The Walking Dead: Ezekiel’s Backstory Revealed

Spoilers for The Walking Dead Season 7 Episode 3 follow.

Someone has finally brought a touch of joy to The Walking Dead. Following the extremely violent introduction of Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s Negan in the Season 7 premiere, another character has fans feeling a lot more upbeat after losing Abraham and Glenn.

Ezekiel and his pet tiger Shiva burst onto the scene in Sunday’s new episode. The Kingly leader wasted no time on pulling the curtain back and revealing his true colors in an effort to save Carol’s life. In fact, the moment was a very accurate adaptation of Robert Kirkman’s original work in The Walking Dead comics, with the only major shift being that Ezekiel opened up about himself to Michonne on the pages.

Finally dropping the kingly dialect, Ezekiel dismissed his close servant Jerry (who left a big smile), and told Carol who he really is.

“What’s that saying? Never bullshit a bullshitter,” Ezekiel started with.

The conversation lead to both parties disarming their acts. Carol admitted her skepticism which forced Ezekiel to put his cards on the table if he wanted her to stick around.

“People want someone to follow,” Ezekiel said. “It’s human nature. They want someone to make them feel safe. People who feel safe are less dangerous. More productive.”

The people were what made Ezekiel into the legendary, extravagant leader Carol met earlier.

“They see a dude with a tiger? Shoot… They start telling stories about finding it in the wild, wrestling it into submission, turning it into his pet! They make the guy larger than life. A hero. Who am I to burst their bubble? Next thing you know, they’re treating me like royalty. They wanted- they needed someone to follow so I acted the part. I faked it ’til I made it.”

Prior the apocalypse, Ezekiel was just like Carol. His job was a little outside of the ordinary but he is more relatable than his kingly act will allow him to appear.

“I was a zookeeper. Shiva, she fell into one of the concrete moats in the exhibit. It was empty. The vets were on the way but her leg was ripped open. She was gonna bleed out. The sound she made… She was in so much pain. I knew the risk. I had to try. I got my shirt up around her leg. Saved her life. After that, she never showed so much as a tooth in my direction. Keeping a tiger isn’t practical, I know. She eats as much as 10 people. She could yank the chain out of my hand, hell, she could yank my arm right off but she hasn’t. She won’t. I lost a lot, just like everybody else. When it all started to end, I found myself back at the zoo. Shiva was one of the last animals left. She was trapped. Hungry. Alone. Like me. She was the last thing left in this world that I loved. She protected me. She got me here. Made me larger than life and I made this place.”

In addition to zookeeping, Ezekiel had another hobby before the world went down.

“I used to act in community theater. Played a few kings in my day. Arthur, MacBeth, Martin Luthor. My name really is Ezekiel, though. That’s 100% real.”

He put the ball in Carol’s court.

“Cards on the table. Nothing up my sleeve. I’d appreciate you keep this between us, though. For them. And, yeah, a little bit for me.”

The dialogue was all very familiar to comic book fans. Ezekiel was first introduced in issue #108 of The Walking Dead. For more on his introduction, check out ComicBook.com’s Major Issues: First Appearance of King Ezekiel.

Ezekiel goes on to form a relationship with Michonne in the books – something we won’t see on television unless the katana-wielder has a change of heart on her relationship with Rick – but all signs are pointing to Carol and Ezekiel becoming a thing.