Fear the Walking Dead’s season 8 premiere was a fantastic episode to kick off the final season. Three newcomers were introduced in this episode. Zoey Merchant plays an 8-year-old Mo, Jayla Walton played Dove, and Maya Eshet as Shrike. All three of these characters are residents of PADRE, an organization that will be a significant focus this season.
Shrike appears to hold a high ranking within the inner workings of PADRE, an organization located on an island that abducts children to train for combat. She is emotionless and very good at her job. Shrike commands attention and gets the job done.
She was only briefly seen in this week’s episode “Remember What They Took From You” and will likely be a prominent character during the PADRE story arc. All the characters are named after birds, and if Shrike’s personality resembles the bird she is named after, people better watch out. The Shrike’s bird family name is Lanius, derived from the Latin word “butcher.” These birds break the necks of their prey.
By the end of the episode, Shrike has recaptured Madison (Kim Dickens), recovered Mo/Wren (Zoey Merchant), and on orders from PADRE, relieved Morgan (Lennie James) of his duties as a collector.
Fear the Walking Dead actress Maya Eshet
Eshet is known for her roles in Red Bird Lane, All Rise, Star Trek: Picard, Dead Woman Walking, Flower, and more.
She was a main character on the horror sci-fi series Nightflyers that aired on Syfy. The series is based on a novella and series of short stories by George R. R. Martin (Game of Thrones). The story follows a group of scientists who journey to space to make contact with alien life forms. When violent events happen onboard, the team begins to question one another and realize there may be something else on board with them. NIghtflyers is streaming on Netflix.
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