Lennie James, who plays Morgan Jones in Fear the Walking Dead, gives a firm answer on whether or not he’ll be returning to the Walking Dead franchise. The first spinoff of AMC’s hit series The Walking Dead first premiered in August 2015. The series is about to enter season 8, the final season of the show, which will premiere on May 14. The Walking Dead itself came to an end after 11 seasons last year, and the franchise has since announced three new upcoming spinoff series to expand the Walking Dead universe.
In an interview with CBR, James discusses the end of Morgan’s story, which he says will finish with Fear the Walking Dead. James, who appeared in both The Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead, says that he’s worried returning to the character in future spinoffs will tarnish Morgan’s character, but he won’t rule out the possibility entirely. Read James’ full comment below:
This is it for me. He’s been around long enough. For me to pick up the stick again, it would have to be an amazing storyline. It would have to be a situation where I couldn’t look back on all the episodes that I’ve done so far and go, ‘No, I did that in episode such and such in Season such and such.’ I’m not interested in repeating myself with Morgan at the moment. I think it would kind of slightly tarnish his legacy.
Everything We Know About TWD’s Upcoming Spinoffs
One of the first characters to appear in The Walking Dead, Morgan was a recurring character throughout the series before departing in season 8 to become a lead in Fear the Walking Dead. With Morgan being such an integral part of the Walking Dead universe, there were many theories that James may make an appearance in one of the upcoming spinoff series, particularly in the Rick and Michonne-centric show. However, it seems that James has no interest in returning to the world of Walkers for the foreseeable future.
Along with the as-yet-untitled Rick and Michonne spinoff, The Walking Dead is also set to explore more fan-favorite character stories with Dead City and Daryl Dixon. Dead City follows Negan and Maggie as they traverse New York City to find Maggie’s kidnapped son, Hershel. The series is set to premiere June 18, and has already been pre-emptively renewed for season 2. Meanwhile, Daryl Dixon will see the titular archer in a post-apocalyptic France, facing off against new human and Walker threats alike.
Though James has seemingly decided to step back from the franchise after Fear the Walking Dead‘s finale, with The Walking Dead universe continually expanding, there may be a series that entices James enough to return to the role of Morgan. For now, however, audiences can look forward to seeing the final arc of Morgan’s story in season 8 of Fear the Walking Dead when it kicks off May 14.
Source: CBR
This story originally appeared on Screenrant