Jeffrey Dean Morgan says Negan is 'f---ed' after Dead City finale

Dalton Ross
·4 min read
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Jeffrey Dean Morgan says Negan is 'f---ed' after Dead City finale
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Warning: This article contains spoilers about The Walking Dead: Dead City season 1, episode 6, "Doma Smo."

Well, that could have gone worse. Things weren't looking great for Jeffrey Dean Morgan's Negan during the season finale of The Walking Dead: Dead City. Not only did Maggie (Lauren Cohan) betray him with a big whopper of a lie, but she then handed him over to the Croat (Željko Ivanek), who proceeded to hand him over to his boss, the Dama (Lisa Emery). And then the Dama offered Negan… a job???

But even though the Dama showered Negan with a mix of booze and compliments and asked him to join her leadership team to help protect their resources, according to Morgan, things are still not looking great for the at least semi-reformed showman.

"I think he thinks he's f---ed," Morgan told EW in an interview conducted before the current SAG-AFTRA strike. "He's in a position that he didn't anticipate being in — certainly."

Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan - The Walking Dead: Dead City _ Season 1, Episode 6
Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan - The Walking Dead: Dead City _ Season 1, Episode 6

Peter Kramer/AMC Jeffrey Dean Morgan on 'The Walking Dead: Dead City'

While the Dama handed Negan what she dubbed the literal key to the kingdom, all that key did is open a box that contained part of Hershel in it. Correctly ascertaining that Negan still felt guilty about leaving Maggie's son fatherless, the Dama was using the boy as leverage and threatening to go back and hurt him if Negan did not comply with her wishes.

"Yeah, she's got Negan," confirms Morgan. "She's a bit of a chess player and I don't think Negan was prepared for her. I think he was prepared for Željko's character and knows at least who he is and what he's going to bring to the table, so can anticipate that. But he did not anticipate what the Dama is bringing to the table. And so I think that what Negan is seeing — and you can see the wheels turning — I don't think he sees a way out right now."

Of course, there is one upside to that, according to the actor. "Any time he can get put into a corner, fun things are going to happen. And so now we leave off here with Negan in a corner and we'll get to tell the story of him trying to get out of it. Because he's in a bad position right now, and he knows it. That's a rare position for him, other than when he was in jail for, you know, 10 years in Alexandria."

Lauren Cohan as Maggie Rhee, Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan - The Walking Dead: Dead City _ Season 1, Episode 6
Lauren Cohan as Maggie Rhee, Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan - The Walking Dead: Dead City _ Season 1, Episode 6

Peter Kramer/AMC Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Lauren Cohan on 'The Walking Dead: Dead City'

Oh, right. That. But as excited as Morgan is to play Negan is his current predicament now that Dead City has been officially picked up for season 2, he's even more excited to play it against the Dama. "Lisa Emery is another actor that I wanted so badly in this show. I was a huge Ozark fan. I loved her character and thought she should have won the f---ing Emmy for it."

Morgan was such a fan, he became Emery's biggest advocate behind the scenes. "I remember her name came up during the casting process and calling [showrunner Eli Jorné] saying, 'There's no other choice. She's amazing. Get her.' And we got her! I couldn't believe it. I've been dying to work with her, so what a privilege to work opposite someone like that. I felt that way with Gaius Charles, and I felt that way with Željko, but I don't think enough has been said about the fact that we had Lisa Emery."

And now, with the season 2 renewal, they will continue to have her. "I think we were exceedingly lucky with our casting this year," says Morgan. "Another great thing about being in New York is the wealth of amazing actors that are here that haven't been tapped and have never been a part of the Walking Dead world before. I think with the cast we have moving forward that this show is just going to get better and better."

Especially now that Negan is once again on the ropes.

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