Actor Scott Wilson portrayed the wise, albeit stubborn, farmer and veterinarian, Hershel Greene, in The Walking Dead. Introduced in season 2, Hershel played vital roles in the lives of Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and the other survivors. His career spanned many years, beginning with the 1967 film In the Heat of the Night. Sadly, Wilson passed away in 2018 at the age of 76. What was the actor's final role?
In the 1960s, Wilson also appeared in In Cold Blood, Castle Keep, and The Gypsy Moths. He portrayed George Wilson in the 1974 film The Great Gatsby, starring Robert Redford, Mia Farrow, Sam Waterston, Bruce Dern, and Karen Black. He was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture for his performance in The Ninth Configuration, a psychological horror that was William Peter Blatty's directorial debut.
Other notable roles for Wilson, include The Right Stuff, The Grass Harp, Junebug, The Host, Monster, Young Guns II, Pearl Harbor, Big Stan, Judge Dredd, the Shiloh film series and Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon.
In June 2011, Wilson was cast as Hershel for The Walking Dead series. He first appeared in episode 202, "Bloodletting," where he was introduced to Rick, and his son Carl (Chandler Riggs), who had been accidentally shot. The opportunity for Wilson to join the cast occurred while he visited his 97-year-old mother in Georgia. Hershel was killed by the Governor in the mid-season finale of season 4.
He was cast in a recurring role as Dr. Guyot in the Prime Video original series Bosch in 2014. This series also stars TWD actress Madison Lintz, who portrayed Sophia Peletier. He secured another recurring role in the A&E television series Damien that was a direct sequel to The Omen (1976).
In 2016, he was cast in The OA, a Netflix original sci-fi, mystery drama. Wilson appeared in several episodes of this two-season series, which concluded on a significant cliffhanger after the streamer canceled it. He also provided the voice of Hershel in The Robot Chicken Walking Dead Special: Look Who's Walking, which featured several other notable TWD actors voicing their characters from the series.
Wilson's final on-screen appearance was featured during episode 905 of The Walking Dead. This scene was featured during Rick's dream sequence, after he was severely injured, where he hallucinated many people from the past. This episode was a bittersweet moment, as it aired only weeks after Wilson's passing. According to Comicbook.com, TWD director and SFX guru, Greg Nicotero, visited Wilson before his death and showed him the scene, to which the actor replied, "That brought tears to my eyes."
In 2011, while filming The Walking Dead in Senoia, Georgia, Wilson was interviewed by Access Atlanta's Rodney Ho. The actor reflected on his career, stating:
"It's been up and down. It's always been. You have dry spells. At different times, you are starting over. If you love it, you stay with it. That's what I'm doing. I've accomplished more than I would have hoped to have accomplished. I don't want to be a big movie star. I can be someone who walks the streets and not get mobbed. I want to be as fine an actor as I can be. I am still striving to be as good as I can be."Scott Wilson
Walking Dead fans will never forget the impact Wilson had in his portrayal of Hershel Greene. Many fans continue the tradition of celebrating Spaghetti Tuesday every Wednesday. This comes from a quote during his incredible performance in episode 405, "Internment."
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