In 1990, actor Jeff Kober starred in the neo-noir horror film The First Power, which has recently been novelized. Kober's Walking Dead role will never be forgotten. He portrayed Joe, the leader of the Claimers, who was brutally killed by Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln).
Directed by Robert Resnikoff, The First Power was released in 1990 to poor critical reviews, but was a financial success. In recent years, the film has gained a cult following, and some believe it inspired Fallen (1998), starring Denzel Washington.
Lou Diamond Phillips portrays Detective Russell Logan, an LA detective specializing in the capture of serial killers, whose current case involves the Pentagram Killer, aka Patrick Channing, portrayed by Kober. His victims are identified by the pentagrams he carves on their bodies before killing them. The film also stars Tracy Griffith, Mykelti Williamson, Elizabeth Arlen, Dennis Lipscomb, Carmen Argenziano, Clayton Landey, Sue Giosa, Nada Despotovich, Juliana McCarthy, with appearances by David Gale and Bill Moseley.
Resnikoff has cited mass murderer Gary Gilmore as inspiration for The First Power. Gilmore demanded the death sentence for two murders, believing he would be reincarnated. He was put to death by firing squad in 1977 and inspired the non-fiction novel The Executioner's Song, and the same-titled film in 1982.
Author Christian Francis has now novelized the story, using the film as source material. The book can be purchased through Amazon in hardcover, paperback, and Kindle formats. Cody Hammon of JoBlo has read the novel and shares his thoughts here.
Jeff Kober - General Hospital and more
In 2025, Kober said goodbye to his General Hospital character Cyrus Renault, a role he had played since 2020. He won the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in 2022 for his performance.
With over 140 acting credits to his name, Kober is a well known actor who has starred in High Desert, Walker, NCIS: Los Angels, Big Dogs, Sons of Anarchy, China Beach, Kindred: The Embraced, and many more. He has also made guest appearances in episodes of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and New Girl.
Kober joined The Walking Dead during season 4 as Joe, leader of a group known as the Claimers, which Daryl (Norman Reedus) joins after the fall of the prison. Joe is a ruthless and violent man who demands respect from his group members. The rules within the group are inflexible, and anyone caught breaking them would face severe or even lethal consequences. During the season 4 finale, "A," Joe meets his end at the teeth of Rick Grimes, who bites his throat out for threatening to torture and rape Michonne (Danai Gurira) and Carl (Chandler Riggs).
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