The Walking Dead didn't originally end with that 'f--- s--- up' line

Dalton Ross
·7 min read
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

Grab a bar of Dove because The Walking Dead needs to have its mouth washed out with soap! That's because Sunday night's episode (titled "Faith") ended with Michael James Shaw's Mercer doubling down on curse words by staring at the camera and proclaiming, "It's time to f--- s--- up."

Only he wasn't really saying it to us, but rather to Josh McDermitt's Eugene, who had just been found guilty in a rigged trial for killing Sebastian Milton (Teo Rapp-Olsson). Mercer's switching of sides was a surprise, considering he had been resisting all attempts by others until that point to get him to join the resistance.

But what is even more surprising is the news that Mercer's big potty mouth line was not how the episode was originally supposed to end. In fact, it was just a throwaway extra take that Shaw did for fun. Showrunner Angela Kang gave us the inside scoop on the switcheroo, revealed the original last line, and also walked us through all the other big moments from the episode that weren't changed.

The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead

Jace Downs/AMC Michael James Shaw on 'The Walking Dead'

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Okay, the last line from Mercer: "Time to f--- s--- up." Tell us about deciding to end on that very emphatic note.

ANGELA KANG: So that was not originally the line. And I don't even think that was originally the last beat of the script, but sometimes you're just in editing and you're moving things around and it just felt like that was such a cool, dramatic moment. And that was just a free take that Michael did for fun and nobody thought we'd use it. But my editor had put it in the cut that he and the director [Rose Troche] did. And I was like, "We should just check the scripted takes, just in case." And, by far, that was the coolest, best take. And we're like, "Let's just use it. Why not?"

I felt like there was an element of fun with it that you don't always get to see with Mercer, because he's so serious. And I really felt like he was kind of like, "All right, Eugene, I know you and I have butted heads, but now we're in on it together." Which I just thought came through so clearly in his read. So that's how it came about.

What was the original ending?

Mercer's original last line was "Time to take this place!" It was much more cut and dry.

Well, the new line really does cement the turn and feels almost like an official start of the endgame here with only two episode left.

And that's kind of the idea. This was our take on the storyline that's in the comics. In the comic book, Mercer does kind of approach our people about pulling a coup on Pamela and is caught. And we built to it a different way because we felt like it was important to spend a little more time with him to see why he hadn't tried it before. What were the circumstances that led to this point? But we always love the idea that Mercer's is caught in a terrible position, but when he decides, "My loyalty to the Commonwealth is done now,' and he's really on our people's side — it changes the game because he's got a lot of people behind him that are part of the military.

I mean, literally. They're standing right behind him.

Literally! Yeah. So now there's a part of the functioning government that is not on the side of Pamela.

The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead

Jace Downs/AMC Josh McDermitt on 'The Walking Dead'

What is it that finally pushes him over the edge? We see him earlier tell Yumiko, "Doing what you're asking is not going to change anything." Is it Eugene's speech?

It's been building with Mercer for a long time. I think he knows very well that the system is broken. But he has such a commitment to public service that it was really hard for him to get to the point of going, "I'm gonna go against the government," because he feels like it goes against his ideals of service.

He feels like he owes a debt to all of the people of the Commonwealth who are not necessarily evil. Most people are just normal folks that are trying to get through their day to day. But I do think when he gets to the point where Eugene is — he is put into jail for something that he couldn't have predicted with Sebastian. He knows that this guy's going to lose his life. His sister is just devastated. Yumiko comes and talks to him.

I always took it as there may have been some thoughts already churning at that point, and he's playing it kind of close to the vest. He can't let anybody in on his thoughts, otherwise just there's more danger. The more anybody knows, the less secure the situation is. But I do think Yumiko talking to him and then Eugene giving his speech — it solidifies for him, I have to do something. But I think even before that point, he's already thinking something's got to happen. If he doesn't get off in some way through the legal channels, then I know that I have to step in. There's no choice.

So what is it exactly that Negan says to the warden that leads to him being put on the firing line? Does he just go in there and say it's all him spearheading this rebellion so people like Annie and Ezekiel are left alone? Is that essentially how the conversation went?

Yeah, I think it was essentially, it's me. And I think he was thinking, I've given myself up, it's only going to be me that is taken out or punished or whatever. And at that point he feels like maybe that's the potential sacrifice that has to be made so that everybody else survives. And he feels at that point, "Well, maybe that's fair. Maybe my time's up. I've already gotten to have a run longer than maybe I deserved."

The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead

Jace Downs/AMC Khary Payton, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and Medina Senghore on 'The Walking Dead'

It comes right after Ezekiel tells him off for everything he's done. So why does Ezekiel then step in front of that firing line, especially after what he told Negan earlier, basically telling him to f--- off?

When Ezekiel sees the firing line and he sees Annie there — even the ones who don't care for Negan and can never forget his past see Annie as somebody who seems pretty good and straightforward. They have no reason to hate Annie. They can see that Negan's relationship with Annie is making him a better man, or at least he's trying to be. And Negan doing this thing of saying "It was me," that's a purely selfless act. There is nothing he gains from that.

And I think part of Ezekiel skepticism about Negan is "I can't tell if the things that you've done that are good were because you truly had remorse, or if you thought that it gained you something." Ezekiel doesn't trust that, but there is nothing to gain from Negan doing what he just did. And Ezekiel knows that. And Ezekiel also knows that if he lets this go forward, it's just gonna happen again and again and again, and Ezekiel really has a fighting spirit and a spirit of we as citizens have a responsibility to stand up when we think things are wrong. So I think all of those things move Ezekiel.

The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead

Jace Downs/AMC Dan Fogler and Alex Sgambati on 'The Walking Dead'

Luke says the Commonwealth took over Oceanside. So what happened to Rachel and everyone there?

We left that kind of ambiguous. But we know that Commonwealth took over. I think a lot of people died, but you never know, because some people might have escaped. We know that Oceanside is very, very tough, but they were just told to run off. So even the story for Luke is incomplete. He just knows that probably a lot of people did not make it at Oceanside. Maybe they were all killed. He doesn't know. Or maybe they fought back and defeated some people. The heartbreak for Luke and Jules is they ran away, and as far as they know, all of their friends are probably gone, but they don't know for sure.

Speaking of mysteries, where's Coco?

Well, we'll find out, won't we.

Will we?

We will! [Laughs]

This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

Related content: