Josh McDermitt Promises Eugene Is "Team Negan" In 'The Walking Dead' Season 8
Although Eugene Porter actor Josh McDermitt prefers not to know what's coming up on The Walking [...]
Although Eugene Porter actor Josh McDermitt prefers not to know what's coming up on The Walking Dead, he promises his character is full-on Negan.
During a visit to the set of The Walking Dead's 100th episode, ComicBook.com caught up with McDermitt in the same room where table reads and screenings of cuts of episodes take place. It happens to be lined with photos of each fallen character, including Eugene's good friend Abraham. With such a reminder nearby, McDermitt still assures Eugene is no longer on Rick's side.
"He's with Saviors, he's on team Negan, he's looking out for himself," McDermitt said. "He's thinking about self preservation, just trying to continue to live in this apocalypse."
The turn to the dark side in The Walking Dead came after it appeared Eugene had found his stride and bravery when it comes to survival. "It's interesting because we started a scene at the end of season six that he felt like he was a survivor and he had stepped up and then, when Negan killed Glenn and Abraham, it became a whole, 'How can I call myself a survivor?'" McDermitt said. "We saw that at the end of season seven as he talked with Sasha. He said 'How can I call myself a survivor when the man that I think is the biggest survivor has been killed?' You know? But he truly is a survivor. He's doing what he has to do to survive and to live. If that means helping Negan and the others, then that's what that means."
Although fans have expressed their frustration with the swap, enough to prompt McDermitt to abandon his social media accounts, the actor is truly enjoying the role.
"I think it's a really interesting place to be, for this character, just because, you know, in the comics he's captured and basically, it said let's pledge your allegiance to Negan and he basically says 'Screw you,'" McDermitt said.
"We're doing a completely different story from that and that's always exciting. When we talk about things from the comics bringing... I mean, sure, you can't not kill Abraham, or at least Glenn, because that's such a huge milestone from the comics. But there are other stories that they're able to remix and so moving forward, I think we're kind of in uncharted territory for Eugene and it's really exciting to see what's going to happen."
The Walking Dead's sibling series Fear the Walking Dead airs Sunday nights at 9 pm ET on AMC. The Walking Dead will return for its eighth season on October 22, 2017. The Season Eight premiere will mark 100 episodes overall for the popular AMC series. For complete coverage and insider info all season long, follow @BrandonDavisBD on Twitter.