'f' you," and, uh --
But we'd keep a straight face.
I know there's a bunch.
Actually, bernthal maybe.
Bernthal had a moment when we were running from the cdc,
And there was one of the actors
That didn't want "daryl" touching their bags
Because he's "gross,"
An jon's reply to that was one of my favorites.
Which actually involved
Sort of a "pulling the finger" type deal, too.
[laughter]
-So there's a lot of finger pulling on the set, basically.
But as the main series of "walking dead"
Comes to an end, as we're looking ahead --
-Don't say it. -I know.
What are your -- what are your hopes for daryl?
-I just -- I-I want him to be happy.
I want him to find whatever he's looking for.
I want him to feel secure,
Surrounded by people that love him,
And, you know, I feel like,
You know, he deserves good things.
You know, it's, um... I don't know.
I care a lot about that guy. You know what I mean?
I've -- I've seen everything that's happened to him,
And I just want him to be satisfied and happy and content
With who he is, I guess.
-Angela, what can you tease about carol this season?
-I think, you know, carol is carrying a lot of weight
From what happened with the whisperers,
And I think she's been thinking a lot about some things
That daryl has said to her
About whether she might want to run away
From all of the responsibility at alexandria or not.
And I think she wants to dive in and really help her people,
If she does.
And, you know, she's kind of --
She's on a journey to kind of figure out,
Like, what she wants to do next in this world.
So that's kind of where we start her.
-And then, for michael, uh,
Do you like mercer's mohawk look?
(no audio)
-I love it, I love it, I love it.
-I hope that didn't get bleeped.
I mean, for god's sakes, this is a show
Where people get their guts ripped out.
We can't say the "f" word once in a while?
What's happening?
What's happening in the world?
It's a very true response.
If that got bleeped for any reason,
He, uh, f'ing loves it.
So there you go. You know what?
If the 'f' word offends you after watching this show,
I don't know what to tell you.
I really don't know what to tell you.
It is not the worst thing.
That is a brilliant answer, michael james shaw.
Before we go to break, I want to remind you
That you can now watch episodes of "the walking dead"
A full week early on amc+.
That gives you an entire week to come up with your questions
For your favorite "walking dead" cast members
That we could ask them live
On "talking dead" all season long.
There's seen a seven-day free-trial offer available
Right now, so go check it out at amcplus.Com.
You'll f'ing love it.
Coming up, another super sneak peek
From the final season of "the walking dead"
That you won't be able to see anywhere else.
We will be right back.
[cheers and applause]
♪♪
[cheers and applause]
-We are back.
We've been live for the "season 11 preview special,"
And, hey, now it's time
For an exclusive sneak peek of the second episode
Of the final season of "the walking dead."
Here you go.
[dog panting]
♪♪
-[growling weakly]
♪♪
[growling stops]
♪♪
[man roaring]
[dog barking]
Hey, dog! Come here! Come here!
Hey! Dog!
Come here!
♪♪
Dog! [man screaming in distance]
Dog!
-Mm, I don't know.
I hope that dog's okay.
Norman, what are you most excited for the fans
To experience in the first part of the season?
-Of seeing...
♪ doggy in a tunnel, I know it's serious ♪
-[laughs] -um, what was the question?
I'm sorry. -Of all the --
Of all the song parodies, you would've pulled out,
That I would not have guessed -- I would not have guessed --
I would not have guessed that one.
-What was the question again? I'm sorry.
-The question is, what can you tease?
What can you tease, first of all,
About your upcoming music career,
And, secondly, for the upcoming season.
-Uh, there's a lot going on.
It -- I-it's not just one road we travel down.
It's like 15 different roads, and they all kind of lead
To one place, and then the doors open
And there's 15 new roads going in 15 new places, uh,
And everybody has different story lines,
Which are sort of related and some aren't.
Like, we've, uh, definitely branched out.
It's like a tree, and all the roots are going in
All the different directions.
There's a lot, chris. There's a lot.
-[chuckles] I also -- as we're wrapping up,
I just want to say, uh, michael james shaw,
People are loving you on the internet right now.
@twalkingdworld on twitter --
"michael james shaw is buff."
@kenny3 on twitter -- "welcome.
I already love mr. Shaw.
Not only a good guy but, man, those guns.
He looks the part."
Uh, @tracystreeter1 --
"welcome to 'the walking dead' family, michael james shaw.
So happy to have you."
@wearetwd- on twitter --
"michael james shaw cussing on live tv.
I love it."
You are a wonderful and welcome addition
To "the walking dead" family.
Thank you so much, michael james shaw.
And for angela, quickly, @christina18 on instagram --
"angela, how would you describe the 11th season
With three words?"
-I'm so bad at this. Uh...
-Those are the worst three words.
[laughter]
-You can swear if you want.
-Uh...
Epic...
Scary...
Weird.
-Epic, scary, weird is good.
No swears in there, but I'll allow it.
Thank you so much for being here, angela, too.
This has been "the walking dead season 11 preview special" live.
My guests have been angela kang, norman reedus,
Michael james shaw.
Head over to amcplus.Com. To watch the premiere episode
Right now, and while you're there,
Please make sure to check out "the walking dead: Origins"
To experience some of your favorite characters' story lines
As told by the actors who play them.
Next week, after the season 11 premiere,
We're gonna be joined by jeffrey dean morgan,
Paola lázaro, angela will be joining us for the big premiere.
Stay safe. Take care of each other.
It's so wonderful to be back live!
I'm wearing a suit for the first time in a year!
Good night! Stay safe and healthy!