FEAR THE WALKING DEAD Cast Talks Zombies, Human Drama, and More

At a recent press day in Los Angeles, the cast of the new AMC series FEAR THE WALKING DEAD sat down with the press to talk about a show that promises to breathe new life into the zombie-horror genre.

FEAR THE WALKING DEAD premieres on Sunday Aug. 23, 8/9pm Central on AMC.

Kim Dickens is “Madison,” who works as a guidance counselor at a local high school when things start to fall apart. She highlighted the quality of female roles in the show.

“A lot of other female actresses that I know struggle in sort of saying no to parts that are just the wife or just the girlfriend that doesn’t propel a story, because we know what it’s like to really live a life and really live in a relationship, and live with a job, and run a house, and have kids. So, you know, it’s refreshing to see more and more these wonderful female characters. I think we have an abundance of them and wonderful male characters as well.”

Cliff Curtis plays Travis Manawa, a father, high school teacher and boyfriend to Madison Clark. He talked about the show’s mix of drama and horror elements.

“There is one extreme where you could blend zombies with vampires and werewolves, that’s one way of blending it. The other way is blending it with like genuine authentic human family driven drama and sort of like mixing that with the threat of the world – it comes from the genre horror world but treating it as real, not as a gimmick, not as like kind of, oh, there go the zombies. It’s like, oh my god, there goes my neighbor […] What would you really do?”

“Alicia,” a model student that has a difficult relationship with his brother Nick, comes to life thanks to Alycia Debnam-Carey. She explained why people don’t need to be familiar with “The Walking Dead” to enjoy the show.

“[…] Because this does start at a different place, and involves completely new people, and a completely different setting. The whole feel of it is very different. The way it looks, the charm and the atmosphere of it is crafted very differently.”

Elizabeth Rodriguez is “Liza” a single mother working to put herself through nursing school. She spoke about show runner Dave Erickson’decision of choosing her for a character that wasn’t written Latino.

“[…] He wanted to work with me and it didn’t matter, and that he decided that why couldn’t Travis once he hired Cliff [Curtis] just be American of Maori descent and it is the most eclectic, most incredible group of people that are playing just Americans, and people – and for me, I’m ultimately human first and a woman and it doesn’t have to play a role.”

Another Latina in the cast, Mercedes Mason (“Ofelia,” a hardworking professional with immigrant parents), gave a good example of how it is to interact with “fresh zombies.”

“So, it was a little daunting because they still look human and there are just slight differences and a slight sort of, you know, body language that gives it away. So, we had this moment in one scene where one of them was just kind of standing behind me and I swear I like jumped out of my skin. And I knew he was going to be there and yet my brain just fight or flight happened and I was ready to jump out of the window. It gets easier.”

Frank Dillane, who plays “Nick,” a very unstable young man, commented on the similarities between him and his character.

“I always find it very difficult to distinguish character from actor […] I have any number of people inside of me, all I have to do is chip away the other stuff and lean myself towards certain points of view, and you will find there is every character is within all of us you’ve just got to find him, chip away the rubble and she’s there fully formed already.”

Living in the same universe as The Walking Dead, Fear the Walking Dead is a gritty drama that explores the onset of the undead apocalypse through the lens of a fractured family. Set in a city where people come to escape, shield secrets, and bury their pasts, a mysterious outbreak threatens to disrupt what little stability high school guidance counselor Madison Clark and English teacher Travis Manawa have managed to assemble. The everyday pressure of blending two families while dealing with resentful, escapist, and strung out children takes a back seat when society begins to break down. A forced evolution, a necessary survival of the fittest takes hold, and our dysfunctional family must either reinvent themselves or embrace their darker histories.