‘The Walking Dead’: Seth Gilliam Explains Why Father Gabriel Didn’t Shoot Negan

Trapped in a trailer with Alexandria enemy #1, Father Gabriel didn’t kill The Walking Dead‘s villain, which was a conscious decision according to Seth Gilliam.

With many fans of The Walking Dead questioning why Gabriel never took his shot at Negan, the only man Rick Grimes wants dead, the actor portraying him defends the move — or lack thereof. Gilliam, instead, credits the choice to one with survival in mind.

“I’m not sure that Father Gabriel’s feeling pretty confident in his ability to handle a gun at this point,” Gilliam told INSIDER. “He’s had Negan dead to right at least twice. In the season [seven] finale, as he’s driving away, Negan’s close enough to flip him the bird. Father Gabriel’s got a fully-loaded automatic weapon and he can’t hit the side of a barn.”

It might not be enough for some fans to rule out the theories claiming Father Gabriel is a mole, but the holy man showed signs of loyalty to Alexandria in Sunday’s “The Big Scary U” episode. Gabriel attempted to take a shot at Negan while the two characters were getting to know each other in the trailer. Of course, Gabriel missed and would have his gun knocked away, proving Gilliam’s point.

“Inside of the trailer, they were like within a foot of each other, [Gabriel] tries again, he winds up getting the gun knocked out of his hand. I’m not sure that he’s feeling so confident that he could [kill Negan],” Gillaim said. “At this point, also, there’s the walkers outside. You know, and perhaps, Negan’s been so close to that that he enjoys him [and] Father Gabriel’s way of thinking that working together is the only solution for him to live and get out of there together.”

As for Gabriel’s fate at the end of the episode, Gilliam promises ComicBook.com “we’ll find out in good time.”

The Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9 pm ET on AMC. For complete coverage and insider info all season long, follow @BrandonDavisBD on Twitter.