The Walking Dead’s Cooper Andrews Reveals the Backstory He Imagined for Jerry

The Walking Dead star Cooper Andrews, who plays burly bodyguard Jerry, imagines his character might have traded a barometer for a battle-ax at the onset of the zombie apocalypse. Jerry was introduced alongside his majesty in Season 7 Episode 2, "The Well," as the faithful steward of best bud King Ezekiel (Khary Payton), the theatrical leader of the Kingdom. Now a tenured fan-favorite and series regular who panicked viewers when he almost bit it in this year's midseason premiere — where he was clawed at by walkers while trying to squeeze his way out of a tight spot — Jerry is still a closed book even to Andrews.

"I didn't [receive a backstory]. I always felt my character was so in the moment that whatever he was beforehand, it just didn't matter to him," Andrews said during the Scares That Care 2020 Virtual Convention. "And performance-wise, I don't like giving myself that kind of rule, especially on a show like this where we can be anything now [in the apocalypse]."

While shooting The Walking Dead's snowy Season 9 finale, "The Storm," which sees Jerry and other displaced Kingdom survivors navigate a harsh blizzard, Andrews imagined Jerry was a weather presenter pre-apocalypse.

"I fancied being a weatherman when we had that snow episode at the end of Season 9," Andrews said. "I just think it would be really funny if we're going by a bus on horses, and you see my face [laughs]."

There were a "few different versions" of the character who would become Jerry during the audition process, including one iteration that was "zen-like."

"I don't know quite what the plan was with Jerry. For me it was, being such a fan of the show, trying to find a comedy that worked for it and within it, which is always difficult," Andrews recalled. "And so I think we just sort of rolled with it, just sort of seeing how it happened."

During a convention appearance earlier this year, Andrews admitted he expected Jerry to be a short-lived character when he won the role in the show's seventh season.

"My first season, I was like, 'Alright, I'm gonna do four or five episodes, I'll probably die at the end of it, and that'll be fun. I'll get to say I did Walking Dead,'" Coopers said at GalaxyCon Richmond. "I had no clue of the reaction I would get from people, the character, I had no clue. I was just hoping people wouldn't hate the guy, and just knowing that the little more that's been happening every season, I've just been excited about and grateful for."

Andrews next appears in The Walking Dead Season 10 finale, "A Certain Doom," where Jerry fights alongside the coalition in the deadly final battle of the Whisperer War.

For all things TWD, follow the author @CameronBonomolo on Twitter. The Walking Dead Season 10 finale premieres Sunday, October 4 on AMC.