Despite joining The Walking Dead in the most controversial way possible at the end of season 6, Jeffrey Dean Morgan has become a central figure in the franchise. His character, Negan, made his explosive debut by beating both Abraham and Glenn to death with his barbed-wire covered baseball bat, Lucille. He'd go on to wage all-out war against Rick Grimes and our survivors. And now, in Dead City season 2, he's in a leadership position in The Big Apple!
To say Negan keeps falling on his feet would be an understatement. There's been so many opportunities for characters to kill him over the years, but he keeps getting away with it. He must be among the most frequently jailed characters in television history. And yet, in Dead City season 2, the Dama has reunited him with Lucille and thrust him unwittingly back into the spotlight. He's now one of the most important people in Manhattan, whether he likes it or not.
Negan's journey so far has been rocky, with twists and turns lurking around every corner. As for how many more Negan-centric stories are left, Jeffrey Dean Morgan is keen to keep it going. "This has been part of my life for so long now that I don’t ever picture it ending," he told Variety, "unless I finally say I’m too old to do this anymore, which I am getting dangerously close to.”
At 59 years old, Morgan is now approaching 10 years in the franchise. At this point, he's entering veteran territory, alongside Andrew Lincoln (Rick Grimes), Danai Gurira (Michonne), Lauren Cohan (Maggie), Melissa McBride (Carol), and Norman Reedus (Daryl). "It feels like I am one of the veterans now," he said. "I feel like I’ve earned my stripes. 10 years is a long time. This is not an easy show to do in any way, mentally and certainly physically, so I’m amazed by the fact that I’m still able to pull off my part of it.”
Would you like to see more Negan action in The Walking Dead Universe? Or are we nearing the time to move on? Perhaps if Morgan retires from Negan, he'll remain attached to the franchise in a behind-the-scenes role. He serves as an executive producer on Dead City, after all.
New episodes of The Walking Dead: Dead City drop Sunday nights on AMC.
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