The Walking Dead effects maestro and exec producer Greg Nicotero has something to say to viewers planning to quit.
Warning: Spoiler material for The Walking Dead Season 7 premiere, “The Day Will Come When You Won’t Be.”
The Walking Dead returned with a Season 7 premiere that upped the ante of sadism and ire-inducing deaths in a manner arguably matching the repertory main character slayings on Game of Thrones. Naturally, with that profound unfolding of events and some viewers still having a bad taste in their mouths from the 6-month cliffhanger tease, there is a certain segment of the audience who claim they’re quitting. However, one of the main visionaries of the series has a response to such a notion.
In a media conference call (via TV Line,) Greg Nicotero, a credited executive producer, special effects head designer and director (who was at the helm for the episode,) discussed the impact – both literal and figurative – of what occurred in the Season 7 premiere. However, firmly aware of the divisive nature of the brutal and bold moves made in the premiere with Negan’s gruesome, heartbreaking executions of Abraham and Glenn, along with the sadistic psychological torture of hero Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), Nicotero makes an appeal to viewers so incensed, they’ve threatened to quit, stating:
“I would say that [their threat] means we have done something to affect these people in a way that they don’t necessarily know how to process.” He continues, “Listen… I’ve been shocked at the turns of events on Game of Thrones. But you know what? I still love it. And I’m still committed to seeing where that story goes. So, I think it’s a knee-jerk reaction that people have, because they care about these characters. That’s a tribute to every single actor on our show that has perished. It’s unfortunate that people want to take a negative spin on it… [and especially] if that’s really what’s going to happen [and they’ll stop watching], because the show still has a lot to offer!”
Nicotero also explains why the show’s creative coalition thought it necessary to kill two major characters, especially when the original iconic comic book sequence only saw Glenn get the business end of barbed-wire-bat Lucille. Some fans have assailed the method, especially with so much untapped plot potential to have the line-spouting one-man-army Abraham (who died at an earlier point in the comics,) around for the upcoming war with the Saviors. However, as Nicotero explains:
“If we killed someone and [the audience was] just like, ‘OK, well, no big deal, I’m gonna go have a bagel,’ then that means that we haven’t done something to connect our people to the characters.”
Of course, the antagonistic dynamic in the conflict with the Saviors has been set primarily as a rivalry between Rick and Negan, with the latter’s constant attempts to break the spirit of the former. In fact, with much of the Season 7 premiere devoted Negan’s sadistic methods in attaining – at extreme duress – Rick’s cooperation in becoming his provider, Nicotero identifies a more upsetting component, stating that seeing, “our hero, completely crushed… is more disturbing than the actual violence.”
The Walking Dead carries on in the aftermath of a dramatic, brutally-paradigmatic shift, regardless of whether those claiming to quit follow through with their threat, especially since the show was preemptively renewed for Season 8. You can catch Season 7 of the horrendously heartbroken zombie apocalypse drama on AMC on Sunday nights.