How Long Was Negan With Alpha and the Whisperers on The Walking Dead?

Negan spent just days posing as a Whisperer, according to The Walking Dead star Jeffrey Dean Morgan. In real time, Negan was set loose from jail months ago in Season 10 episode 4, “Silence the Whisperers,” first aired October 27, and Negan was intercepted by Beta (Ryan Hurst) when he knowingly wandered into Whisperer territory in episode 5, “What It Always Is.” By episode 6, “Bonds,” Negan impressed pack leader Alpha (Samantha Morton) before pledging his loyalty to her, and for outing Gamma (Thora Birch) as the spy in her ranks, Alpha gave Negan his “crass reward” when they slept together in episode 9, “Squeeze.” Negan would uphold his end of a deal with Carol (Melissa McBride) in episode 12, “Walk With Us,” when he lured Alpha to a shack where he slit her throat.

“In show time, he was about to get hung at Alexandria,” Morgan said on Talking Dead, referring to Father Gabriel (Seth Gilliam) acting as the deciding vote when the Alexandria council determined whether Negan should be executed for the accidental death of Margo (Jerri Tubbs).

“I know it seems like I was out in the woods forever with the Whisperers, but I want to say in show days it was like three days, believe it or not. Because I was surprised, too,” Morgan said. “I was like, ‘What the hell is taking so long, taking her head off?’”

In the comic books, Negan was a fugitive from Alexandria for just over a week.

After Negan delivered Alpha’s decapitated and zombified head to Carol, she told him: “Took you long enough.” When Carol placed Alpha’s head on a spike at the Whisperer border, finally avenging murdered son Henry (Matt Lintz), she told Negan: “What took you so damn long?”

“What took me so long? Doing your dirty work? I don’t know, I guess I wanted to get out of there with my head still attached,” Negan told Carol. “Shit like that takes time.”

Whether or not it was fast enough for Carol, it got done. “I held up my end, now I am asking you to hold up yours,” Negan said, wanting her to follow through with putting in a good word with the Alexandrians. “Just walk me through those gates so I can open up a new chapter in the book of Negan.”

What’s next for Negan?

“My feeling is it’s exactly what he said to Carol. He wants to go through the doors of Alexandria and start a new life,” Morgan said. “At least that’s as far as he’s gotten. I don’t think he’s had a whole lot of time to think about this, what the next chapter is and the details of that. I think he is hoping to get out of that jail. He’s been in jail for eight, ten years, and been out for three days and living amongst the Whisperers. I think the next chapter would be a shower. And from there, he wants to figure out what the next move is and how he rebuilds his life.”

The Walking Dead Season 10 next airs episode 15, “The Tower,” Sunday, April 5 at 9/8c on AMC. For all things The Walking Dead, follow the author @CameronBonomolo on Twitter.