Fear The Walking Dead: Danay Garcia talks about Luciana, the ranch, and survival
By Sonya Iryna
Fear The Walking Dead’s Danay Garcia talks about Luciana and what it takes to survive the apocalypse.
Fear The Walking Dead is in the middle of the strongest season the show has had. When the show returns on September 10th the conflicts at Broke Jaw Ranch are going to reach a boiling point. But Luciana knew from the beginning that the situation at the ranch was going to go bad and she got out early in the season.
Luciana always had a different perspective than the others about the ranch. Jeremiah Otto wasn’t even going to let her in so she knew from the beginning she’d never be welcome there. And after seeing the experiments that Troy Otto was doing on the prisoners at the border facility she didn’t want to be there.
While she recuperated from being shot by the militia members from the ranch when the La Colonia survivors came across the border she was handcuffed to a bed. So she had no illusions about Broke Jaw Ranch being a safe haven. She knew that leaving was the best option for her. So as soon as she was well enough she left, leaving Nick at the ranch instead of asking him to choose between her and his family.
Recently I had the chance to Danay Garcia about Luciana, why she chose to leave, and what it takes for someone to survive in the world of Fear The Walking Dead. Here’s what she had to say:
Being A Fan Of The Walking Dead And Fear The Walking Dead
When asked if she was a fan of The Walking Dead prior to being cast on Fear The Walking Dead Danay said that she was a fan of TWD and had watched Fear The Walking Dead. But since she was cast early on the show hadn’t really developed yet at that time. She was excited to be on a show that was set in the post-apocalyptic world.
And when she was taking the train to Mexico to start filming her role as Luciana she was reading over her script and had a gut feeling that Fear was going to be something really special. Fear The Walking Dead is now the third most popular cable TV show so it looks like fans agree.
Unfinished Business In Season 3A
She said that one of the most interesting parts of season 3A was the recurring theme of unfinished business. All the main characters were dealing with unfinished business from the past that was reappearing in the first half of the season.
Madison’s relationship with Travis was cut short. Nick was trying to deal with the family dynamics between himself and Madison and Alicia. Ofelia, who had left the group back at the hotel, reappeared but now was loyal to Walker which puts her in direct opposition to Madison, Nick and Alicia.
Would Luciana Ever Return To The Ranch?
Now that Jeremiah Otto is dead would that change anything for Luciana? Would she ever return to the ranch? Danay said no, because she knows that Troy is still very much a threat. After seeing the experiments that Troy was performing on the prisoners Luciana knows that she’d never be safe on the ranch. And because Troy and the militia members were the ones who shot her and killed so many of the members of La Colonia there’s no way Luciana would ever stay at the ranch while Troy is there.
She added that Luciana’s values are very much the core of the character. She has a high value for human life and the ranch’s tolerance for Troy killing innocent people is something she could never be a part of. Luciana was very protective of the people at La Colonia because protecting people and doing whatever it takes to keep them safe and healthy is important to her.
Broke Jaw Ranch was set up to be an exclusionary compound founded on the idea of keeping people out. Especially people who the residents deemed to be unworthy of help. Luciana would never have wanted to be part of a community like that.
Would Luciana Join Lola’s Community At The Dam?
When asked if Luciana would still want to join a community or if she’d rather be on her own after what happened with La Colonia Danay said that absolutely Luciana would want to join another community. But only if she could find a community that had the same values that she has.
If she were to end up at the dam and Lola’s community were centered around keeping people safe and providing food, shelter and some stability for the survivors who came there then Luciana would be happy to be a part of that. She would definitely become a leader in a community motivated by including people and providing a sanctuary and community for survivors.
The Evolution Of Relationships In The Walking Dead World
We also talked about how relationships within the post-apocalyptic world are constantly and changing and evolving, especially for the survivors in Fear The Walking Dead.
On The Walking Dead the survivors banded together and became a chosen family. But they were all moving forward from a central fixed point – the time they met. The survivors in Fear The Walking Dead are having to deal with years of dysfunctional family relationships and try to untangle those issues and let those relationships evolve in the face of the challenges of the new world they’re in.
Danay said that’s part of the reason why Luciana never asked Nick to choose between staying at the ranch or leaving her. She would never have asked anyone to choose someone over their family. So she did what she needed to do for her survival. She left.
The Walking Dead And Fear The Walking Dead Are Changing Roles For Women
Fear The Walking Dead is the third highest rated show on cable TV. The Walking Dead is the highest rated. When two of the three highest rated shows on TV are consistently writing and developing female characters that are strong, capable, and complex it’s going to have an impact on how writers write female roles in the future.
Danay agrees that Fear The Walking Dead and TWD are going to play a role in shaping the future of female roles on TV. She said that she loves the fact that Luciana is such a strong character who can adapt to any situation and never betrays her values.
Luciana Stepped Up When The World Ended
When asked if Luciana was the same badass before the apocalypse that she is now Danay said that before the apocalypse Luciana would still have been a leader. But she wouldn’t have necessarily been as fierce as she is now. The apocalypse did bring out her inner strength and made her even more committed to her values.
Luciana isn’t afraid of the dead. To her they are just a means to an end – survival. But in Mexican culture the dead are very much a part of family life so Luciana would have had a very different view of death than the other survivors. Except for Nick. Nick’s view of death and lack of fear have been shaped by his experiences as a junkie. That lack of fear and the determination to survive is something that Nick and Luciana have in common.
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Luciana’s Values Define Her Character
When talking about what drives Luciana to be a community leader and what motivates her desire to be part of building a strong community Danay said that Luciana is very much driven by her values. She said that Luciana would have come from a good family that taught her by example the importance of taking care of each other and the importance of family and community. Her Mexican cultural roots, including a strong devotion to family, also motivate her desire to protect others.
Danay said that Luciana “will transform herself to save and protect others.” So when Luciana finds another community she will reinvent herself in any way that she needs to in order to be of service to the community and to build a community.
Of course she couldn’t reveal if we will see Luciana again on Fear The Walking Dead but if Luciana ends up at Lola’s community at the dam she would be a powerful force in creating a strong community there. Hopefully that is where she will end up.
Next: 10 predictions for FTWD season 3B
Many thanks to Danay Garcia for talking with me about Luciana and Fear The Walking Dead. You can follow her on Twitter @danaygarcia1. And watch the mid-season premiere of Fear The Walking Dead on September 10th to find out what’s going to happen at Broke Jaw Ranch.