New to AMC internationally, โTalking Deadโ is hosted by Chris Hardwick and is a lively review show to be seen in conjunction with each episode of โFear the Walking Dead.โ Hardwick will welcome cast members, producers and celebrity guests to talk about the latest episode of โFearโ and present behind-the-scenes features and interviews each Saturday at 9:00 p.m. CAT starting 16th April. Viewers can watch an encore airing of that weekโs episode at 8:00 p.m. CAT just before โTalking Dead.โ
In the following exclusive interview, Dave Erickson reveals some exciting details for the first time about the new season.
Question:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย How is โFear the Walking Deadโ distinct from โThe Walking Deadโ and is it easy to become hooked on โFearโ if youโve never seen โThe Walking Deadโ?
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Dave Erickson:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Itโs definitely easy, and you donโt have to know anything about โThe Walking Deadโ to become hooked on โFearโ.ย Speaking with lots of people – with the actors, the producers and some viewers – they all agree that the way we approached the story means you donโt need any prior knowledge of the comics or the other series.ย But weโve structured it in such a way that if you are a fan of the original graphic novels and you watch โThe Walking Deadโ, youโll immediately recognise the mythology and youโll see how the stories are layered.ย But youโll also appreciate the different approach that โFearโ takes; the different point of view it has.
For season one, we talked quite a lot about the idea that we were covering the timeframe in which Rick Grimes was in his coma at the very outset of โThe Walking Dead.โย Viewers were getting a window on what he missed.ย But if you actually look at the breakdown of season one of โFearโ, it wasnโt a case of ending on a final frame in the finale from which you could have cut to Georgia just as Rick was about to wake up.ย If you look at the timing, weโre actually still shy of that point by a couple of weeks.ย So, whatโs interesting in how we structured the first season and as we head into the second season, our family has been relatively insulated.ย Weโve gone from their realisation that things are falling apart and that the world is changing in the first few episodes to the arrival of the National Guard and essentially being stuck in an internment camp.ย They were trusting that things were being repaired in the world outside.ย So, it wasnโt until the finale that they saw how things were falling apart in such a profound way
Thatโs whatโs great about heading into season two:ย the bubble has burst!ย Theyโve had to flee from what they initially thought was the safety of the military and they find themselves on the coast with the desolation and the disaster playing out around them.ย So, what our blended family now has to do is work out exactly how bad things are.ย How far has this spread?ย Is it something thatโs taking over the entire country?ย The entire world? That puts them in a really interesting position where theyโve learned a lot about each other and their natures throughout season one and what theyโre prepared to do as things go from bad to worse โ but how far will they go to put that into practice?
Question:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Each family in season one experienced some tremendous loss.ย Will this unite them in season two and does it help them try to figure out how to survive?
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Dave Erickson:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Well, itโs interesting because one of the things that was important to Robert Kirkman when we started to develop the drama was the theme of violence and how each of the characters would approach it.ย And that doesnโt just mean the โdeathsโ of the walkers but how would each of the characters react when they had to put a walker down?
By the end of season one, theyโve experienced a zombie horde and most of them (with the exception of Travis, Chris and Alycia) have had to fight one of the infected and put a walker down.ย So it becomes a question of the effects of that violence and about the morality of each person – how will they learn to process everything as we go into season two?
Theyโve also witnessed what is tantamount to the fall of Los Angeles.ย The scenes in which they drive through a desolate, abandoned, dead LA mean that theyโre leaving their home behind.ย Theyโve lost their home, their friends, their neighbours and itโs catastrophic.ย I think that initially theyโre all quite shell-shocked by it and then it becomes more about the connections they develop and, of course, their relationships with violence.
Now, in season two, theyโve landed on Strandโs boat, on the โAbigailโ, and I think what weโll come to realize, very quickly as we move into the first couple of episodes, is that they were not the only people with this bright idea.ย Theyโre not the only ones that have decided to become refugees from Los Angeles and make a break for the water.ย Thatโs going to create additional conflicts.ย Itโs going to be twofold:ย what do they do when theyโre confronted with a walker and what will they do when confronted with other survivors?ย How do they approach them and where does the greater danger lie?
Question:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Strand said at the end of the season one: โThe only way to survive a mad world is to embrace the madness.โย So how does this actually play out in season two?
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Dave Erickson:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย I think a big theme for season two of โFearโ is that once weโve established that the world is really gone, once weโve established that thereโs no turning back, what kind of person will each of the characters become?ย Will they be able to surrender to it?ย Will they be devoured and consumed by the apocalypse or will they change their base nature?ย Can they really continue to fight against it and try to hold onto their humanity?
That was something we began in season one, specifically with Travis, and I think weโll see it continue in season two.ย One of the things that both Liza and Madison said about Travis was if he had to put either one of them down, it would break him.ย I think one of the interesting questions for this season is, did that act make him a broken man or will he be able to hold it together, not just for himself but for Chris, specifically, whoโs just lost his mother?
Itโs a fragile but violent rebirth for each of the characters going into season two and I think youโll see elements of that โmadnessโ in a number of characters โ Nick, Travis, Daniel.
Question:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Speaking of Daniel Salazar (played by Ruben Blades), there were some very dark moments about his past hinted at in season one.ย Will more of this be unveiled during season two and how will that affect his relationship with his daughter Ofelia (played by Mercedes Mason)?
