Did The Walking Dead Just Cast Three Characters From The Comics?

By Brent McKnight | Published

This article is more than 2 years old

The Walking DeadI’m still trying to get over how badass that trailer for season four of AMC’s zombie drama The Walking Dead is. This show and I have a particularly rocky relationship, but hot damn, that video makes me want to those new episodes like right now. But you knew that wasn’t going to be it, right? Oh no, we’ve still got three months until the October 13 premiere date, and you can bet we’ll be seeing new information about the upcoming season on the regular right up until broadcast time. Like, for example, these new photos from season four. And as we already know, there will be a bunch of new characters—leftovers form Woodbury and otherwise—so I’m sure we’ll be hearing all sorts of speculation about who these people are, including this latest rumor that may start some fans of Robert Kirkman’s comics salivating.

These images from Spoiler TV aren’t wildly informative, but they offer a nice glimpse into post-Governor (for the moment anyway) life at the prison. Hershel (Scott Wilson) is still kicking with his one leg, and putting his farmer skills to good use. Glenn (Steven Yeun) and Maggie (Lauren Cohan) are still sneaking off to do it every chance they get. Hell, the lighting even makes their cell look like a late-night cable soft-core flick. Carl (Chandler Riggs) is running, but he’s always on edge about one thing or another, and Rick (Andrew Lincoln) is apparently still holding onto his sanity, which must be nice. From the look of things, they even have some new pets/food sources with the addition of those pigs. Wonder where they came across those little guys?

The photos are nice, especially that one of the walker crawling around with a big ass head gash, but something far more intriguing to fans should be this talk of three recurring roles currently being cast. Readers of the comics pay close attention, not as much to the names, but the descriptions of the characters. First is “John Tyler—Early 30s, vulgar with rough edges but wise.” Then there’s “Wayne Kesey—Early 30s. Very smart and an experienced liar.” Finally we have “Jordana Barraza—Late 20s tough hispanic and beautiful. Shamed about her past.”

Do these sound familiar to anyone else? Do they by any chance call to mind Sergeant Abraham Ford, Dr. Eugene Porter, and Rosita Espinosa? Those are the first things that burst into my mind, because those are fairly specific descriptions of each one of those characters. For those of you not familiar with the comics, Abe is a tough as nails badass who becomes Rick’s right hand, a role currently filled by Daryl (Norman Reedus) in the show, and that once belonged to Tyreese, portrayed by show newcomer Chad L. Coleman. Eugene may have a mullet, but sure is smart, and may have connections to government scientists working on a cure to the zombie plague. Then again, he may be full of shit. Either way his skills prove to be a useful addition to the gang. Rosita is a kind, but badass woman who has been on the road with Abe, Eugene, and others for quite a while.

Does that mean we’re going to see TV versions of these characters in season four? If so, that’s a pretty sizable jump in the story. If I’m reading it correctly, the casting notice indicates that these new faces could pop up later in the season, around episode ten. And since, in the comics, these three arrive well after Rick and the rest of the crew have been driven out of their prison haven, this could be an indication of what the action of season four may look like.

I, for one, wouldn’t mind seeing these characters show up. Hopefully not too soon in the season, there are still a number of new additions that we need to get to know—like Lawrence Gillard Jr.’s Bob Stookey—but I do like some of their storylines. And if nothing else, bringing in new blood is a good indication that a great number of things will happen soon, or at least soon-ish. One of my biggest issues with last year was that a single arc from the comics was drawn out and extended far beyond its bounds. Maybe new showrunner Scott Gimple and crew will simply tell the stories in the manner that works best, without worrying about filling up empty slots.

Fans, what do you think? Would you like to see Abraham, Eugene, and Rosita show up on The Walking Dead?

The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead