The Walking Dead stars Norman Reedus and Jeffrey Dean Morgan say the looming exit of co-star Danai Gurira is “one of the big ones.”
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“Your words were causing me to tear up. I thought what Danai said yesterday was just beautiful,” Morgan told Gurira when sitting down with EW after Gurira tearfully confirmed Season 10 will be her last at San Diego Comic-Con.
“We’re gonna miss you so much. We love you.”
For Reedus, who loses another longtime co-star following the Season 9 departures of Andrew Lincoln and Lauren Cohan, the loss carries even more weight.
“Her first scene coming into the prison with me and Andy, and Andy and I were both like, ‘Oh, this girl is badass,’ like right off the bat,” Reedus said of Gurira’s Season 3 arrival.
“She’s been graceful, she’s been elegant, she’s been ferocious, she’s been a leader. She leads by example, and she’s also infectious with her attitude and her professionalism; she’s never unprepared, she’s a joy to work with. If you’re in a scene with Danai, you know it’s going to be awesome… Like Jeff said, she’s going to be missed. She’s definitely one of the big ones.”
Gurira was only able to maintain composure after a well-timed joke from Morgan, who calls Gurira a “rockstar.”
“I have to thank JDM for that. You never know how you’re gonna feel in a moment until you’re in it, and it was becoming very emotional, and I was like, ‘uh,’” Gurira said.
“JDM made some joke — and I don’t know what you said — and it was some laughter and I was able to just kind of [focus]. But it also made me feel so much of the love that we have each other for a family and as a community of the TWD [fans]. JDM saved me from balling.”
The Walking Dead Season 10 premieres Sunday, October 6 on AMC.
