EXCLUSIVE: The Walking Dead star Khary Payton Opens up on working with Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Melissa McBride, and a video call from Andrew Lincoln

Editor’s note, this interview took was scheduled to be published on Oct. 23 prior to our new server update.

Khary Payton has been a main character of The Walking Dead since the seventh season as Ezekiel. As the main show is wrapping up, Ezekiel and Negan had a conversation for the first time as he called the former Saviors leader out for coercing women for marrying him, killing his Kingdom residents, and pretty much letting him know that he will never forget what he did. Ezekiel is also part of the revolt against The Commonwealth.

With that said, I caught up with Khary Payton to talk about these developments along with his memories on the set in this exclusive interview.

How was Alexandria being turned into an outpost and labor camp approached by you?

“It came to me in the script. I didn’t get any input when I picked up the script, so I was like, ‘oh, this is cool.’ We’re going full circle, you know? After leaving Alexandria, it’s becoming another walk down memory lane and it’s going to be pretty cool. It’s going to be pretty interesting because. Because the time that we were shooting all of this stuff for Alexandria ends up being some of the coldest that I’ve spent shooting the show. And it’s and I feel like you can see it in the filming. It’s gray and dank.”

You and Jeffrey Dean Morgan finally had an exchange of dialogue for the first time. Were you satisfied with the outcome?

“Jeff and I were excited to finally work together. We’ve been on the show for years, and except maybe on a battlefield where arrows and bullets are flying and swords swinging, we weren’t having interaction. So this was the first time we actually had a conversation So we were looking forward to it. It was fun. I love the way he worked. And it was cool to finally get together and do it that way. It’s like it’s one of those things where life isn’t perfect. And when they hand you lemons, you make lemonade. When they hand you Negan, you use him to do what he does best, which is which is a little havoc. And hopefully this time it’ll pay off for people who deserve it. You know, I think that Ezekiel’s intent was to put his own feelings aside to take care of business.”

After the filming of the series concluded, what was the first thing you did when you went home and did you had time to reflect on your time on The Walking Dead?

“I went home and hugged my kids. Before the pandemic, I would fly home constantly. So even if I was away for a couple of weeks, that was as long as it was. So when the pandemic hit, it was like months at a time before I would see them again and that was really hard. So this was a grind getting to the end of the show. And, and I feel like I’ve still haven’t had a chance to take a deep breath and breathe it all in and understand what it’s meant to me and my life and career and all of that. Melissa McBride is probably the thing I will miss the most about the show. She is the greatest acting teacher I’ve ever had. I learned something beautiful and nuanced from her every time I’m on set with her. I don’t think I’ll ever know anyone like her again. And it was always magic when we were on set together. The thing is, she teaches you without even trying. She is a raw nerve and a live wire. And she feels and and takes aspects of so many things about from the script or just in the room surrounding you. She takes and uses it and she’s pointed out things to me along the way that have just changed my perspective on a scene and the way that we interact with each other.”

One of my favorite episodes from the previous season was “Walk With Us” when we saw The Hilltop burn down during that chaotic battle. Any moments you would like to share about your experience during that lengthy scene?

“I remember how awesome the kids were. I had one kid in my arms holding one’s hand and seven others running behind me and they were such little professionals. They listened and took direction. There’s all this fire and flames and horses running and all of this stuff. I’m proud of all of them. And that’s what I will remember most. I also remember that because we were right next to the fire and there were so many fun moments, the nights that we were shooting those scenes, with The Whisperers and the walkers. We’d all been waiting for this battle to happen all season. And it was and it felt so cathartic, you know, I remember that Andrew Lincoln video called Norman that night. And we all huddled around the phone and video chatted with Andrew Lincoln, who we hadn’t seen in so long. It was a cool night.”