This week’s episode of The Walking Dead is heavily focused on Eugene. He finds out that Stephanie never existed and the person who he thought was her disguised her name.
The reveal caught Eugene off guard which lead to him being unhinged at dwelling at this piece of information. Josh McDermitt, who plays the character, did an amazing performance to bring that out of Eugene. Here to talk about that scene and more on The Walking Dead is Josh McDermitt in this exclusive interview.
The Knockturnal: The scene between Eugene and Lance really stood out because I thought that you put your heart and soul into that scene, especially when Eugene figured out that he has been lied to. So what went through your mind when you was going through with the dialogue and the scripting of that scene? And did you see it for yourself on the director’s monitors after you and Josh performed the scene?
JM: “Thank you for saying that. I mean, it’s, really hard for me to watch myself. I tend to not do that. A lot of people don’t really watch themselves. It’s weird. When I watch the show, I just kind of look away when i’m on the screen. Doing that scene was really fun. Getting to work with Josh Hamilton, he’s an incredible actor, and is very giving. I loved the control that he brought for Lance that actually spurred Eugene into spinning out of control. And that was a fun thing to do. Michael Cudlitz, who directed the episode, and I were talking a lot about the little epiphanies he was having as he was unraveling. And then all of a sudden, he just comes unspooled and just to have those ‘oh my gosh, this happened and then this happened. and She (Stephanie) even read my manuscript. Oh, and then you took me here and I fell for the radio room twice.’ You know, just to have these revelations kind of push that scene and push him further into the abyss, that was a challenge and it was fun. I like that we got to see that side of Eugene because he’s usually the guy who’s in control. And here we see that he’s definitely not.”
The Knockturnal: Now that is a good Segway to my next question. As you said, Eugene just not in control compared to other situations in the past. So how is this situation going to really affect Eugene down the line for the rest of this season?
JM: “Well, right now, he’s sitting in the rubble during the aftermath, trying to figure out what’s next and trying to figure out who to trust. We see at the end of the episode that the voice on the radio shows up and it’s like, ‘well, I probably can’t trust you.’ He doesn’t know who he can trust anymore. And I think he’s also going to battle maybe some guilt. Hw brought all these people here, and he may have put them in harm’s way. It’s an incredibly precarious situation he finds himself in because he doesn’t want to screw anything up for someone. He wants to stay. But for him, I’m not sure that he wants to stay at the commonwealth.”
The Knockturnal: Knowing that The Commonwealth has different class systems, How did you feel when it came to seeing all of Eugene’s friends in different kind of class systems? Especially since Rosita is now a soldier over there.
JM: “Julian, it’s interesting. It’s a great question because if you see someone like Rosita, she’s a part of The Commonwealth Army. Now, that relationship changes with anybody you know who suddenly assume a new identity in a weird way. They’re not just a survivalist and a zombie killer and someone who you can count on to have your back when shit hits the band. Like all of a sudden it’s like, ‘oh, you have other loyalties now, whether it’s, you know, working at the bakery or working in The Commonwealth Army.’ And I think the dynamics changed a little bit. And kind of going back to what I was saying about Eugene as he’s not really sure if The Commonwealth for him anymore. He’s got to find his place in The Commonwealth and I don’t really know where he feels like he fits in. Eugene looking at everybody’s position and where they are standing within that community is an interesting thing to look at especially how it affects their relationships.”
The Knockturnal: Has it really hit you yet that The Walking Dead is ending? Especially since we’re now in March and we’re about to be finished with the second half?
JM: “It is crazy! It’s something that’s been a part of my life for a long time. And, you know, when I think of our world without The Walking Dead, that’s a little weird to me just because it’s been around for so long. I’m definitely grateful for the experience. It is said to be moving on. But, you know, I just hope we can end the show in a way that the fans are excited about. And I know that we’re really proud of the work we’ve done over the years. All of us in the cast, we’re kind of reminiscing and calling back to other seasons. These days it is like ‘Oh, do you remember when we did this? Remember when we hung out and that happened. I remember when you you said that on set. And sometimes we were filming and we got a nice blooper out of it.’ There’s a lot of reminiscing and stuff, and that’s really fun to to share that with everybody.
The Knockturnal: Since you joined the cast way back in 2013, have you ever taken anything from the set home?
JM: “I actually have to be honest. I never did. I don’t know what I would take. I mean, I’m always afraid of taking something that they need. I’ve heard that Norman got a couple of Daryl’s crossbows and things like that, but it’s like, I mean, if I go and take one of those, then it’s going to turn into ‘Hey, where is the crossbow?!’ We need that because they have multiple crossbows if one break. So they have one that’s covered in blood, and they need a clean one. Like, they just have multiples of everything. I don’t know where they keep everything and I don’t know what I would take. I’m kind of a rule follower, and I would rather not get in trouble. You imagine we were in the show and Daryl doesn’t have his crossbow anymore because I took it home? That would be a production nightmare! (laughs).”
