Interview: Michael Cudlitz talks The Walking Dead 1004

Undead Walking had a chance to talk with director Michael Cudlitz about The Walking Dead 1004, including Cassady McClincy’s amazing performance.

Michael Cudlitz might not be in front of the camera on The Walking Dead but he is leaving his mark behind the camera these days as the beloved TWD alum not only directs the flagship series but it also working on the as-yet untitled TWD3. He talked with Undead Walking about his most recent turn behind the camera with “Silence the Whisperers.”

I talked with Cudlitz just a few days after the three-year anniversary of The Walking Dead 701, which was not only one of the most controversial and jarring episodes in the show’s history but it was also very important for Cudlitz and his character, the inimitable Abraham Ford. Since the episodes film so far in advance, there was no way for anyone to know that the anniversary would coincide with one of the season 10 episodes he directed, but Cudlitz had to laugh at the coincidence:

“Well, that’s a random thing! I’m still connected with the show, I’m so happy to be here. Obviously [Abraham] is gone but I’m still here. As far as the anniversary is concerned, that’s an interesting coincidence! I’ve been very fortunate, as you know, I’m directing another episode coming up [of The Walking Dead season 10], episode 7. And working with them on the new show. They’ve been very kind to me and I’m having a blast.”

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It’s impossible to talk about The Walking Dead 1004 without acknowledging the amazing performance from Cassady McClincy. Not only does she deliver a powerful performance in “Silence the Whisperers” but she also filmed some intense scenes. I asked Cudlitz to share his thoughts about McClincy’s performance and what it was like to bring the attack scene to life:

“Cassady is amazing. Cassady and Norman are amazing. Cassady and Melissa McBride. Anything Cassady touches she makes better. She’s an incredibly, incredibly talented actress. So emotionally available, so present. She’s so willing and wanting to do the best work she can. She’s just been a delight.

The scenes were intense. As actors we thrive on that kind of stuff. You know, people ask about our hardest days and our hardest days tend to be our most fun days. We get to do what we do. [Cassady] has a tremendous amount of story load put on her and she crushes it every time. She’s that good.”

As a director, Cudlitz is wonderful when it comes to elevating the performances of the actors. I asked him to talk about how his approach to directing:

“What actors need to do is to be able to trust the people around them. I let them know they’re protected and then allow them to do what they do. I don’t think there’s anything I do except get out of the way. It’s their performances. It’s not me.

All we can worry about is the work of the day. That’s all I worry about when I’m directing is getting through this scene, getting through this day and putting the pieces of this scene together. I can’t get caught up in the scope of something, or get worried about it, because it’s not helpful.”

In season 10, Cudlitz has a chance to work with Jeffrey Dean Morgan in a different capacity. This time Negan has more freedom, but in “Silence the Whisperers” his freedom is in jeopardy. He offered his thoughts on what we’re seeing from Negan in this episode and why the relationship between Negan and Lydia is so special:

“Negan is a survivor, and he’s absolutely not in charge right now. So that’s a different perspective, and we’re seeing all of the layers of the human condition. And he obviously has a soft spot or an awareness about the youth in this world and the innocence, and he acknowledges the innocence. He acknowledges it in a very realistic way. 

So the connection between he and Cassidy, or Lydia, is sort of as the outcasts. They’re the people who aren’t accepted by the community. He connects with her and he knows what she’s going through, but he also knows he’s an adult and she’s a child and he knows what’s she’s come from and that it was an abusive type of situation. 

He’s not only able to connect with Lydia as an adult but as a human, the same as he does with Judith. There’s a wonderful connection that he has with innocence. 

I do believe in this situation thinks it’s over and he thinks he knows how it’s going to play out after he gets blamed for the death. It’s sort of like [Negan is thinking] ‘I should have f-ing known because this is too good to be true.’ When Margot goes down, he’s pretty much resigned. Back in the cell when Daryl shows up he’s resigned, he knows that it’s over, and there’s no way to come back from this one. And as much as Daryl wants him dead, he doesn’t want [Negan] dead from this because he did something good.”

On a final note, we talked about Eugene’s decision to remain at Hilltop after learning that Rosita did not share his feelings for him. I asked Cudlitz his thoughts about where Eugene at this point given that Abraham was always the Eugene Whisperer:

“I think it sums it up what Abraham says to him in 616, you know, that you’re a survivor and you always have been and I didn’t know it. He’s going to evolve and he’s going to evolve in a way that will surprise people, but ultimately there will be a lot of Eugenes left in the world when the apocalypse ends. Because they’re survivors and they will adapt in any way they have to. None of this is surprising to me, and I don’t think any of it would have been surprising to Abraham.”

Big thanks go out to Michael Cudlitz for taking the time to talk with Undead Walking, and we can’t wait to see what he has in store for us later on in season 10 of The Walking Dead and on TWD3!