After having only a brief cameo in The Walking Dead's second season, it was a big deal for fans when it was revealed that Michael Rooker would be a major part of Season 3. AMC talked to Michael Rooker about his return and last night's fight scene in their latest Q&A feature:
"Q: It's been a nearly a year since you were on the show. Did you have to do anything to shake the rust off Merle?
A: I had already developed the character in Season 1, so that part was no effort at all. I wanted to lose a little weight, you know, so I concentrated on that kind of thing. Eventually I had dropped maybe 30 pounds. It was good preparation. A friend of mine timed the amount of screen time that I had before this season: It ended up being only about seven and a half minutes! So those minutes solidified that character in every fan's mind. It's pretty damn cool to think that something that just came from the page, this character, Merle, now has a life of its own.
Q: How eager were you personally to see Merle's return?
A: It was brutal! I'm a big fan of the show. It was just like how long are they going to play this out? It's like, "Guys make your mind up and let's get it on!" Finally they made the decision and I was like thank goodness. It was about time, in my opinion!
Q: Do you keep anything off set that helps you think of Merle?
A: I think it would be fun to have one of Merle's apparatuses just to put in a case and have. It's very cool the way they designed it; it's not like a modern prosthetic. It was designed after something an amputee had around the turn of the century -- a soldier. They found photos and images of this apparatus that this person had built for himself, so that he could continue to fight after he lost an arm and have one arm as a lethal weapon. It's like holding your sword in your hand.
Q: You grew up in Alabama. As one of the Southerners on set, are you a bit of a consultant for all things related to the South?
A: Sometimes my lines are written by an individual who might not be from the South. They are always colloquialized, and it's part of my job to keep it honest and real, and that goes for everything verbally. Say for example -- it wouldn't be "you guys," it'd be "y'all." Or if they do say, "You guys," it'd be with the right accent.
Q: What did the writers tell you about Merle going into this season? Has he changed at all?
A: We came in and I had a conversation with all the writers and they sort of gave me basic bullet points about the season, but for the most part everybody is kind of in the dark until the next episode comes out. We just don't know what is about to occur until the script is distributed. It's kind of funny; the writers have their overall understanding as to where they want to go, but then they get ideas from how we play it, and they riff on a little bit of that so that it can literally change the next episode to episode.
Q: Are we going to see anything else like the gladiator scene?
A: Well, I can tell you this: That was an amazing turning point. Goodness, that's a big deal, that scene."
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Later this week, we'll have our interview feature with director Greg Nicotero, discussing episode 3.05 in detail. To read more AMC features and the rest of this interview, head over to: http://blogs.amctv.com/the-walking-dead/2012/11/michael-rooker-interview.php#more
After spending more than 10 years as a consultant in the tech and entertainment industry, Jonathan James launched Daily Dead in 2010 to share his interest in horror and sci-fi. Since then, it has grown into an online magazine with a staff of writers that provide daily news, reviews, interviews, and special features.
As the Editor-in-Chief of Daily Dead, Jonathan is responsible for bringing the latest horror news to millions of readers from around the world. He is also consulted with as an expert on zombies in entertainment and pop culture, providing analyses of the zombie sub-genre to newspapers, radio stations, and convention attendees.
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