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Dave Erickson:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย In season one, we came to realize that Daniel was definitely not a humble barber.ย The truth is, heโs committed atrocities; heโs committed some truly violent acts in his past.ย His wife Griselda knew.ย She didnโt necessarily know the details but she knew.ย But she was willing to support him and even offer him absolution but now sheโs gone.ย But his daughter Ofelia has only just become aware of this side of him and sheโs looking upon him with judgement.ย Ofelia has spent much of her life protecting her immigrant parents, feeling that they were a bit backwards; that they were of โthe old worldโ and that they struggled to assimilate into their lives in the US.
Sheโs really devoted a lot of energy and time trying to take care of them and now sheโs come to realize that they were far more capable than she ever thought. Sheโs also come to realize that she really had no idea who her parents really were, or who her father is now.ย Sheโs now trying to understand who he is, while heโs looking to her for some kind of redemption and forgiveness.ย She looks at her dad and looks at what happened to her mom and really sees it as the sins of the father having been visited upon the mother.ย Emotionally, thereโs a huge amount going on for that family in season two.
Question:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย There is a revelation from Nick (played by Frank Dillane) in the season one finale that he admitted to living in his own apocalypse as a drug addict and that other people were now starting to catch up.ย How important is this to his character development in season two?
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Dave Erickson:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Itโs a huge part of his development. At the end of last season, Nick essentially has a moment of clarity. He sees the world falling apart and, for the first time heโs clean from drugs.ย Heโs not going to be able to score again.ย So, he realizes that heโs somebody who should have died many times over in his previous life and now has to ask himself how and why he survived.
I think he has a certain sense of awe and fascination.ย Heโs really intrigued by whatโs now happening around him.ย Heโs really intrigued by the dead and by this thought that heโs been given a second chance in this new world.ย Because heโs more adept at living on the fringes, he feels more comfortable in this new world.ย So, itโs an opportunity for him to look at the apocalypse through a filter that we donโt see elsewhere. Heโs had a different experience of that pressure to survive and now he has a very different vantage point.
Question:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย The walkers in โFearโ are in much less of a decayed state than the zombies in โThe Walking Deadโ.ย How does this affect the way in which the characters react to them?
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Dave Erickson:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Well, weโre a little bit further along in season two so theyโll have decayed a bit more and atrophied a little.ย And there are other factors and elements.ย Weโre in salt water in the ocean and under a baking hot sun.ย So youโll see a progression in their appearance but fundamentally theyโve recently become walkers and itโs very difficult to put one of them down.ย That takes its toll emotionally.ย Weโre actually humanizing the dead, and we want to continue to show the weight and pressure that puts on our characters when they have dispatch these โpeopleโ.
Some of our characters still want to recognize the walkers as having some degree of humanity left and perhaps some intelligence or understanding.ย We had our first zombie horde at the end of last season and weโll definitely have lots more walkers in this season.ย But we still want to hold onto the idea that Robert established – we never want the dead to become just โcannon fodderโ.ย I think that adds a real perspective to the storytelling that we can explore.ย So, even if they look more gross, we want to hold onto their human qualities.
Question:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Why is it important that the walkers donโt become just โcannon fodderโ?
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Dave Erickson:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Something thatโs really interesting about the whole genre is that you can project any human anxiety, any phobia or any fear onto the undead. The thing about the zombie genre is that youโre then allowed to kill your fears. I do think thereโs a certain catharsis to it:ย it allows you to take all the things you hate and all the things that keep you awake at night and then put them down in a very permanent fashion.
I also think we want to avoid a situation where we just have wall upon wall of walkers and theyโre being mowed down and thereโs no real impact on the characters. Fundamentally, there needs to be something going on emotionally.ย Whenever thereโs any kind of interaction with the dead, we want to make sure itโs serving a purpose or developing a theme for the character involved and driving the narrative forward.ย The violence should do as much injury to the characters who are committing it as it does to the walkers that theyโre putting down.
Question:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย What was it like to shoot in Mexico?
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Dave Erickson:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Well, shooting in Baja, we have a crew that is partly American alongside a lot of technicians and artists who came out from Mexico City and a lot of folks who are working locally in Baja.ย It was a giant endeavour and, as far as I can recall, there really hasnโt been anything like this done for television before.ย It was new ground for all of us, for the writers, for the directors, for all the producers and for the network.ย Thatโs a really rewarding feeling and I think weโre going to give the audience an experience that they havenโt had before.
โFearโ is a really diverse show and thatโs really important to us.ย When we were shooting in Los Angeles, it was in East LA, exploring neighborhoods that donโt appear on TV or in films too often.ย Working in Mexico has continued that theme.ย Itโs been great to be able to work with Mexican directors, writers and craftspeople and Bernardo Trujillo, our production designer, is based in Mexico City and he has been remarkable with his energy and his unique, invaluable perspective.
I think that diversity is deeply embedded within the entire show. We have an incredibly diverse cast and crew and I think it gives us a very interesting edge and a different perspective.ย It makes for a really rich show.
Question:ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Is there anything else that youโd like to share with fans about the upcoming season?
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Dave Erickson:ย ย ย ย ย I think the most intriguing question is this: We all know that weโre going to be on a boat because we saw that at the end of season one but… where are the characters going to go?
I think weโll quickly realize that the ocean is no safer than land and that thereโs a very different level of adversity and threat on the water.ย It forces the characters to set their sights on a destination.ย But where will that be? North to Vancouver or south to Cabo?ย This is a boat that has a really incredible range and a full tank of gas so, feasibly, they could head out across the Pacific for 3,000 miles or more and make it to Hawaii. We could even end up doing zombies in paradise! [Laughs].
Thatโs the intriguing question for the first few episodes of the new season: what harbor can the characters find and when they get there, will it be safe or not?
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