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Lennie James Reveals Why Morgan Moved To Fear The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead’s Lennie James recently revealed why Morgan moved to Fear The Walking Dead. James has been a fixture on The Walking Dead for several seasons. Throughout his stint on the show, he has become a fan favorite. His character, Morgan, is a conflicted man, but his fighting skills and keen senses make him a formidable force on the show.
Over the course of the show, Morgan evolved into a one-man army. He has dispatched both walkers and humans alike; however, his conscience began to weigh on him - especially during season 8. His inner conflict grew to the point that he began to lose his grip on reality, and it drastically affected his physical and mental wellbeing. By the end of the season, his future seemed unknown. Recently, it was revealed that Morgan was moving from The Walking Dead to the show’s spinoff series, Fear the Walking Dead. Many fans were confused by the news, but James recently addressed why he made the move.
During an exclusive interview with James for the home video release of The Walking Dead season 8, Screen Rant asked if there were any elements of Morgan's story that he wanted to explore but didn't get the chance to. James revealed that there weren't, but part of his move to Fear was to give Morgan more screen time. He then explained why he was chosen to crossover to Fear the Walking Dead:
"The conversation I did have with Scott [M. Gimple] when that was first proposed is that there were things that he wanted to explore with Morgan that would be difficult to shoehorn into The Walking Dead and he thought that because of the smaller cast and the way that the stories are told on Fear that there would be a little more room for it."
Though James didn’t reveal any details about Morgan’s future, the general concept of the move makes a lot of sense. Morgan’s journey was a lot denser and complex than many of the other characters. That’s not to take anything away from any of the other characters at all. At times, however, Morgan’s inner turmoil seemed almost too large for the show. It was compelling and extremely interesting, but it seemed almost all consuming juxtaposed against the rest of the characters. In the middle of Rick’s war against the Saviors, Morgan’s story couldn’t be fleshed out the way it needed to be. Hopefully, fans will be able to see more of Morgan’s journey explored on Fear the Walking Dead.
Beyond the character’s arc, James’ portrayal of Morgan is incredible. His performance is captivating and it’s great that he will get more screentime in the future. James’ move may also help attract new viewers for Fear the Walking Dead. All in all, James’ move sounds like a positive for fans of the character and those who love the entire franchise.
The Walking Dead season 8 releases on DVD and Blu-ray on August 21.
