What character did Joe Ando Hirsh play during season 9 of The Walking Dead series?
By Renee Hansen
Actor and fashion designer Joe Ando Hirsh is well known for several roles during his acting career, including The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2021), The Punch of Respect (2023), and season 9 of The Walking Dead. Ando portrayed a character named Rodney, a resident of the Hilltop Colony.
As a resident of Hilltop, Rodney was among the group of teens who hung out and did things normal teens did, just in an apocolyptic setting. He befriended Henry (Matt Lintz) who was moved to Hilltop from The Kingdom.
In season 9, episode 15, "The Calm Before," Rodney attends the Kingdom's fair, and at some point, he and a group are abducted by Alpha (Samantha Morton) and her Whisperers. He then becomes one of the ten pike victims beheaded by the Whisperers and put on display. This was Alpha's punishment for the communities crossing over into her territory.
What else is Joe Ando known for?
Ando has amassed over 2.8 million followers on TikTok and promotes his talent for "bespoke" fashions, clothing made individually and tailored to the wearer. This is a skill he originally used to make clothing for himself and his girlfriend and would eventually acquire several clients.
He is listed on iTechPost's "8 TikTok Fashion Influencers to Watch in 2024" list. He offers style inspiration and advice while creating fun and quirky videos for his followers. "For Joe, it's all about syncing his creativity and energy with the individual he's designing for."
He recently posted the teaser video below on Instagram and it's possible he created a dress for actress Cailey Fleming who plays Judith Grimes in The Walking Dead. She wears a Sheriff hat after all!
Ando attended fashion school, where he studied womenswear while pursuing his acting career. He is known for his roles in Walking Dead director and SFX guru Greg Nicotero's Creepshow, where he portrayed Bobby Tanaka in season 3, and a teenage punk in The Eyes of Tammy Faye.
Walking Dead fans fondly remember Joe Ando's appearance in Ryan Reynold's Maximum Effort commercials during the series finale. He appeared in the Door Dash commerical, and other actors who starred in these "The Walking Deadvertising" commercials include Dallas Roberts, Andrew J. West, and Laurie Holden. You can view them on YouTube via the link below.
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