Five Facts About The Walking Dead's Jeffrey Dean Morgan
On Sunday nights, Jeffrey Dean Morgan is burdened with playing the most maniacal villain on [...]
On Sunday nights, Jeffrey Dean Morgan is burdened with playing the most maniacal villain on television: Negan. The Walking Dead's new bright shining star delivers menacing lines and kills helpless enemies on a moment's notice regularly.
However, outside of the show, Morgan is a fun, humble family man. It's something many fans do not get to see and probably can't imagine after meeting the villain he portrays on the AMC series. While various comic conventions give fans a peek into the man's life and personality, there is a lot more to Morgan than meets the eye in the world of The Walking Dead.
In fact, the actor has been putting in work in cinema and television for over 60 credits to his name with a career spanning over 25 years. Some know him as Denny on Grey's Anatomy while others remember him as the father from Supernatural. Now, he is Negan and he is shutting it all down.
Still, it is fun to take a look at the actor outside of The Walking Dead and some of the things fans may not know about him.
Candy Shop
Jeffrey Dean Morgan was a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, and the 50-year-old actor currently terrifying audiences of The Walking Dead came bearing gifts. He presented Fallon with a lovely gift basket filled with all sorts of goodies from Samuel's Sweet Shop, the candy store he co-owns with Paul Rudd — the 47-year-old star of Marvel's Ant-Man.
He then explained how he and Rudd were inspired to buy the boutique candy and coffee shop in Rhinebeck, NY after the original owner, Ira Gutner, suddenly passed away in April 2014,.
"We didn't want the store to be anything else than what it was, so we decided to step in and buy the candy store," he shared. "That was two-and-a-half years ago, now." He added, "Paul and I have literally nothing to do with it, other than eating the candy."
prevnextFirst Appearance
Morgan's first appearance in TV or film came in a 1991 production called Uncaged.
In Uncaged, Morgan played Sharkey, a manipulative pimp who has the main characters upset with him. In the film, Morgan appeared alongside Leslie Bega, Pamella D'Pella, and Henry Brown.
From here, Morgan went on to titles such as To Cross the Rubicon, Black Sheep, Extreme, Undercover Heat, Dillinger and Capone, and ER. Of course, none of these roles compare to the recognition he has gotten from The Walking Dead or even P.S. I Love You, The Losers, or Extant, more recently.
prevnextA Hero
"The vet was going to put him to sleep and I said, 'No, let's save him.'"
That's what Jeffrey Dean Morgan said when he found a weary dog while on a tropical island.
"He just wandered out of the jungle in Puerto Rico, like our second day there, and promptly got hit by a car," Morgan tells PEOPLE at the premiere of his The Loser film in Los Angeles. He went on to name the pup Bandit.
"Bandit's a little rough because he's a puppy," Morgan says with a laugh, "but he is fricking hilarious, and now he runs my house."
Saving a dog (or anything) seems like the least-Negan thing Morgan could ever do! Adorable!
prevnextHe's Batman's Dad
In a surprising plot twist, Jeffrey Dean Morgan is actually Batman's dad in the new take on the character born in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. The actor posed alongside his Walking Dead co-star Lauren Cohan (to make things even more strange) for the film's opening sequence whic hsaw Bruce Wayne becoming an orphan.
This, of course, offers the DC Films properties a chance to adapt the beloved Flashpoint story which sees Morgan's Thomas Wayne character take on the role of Batman for a brief period in an alternate timeline. "Man, I would love to play that Batman... It would be very cool," Morgan said at a comic convention before adding, "Flashpoint would be very cool."
Batman v Superman wasn't Morgan first efforts as an important comic book character. The actor previously starred as The Comedian in The Watchmen.
prevnextHuge Fan
Prior to landing the role on The Walking Dead, Morgan was a huge fan of the series. In fact, when he got the call from his agent who at the time didn't know what character AMC wanted Morgan for, Morgan said, "It's f---ing Negan!" in response.
He was immediately on board to play the part, being familiar with the epic and beloved comic book counterpart.
Speaking to ComicBook.com at San Diego Comic Con just months after the Season 6 cliffhanger propelled Negan into becoming a global icon, Morgan said he is in it for "the long haul" with this character and is eager to realize the more recent events of the comics on television.
prevnextMore Walking Dead
MORE WALKING DEAD: Negan's Backstory Reveals Completely Different Character / TWD Star Quits Social Media After Death Threats / TWD Showrunner Joins FTWD / TWD F-Take Clips With Rick And Daryl / Major Criticism Fixed For Season 8 / TWD Casting Two New Characters
The Walking Dead will return for its eighth season in October of 2017. The first trailer is expected to arrive at San Diego Comic Con in July. For complete coverage and insider info all off-season long, follow @BrandonDavisBD on Twitter.
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