When people think about the 2017 Tupac Shakur biopic All Eyez on Me, the conversation usually revolves around the rapper’s legacy, the film’s divisive reception, or the challenge of bringing such a larger-than-life figure to the screen. What many viewers either forgot or never realized in the first place is that the movie also features two beloved stars from The Walking Dead.
Long before fans were talking about Maggie’s future in Dead City or Michonne’s emotional reunion with Rick, both Lauren Cohan and Danai Gurira appeared together in All Eyez on Me. For Walking Dead fans revisiting the film today, spotting the two actresses can feel like an unexpected crossover between two completely different worlds.
While All Eyez on Me may not have reached the same critical heights as other modern music biopics, the cast alone makes it an interesting watch, especially for longtime fans of AMC’s zombie universe.
Danai Gurira gives one of the movie’s strongest performances
Directed by Benny Boom, All Eyez on Me attempts to capture the life, fame, controversies, and legacy of Tupac Shakur through an ambitious biographical story that spans nearly every major chapter of his short but unforgettable career.
Out of the two Walking Dead stars, Gurira arguably has the larger and more emotionally significant role. In the film, she portrays Afeni Shakur, Tupac’s mother and one of the most influential people in his life.
Afeni wasn’t just a parent. She was a political activist and former member of the Black Panther Party whose worldview deeply shaped Tupac’s identity, music, and outspoken personality. The film spends a great deal of time exploring their relationship, showing how Afeni encouraged Tupac to think critically about racism, injustice, poverty, and systemic oppression from a young age.
Gurira brings a powerful intensity to the role. Fans who loved Michonne in The Walking Dead will immediately recognize the same commanding screen presence she brought to AMC’s hit series. Much like Michonne, Afeni is portrayed as resilient, protective, intelligent, and emotionally layered.
Even critics who were mixed on the movie overall frequently pointed to Gurira’s performance as one of the film’s highlights. She gives Afeni warmth and vulnerability while also showing the fierce determination that made her such an important figure in Tupac’s life.
Several scenes between Gurira and Demetrius Shipp Jr., who plays Tupac, end up becoming the emotional backbone of the movie. Whether Afeni is offering guidance, expressing disappointment, or trying to help her son navigate fame and danger, Gurira gives the film some of its most grounded and believable moments.
Lauren Cohan appears in a role many fans missed
Meanwhile, Cohan has a smaller but still important role in the film. She plays Leila Steinberg, one of Tupac’s early mentors.
Steinberg was instrumental in helping Tupac develop his artistic voice before he became a global superstar. She recognized his talent early on and encouraged him to embrace poetry and self-expression. The movie uses her character to highlight Tupac’s creative side, reminding viewers that he was more than the aggressive public image many people associated with him during the peak of his fame.
Because Cohan’s role wasn't heavily featured in the film’s marketing, many Walking Dead fans completely overlooked her appearance the first time they watched the movie. But once she appears on screen, it’s instantly recognizable.
It’s also interesting seeing Cohan in such a dramatically different setting from The Walking Dead. Fans are used to seeing her covered in dirt and blood while fighting walkers as Maggie. In All Eyez on Me, she plays a calm, supportive figure involved in Tupac’s artistic growth rather than survival in an apocalypse. Even though her role is relatively brief, it adds another unexpected layer of Walking Dead history to the film.
It’s always fun seeing Walking Dead actors outside the apocalypse
One reason The Walking Dead became such a massive phenomenon was its cast. Fans spent years emotionally invested in these characters, so seeing the actors pop up together in unrelated projects always creates a strange sense of excitement.
That’s especially true with Cohan and Gurira because Maggie and Michonne became two of the most beloved characters in the franchise. Watching them appear together in a Tupac biopic feels unexpected simply because the genres could not be more different. One is a gritty post-apocalyptic horror drama filled with walkers and survivalist violence. The other is a music biopic centered on fame, activism, artistry, and tragedy.
Yet both actresses fit naturally into the world of All Eyez on Me, and together, they create one of those surprising cast connections fans love rediscovering years later.
You can currently rent or purchase All Eyez on Me on digital platforms.
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