NYWIFT Blog

By Tammy Reese

As I continue to cover all things The Walking Dead Universe, I wanted to give you a great TV show recommendation.

This will be the eighth and final season of Fear the Walking Dead premiered on Sunday, May 14, 2023, at 9 pm ET/8c on AMC and AMC+. 

The eighth season begins after the conclusion of Season 7 when Morgan’s (Lennie James) and Madison’s (Kim Dickens) hopes to rescue Mo from PADRE did not go as planned. Now, Morgan, Madison, and the others they brought to the island are living under PADRE’s cynical rule. With the characters demoralized and dejected, the task of reigniting belief in a better world rests with the person Morgan and Madison set out to rescue in the first place — Morgan’s daughter, Mo.

The first three episode titles are: 

Episode 801: “Remember What They Took From You” 

Episode 802: “Blue Jay” — Premieres Sunday, May 21 on AMC and AMC+

Episode 803: “Odessa” — Premieres on Sunday, May 28 on AMC and AMC+

I got to attend the Fear the Walking Dead virtual press day and chat with some of the cast members: Kim Dickens (Madison), Christine Evangelista (Sherry), Karen David (Grace), Jenna Elfman (June) Rubén Blades (Daniel), and Danay García (Luciana).

Tammy: Congratulations on being part of such a beloved series throughout the world. Fans adore this show. They’re going to miss it when it’s over. I want to ask you all about your fan-favorite moments. What’s an FTWD fan moment that you will never forget?

Rubén Blades: The thing with the fans that I always liked very much was the fact that they send us paintings and images of our work. They send us very good ones too. I’m just grateful that they supported us for all these seasons. I’m sure that Daniel Salazar kept surviving because of the fan support. I will never have enough words to thank them for that. Never, ever. So that, to me, was the biggest show of affection and support.

Danay García: I will never forget the first year of ComicCon when it was the entire original family, it was so overwhelming. I was just getting a splash of that love. When I left that beautiful experience with the fans, I remember thinking to myself, I just joined a special place with special people and special fans. Years after that, they haven’t stopped surprising me with that level of love.

I can never thank them enough and because of them, we had this great experience and this great run. Even through a pandemic. We actually survived the pandemic as a show, it happened because of them. What’s funny is that I actually asked a few fans, “Now that we’ve been through a pandemic, are you guys okay with watching a show that also talks about a virus”? They were like, yes, watching the show feels like home to them. Fans would say that watching the show is like their normal life. So, I’m glad that we’ve helped the fans cope with what’s real out there. So it was a true blessing to be part of it.

Kim Dickens: Thank you for the question. The fans literally brought me back to life. I moved on with my life after the show after they killed Madison off and every so often I started to get wind of the sort of fan uproar, if you will. I do think that sort of passion was the match that lit the flame. I’m forever grateful for that I get to finish the show. My gratitude is endless to this fan base. I’ve never experienced a more mobilized passionate ravenous fan base and it’s exciting. The exchange is so fun, we don’t always get that. So it’s like a collaboration in a way. I value that so much and the other thing that I can recall as far as fan moments was really in the first season and after the first season when we were doing the meet and greets and things like that. I just remember a lot of mothers coming up to me and families coming up together saying we’re watching this as a family. 

We were an imperfect family unit. There was a son with drug problems. There was a daughter that was a golden child, but overlooked because the son needed more attention. There was the new stepfather. There was the previously deceased father too. We showed the dysfunction of what normal families are. I think that really resonated with the fans.

Tammy: How would you describe the cast and writers on the series?

Christine Evangelista: I would describe them as the hardest working, most passionate group of people that I’ve ever worked with and I can say that wholeheartedly. This type of genre is not for the faint of heart. Having the show on for as long as it has been really requires the writers to constantly step up their game. I can say that the actors and the crew on this show truly work so hard every day. They show up and give it their all in very difficult circumstances and no one ever complains. It’s truly remarkable. On both Walking Dead Universe shows that I had the privilege to work on that is the universal theme. I very much miss our cast and crew.

Jenna Elfman: Everyone is very committed. You can always ask the writers questions because they absolutely always want to help. The actors are very committed to telling a great story. It’s inspiring to watch the competence level of the crew and every individual. It is contagious and makes everyone want to continue to bring their best. Everyone is on their game and that’s really really cool!

Karen David: It’s so very true when they say that it takes a village because it really does. This is a village of some of the most kind cast and crew I’ve ever worked with. There is so much care and attention to every detail. As well as everyone just cheering each other on and working together so beautifully as a family. That doesn’t happen every day, but everyone has each other back which made my time on the show so enjoyable and bittersweet too. I carry something from each of the cast and crew in my heart.

 

Fear the Walking Dead stars James, Dickens, Colman Domingo, Danay Garcia, Austin Amelio, Christine Evangelista, Karen David, Jenna Elfman and Rubén Blades. It is executive produced by Scott M. Gimple, showrunners Andrew Chambliss and Ian Goldberg, Robert Kirkman, Gale Anne Hurd, Greg Nicotero, Michael Satrazemis and David Alpert and is produced by AMC Studios.

Learn more by visiting https://www.amc.com/