Exclusive Interview: The Walking Dead’s Jose Pablo Cantillo

Fans of The Walking Dead know Jose Pablo Cantillo for his work as Caesar Martinez on the hit AMC zombie survival drama, but he has a wide range of acting credits on his resume including blockbuster hits like Chappie and Sons of Anarchy.

Recently, I had a chance to speak with Jose Pablo Cantillo about his time on The Walking Dead, some of his other films and shows, as well as a new card game that he and his friend Jeff Levine have created.  Here are some of the highlights from that interview:

What was the major difference between working on The Walking Dead and other shows that you’ve worked on?

"“This one was much easier, The Walking Dead was because of how seamless the set was.  And that was my experience on The Walking Dead. Walking through the woods on my very first day of arriving in Senoia to be introduced as Caesar along with the re-introduction of Merle, Rooker, it was such a great episode and I feel lucky to be introduced during that time.What was different particularly with Woodbury was that it is filmed in a real town that was boarded up, 360 degrees, and it did look like a really quaint, cute post-apocalyptic zombie town.  And the town remained open, so all these townspeople were carrying about their day.”"

Everything seems so professional yet relaxed about The Walking Dead.  It’s a weird thing to see those combine and form this amazing show.  But it’s that level of professionalism combined with how easy it seems to come for the actors because of chemistry and relationships between the actors.

"“It has to start and end with the writing.  We talk a lot about the fun stuff, like, you know what’s on the screen. But, boy, I tell you, the writing has been so good on The Walking Dead since day one.  I know there’s been a couple command post shifts, but each one has picked up the torch and really accepted the challenge well, because the writing is so good.”"

Perhaps the best part of the entire interview came as a part of a discussion about Woodbury where Jose Pablo Cantillo talked about one incident that really set him apart from every other actor on day one:

"“Guy, the director – his name is Guy, set me to say ‘okay, you will get out of the truck around here.  There’s no truck yet you just stand here and he kept going around and placing people saying ‘okay, this is more or less where our master will be’. And I look down and my boots are just shiny wet and I was like, you know, socks just soaking wet.  I was like, I don’t remember stepping through a puddle…and I look again and I realize that it is moving. My black boots are covered in some very large ants that are moving up my pants, in my underwear, up my shirt, on my hat.  And I this is day one.  First day of school.  Nobody knew who I was and out here I was supposed to be one of their badasses.  I slowly start tiptoeing off my mark, take off my hat, ooh, I think I got bit once.  And they all bite at the same time and they were EVERYWHERE.  I took my shirt off.  And my next shirt, I think it was an undershirt.  And my pants.  And my boots, my socks and my underwear.  I’m bare naked in the van now and everyone is like ‘Wait a minute.  What’s going on?  Who’s this guy?  Why is he completely streaking naked on day one?”"

In addition to talking about The Walking Dead, we discussed “Free Me”, an upcoming card game created by Jose Pablo Cantillo and Jeff Levine.  Currently over 85% funded on Kickstarter, the game looks to be a great break from the world of social media.  For the details on that game, head on over to their kickstarter page as well as read about it here on Undead Walking.

For the full interview with Jose Pablo Cantillo for Undead Walking, check it out on my YouTube channel.  I apologize for the poor quality of the recording, as it was my first real attempt at an interview over the phone.

Be sure to watch for Jose Pablo Cantillo’s upcoming projects.  Chappie and Elysium are both available on DVD as well a a film that Cantillo produced titled “Where Hope Grows” that should be available soon.  Plus, this fall, he will be in a film titled “Man Down” which stars Shia Lebeouf and Gary Oldman.

Once again, I’d like to thank Jose Pablo Cantillo for taking the time out of his busy schedule to talk with Undead Walking and hopefully look forward to working with him again in the future.

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