A crossover between AMC's two zombie apocalypse series has been in the works for a while, and fans had to spend weeks speculating about which character would make the jump from The Walking Dead to Fear the Walking Dead. The differences in timelines between the two shows meant that characters that were long dead on The Walking Dead could theoretically appear in the spinoff, and there was even a top contender. We recently learned that Morgan would actually be the character moving from the Walking Dead to Fear the Walking Dead, and actor Lennie James has now revealed some of what's in store for the big transition:
The things that the writers are doing with Morgan and the way that they're navigating, it's not really a spoiler alert, but the way that Morgan transitions through the crossover is really, really interesting. The springboard that goes from The Walking Dead to Fear is a real... He goes with some kind of trajectory. It is a full, well-thought out journey that Morgan goes on. A lot of it is tied to his relationship with Rick. A lot of it is tied to his relationship to this group of people that he feels conflicted about caring for and wanting to protect. He gets really messed up... That's about as much as I can say.
Lennie James only recently began filming for Fear the Walking Dead, and we can bet that he's been tasked with keeping most of the secrets he's learned so far, so we probably can't expect much more in the way of spoilers about Morgan's crossing over for a while. His comments indicate that The Walking Dead won't simply send Morgan off on a supply run around Alexandria and suddenly pop up on Fear the Walking Dead in Texas. Morgan will go on a journey that shows exactly how and why the changes in his life have to happen, even if it means leaving the group that has at least been on his peripheral (thanks to his early encounter with Rick) since almost the very beginning of the zombie apocalypse. The poor guy will apparently be more messed up than ever by the time qhe leaves for Fear the Walking Dead.
The Walking Dead has already started messing Morgan up in some new and devastating ways in Season 8. The massacre of the majority of the Kingdom's fighting forces obviously unsettled Morgan, and the way he agreed to lead the snipers in support of Daryl's crazy plan to assault the Sanctuary may point toward Morgan not having quite as much of a grip on his reactions as usual. The big midseason finale is set to air this weekend, and stars have promised that we're in for a pretty wild ride. Throw in the battle that's evidently coming as teased by the trailer, and Morgan could have his head messed with even more by the end of the episode.
Just as The Walking Dead will take its time with the thought-out transition for Morgan, Lennie James has known for a fair amount of time that the move would be happening. He went on in his chat with ComicBook.com to say this:
I found out quite early on. I found out maybe a month into the shooting of Season 8. Maybe a month, maybe six weeks into it. [Showrunner] Scott Gimple gave me a call and asked me to come around and he pitched the possibility and it took a lot talking.
Lennie James spoke to everybody ranging from AMC to his family to even Walking Dead star Andrew Lincoln about the possibility of making the move. A lot of consideration was clearly put into what is bound to be a big change for both The Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead. The zombie apocalypse won't be the same on either front with/without Morgan.
You can find Morgan still in action on The Walking Dead in this Sunday's midseason finale of Season 8, which airs at 9 p.m. ET on AMC. Be sure to swing by our 2018 midseason TV premiere guide for some important TV dates in the new year, and don't forget to check out our 2017 cancellation guide.
