The Walking Dead: Danai Gurira on how Michonne breaks stereotypes

Despite exiting The Walking Dead in season 10, Danai Gurira remains among the longest-serving actors in the franchise, having played Michonne for eight seasons. Whether she returns to our screens in the future or not, Michonne will always be remembered as one of the most badass characters in the AMC zombie series.

Speaking at the virtual #Unstereotype Alliance Global Member Summit, Gurira talked about how refreshing it was to play the badass, katana-wielding character. “I’d never come across a character like this,” she said. “I was like, ‘Oh, now this is the breaking of a stereotype I’ve never thought of.’ I often said to Robert Kirkman, ‘I wish I thought of her! How did you think of her?’ Because the katana meets a Black girl with dreadlocks was just very, very interesting to me.”

"I really got to play a woman who evolved, who had many facets, who was really strong and was also able to show vulnerability and be a lover, be a friend, be a warrior, be really scary, be broken over and over again, but still keep going and finding ways to keep joy alive and keep moving. There was a lot that I got to do with her that I know is not common for Black women to get to do in television or in film."

Gurira also talked about the relationship between Michonne and Rick Grimes. The two got together in season 6, and now have a child: Rick Grimes Jr. Gurira notes that their relationship is another example of the show breaking stereotypes:

"People thought it was so huge and radical that my character and the Rick Grimes character became a couple, and I guess it was. You know, I guess it was. But really, should it be? But once again, it was eradicating stereotype around who the lead man, the handsome white male lead man, could be with. But it was clear that the characters had a connection and chemistry, so what do you listen to? So that’s why I said it just takes a few folks willing to truly listen, and I think right there stereotypes can break."

In her final episode, “What We Become,” Michonne learns that Rick — once thought to be long dead — is possibly still out there, and embarks on a mission to track him down. Of course, this has lead the way to fan theories that they’ll reunite in the upcoming Walking Dead movies!

Danai Gurira starring in her own MCU series?

It’s not just in The Walking Dead that Danai Gurira plays a strong, badass character. She also portrays Okoye in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. So far, she’s played her in Black Panther, Avengers: Infinity War, and Endgame. And she’s got a bright future ahead.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, not only will Gurira return as Okoye in Black Panther 2, but she will get her own Wakanda-based origin series on Disney+… because everyone gets their own series these days! It’s certainly something to get excited about.

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h/t ComicBook.com