The Walking Dead star Jeffrey Dean Morgan says Beta (Ryan Hurst) has to be “taken care of” before the end of Season 10, hinting Negan and his masked rival will come to blows in the Greg Nicotero-directed season finale. In the penultimate episode of the season, “The Tower,” Negan and other survivors were left trapped by a walker horde unleashed by Beta to avenge murdered Whisperer leader Alpha (Samantha Morton), killed by Negan when he conspired with Carol (Melissa McBride) to infiltrate the enemy group.
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“I know there needs to be some sort of something with Beta, ’cause he’s still on the loose and creating havoc,” Morgan told TooFab. “So until that’s taken care of, it’s really hard to move forward.”
Morgan hopes Negan survives to interact with newest Walking Dead addition Princess (Paola Lázaro), encountered by Eugene (Josh McDermitt), Yumiko (Eleanor Matsuura) and King Ezekiel (Khary Payton) during their trip to Charleston, West Virginia, to meet with Eugene’s radio contact from an outside community.
“I loved that in [episode] 15, we introduced Princess. Oh my God. She just sort of popped,” Morgan said. “That kind of energy on that show is really fun, so I’m a huge fan of her now. I think the two of them are gonna have some fun, I can’t wait. I really can’t wait. So we’ll see.”
The Season 10 finale was delayed when it became clear post-production work, including the special effects required to create Beta’s walker herd, could not be completed before the television industry was brought to a standstill amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I know that [episode] 16, our season finale, was a big one that Greg Nicotero directed,” Morgan added. “Every episode he seems to direct is a massive one, and it is a season finale, so I would expect a lot to happen.”
Nicotero last directed episode 12, “Walk With Us,” which culminated with Alpha’s death in the wake of the Whisperers’ fiery attack against Hilltop.
A fugitive Negan first encountered Beta in Season 10 episode 5, “What It Always Is,” where he crossed into Whisperer territory and was quickly caught by “big-ass freak” Beta. After proving his mettle among the Whisperers in episode 6, “Bonds,” Negan pledged his loyalty to Alpha before becoming the first Whisperer to sleep with her in the midseason premiere, “Squeeze.” Despite this genuine intimate connection with Alpha, Negan upheld his end of a pact made with Carol by slitting Alpha’s throat to prevent her from killing defector daughter Lydia (Cassady McClincy).
It took Negan just three days to kill Alpha, something Morgan blames on the hyper-vigilant Beta.
“I don’t know that he wasn’t afraid of Beta. I think that he thought Beta was super creepy,” Morgan said on Talking Dead. “People ask me why didn’t Negan kill Alpha earlier? As opposed to the socks scene, for instance, why didn’t he kill her then? I think in Negan’s mind, Beta was always behind the next tree. He was lurking and creeping out, and I think Negan was fully aware of that.”
In creator Robert Kirkman’s comic book, Negan battled Beta with baseball bat Lucille when he was conscripted by Rick Grimes to serve on the front lines of the Whisperer War.
The Walking Dead next airs “A Certain Doom” as a special episode later this year. For all things TWD, follow the author @CameronBonomolo on Twitter.
