Norman Reedus, Andrew Lincoln and Jon Bernthal. Getty Images; FilmMagic (2)
As The Walking Dead universe continues to expand, Norman Reedus is reflecting on special memories he made with his costars on the original series.
“I really liked working with Jon [Bernthal] and Andy [Lincoln] back in the day because everybody was so in it,” Reedus, 55, told Us Weekly exclusively at PaleyFest NY red carpet for The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon — The Book of Carol on Saturday, October 19. “Everybody read all the scripts, instead of just their lines.”
Reedus continued, “Andy would call me in the morning on the way to work and say, ‘look at the scene we’re doing today. What if we try this? What do you think about this, about that?’ And then as soon as the scene, as soon as the day was over, I’d get back in my car and he’d call me immediately before I even got outta the parking lot. ‘Do you think we hit that? Do you think we hit that? I missed that sort of camaraderie.”
The actor, who’s first appearance was on episode three of the AMC flagship series, has played Daryl Dixon in The Walking Dead universe since the horror franchise originated — making him one of the longest-running actors in TV history.
When the show premiered in 2010, it followed a group of individuals at Atlanta Survivor Camp trying to get through the zombie apocalypse. The group was led by Lincoln’s Rick, along with Bernthal’s Shane and included Melissa McBride’s Carol, among others. The nine seasons Daryl and Rick were together on screen, viewers saw their relationship evolve from combative to forming mutual respect for each other. By the end of Rick’s run on the show, he was the person Daryl could trust most for standing by decisions — good or bad.
Andrew Lincoln, Madison Lintz, Melissa McBride, Sarah Wayne Callies, Chandler Riggs, Robert Singleton, Steven Yeun, Laurie Holden, Jeffrey DeMunn, Norman Reedus, and Jon Bernthal. Matthew Welch/AMC
Reedus and Lincoln, 51, also had a close relationship off screen, along with Bernthal, 48, who was killed off after the first two seasons. Bernthal even gave a speech when Reedus received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2022.
While Reedus also counts his The Book of Carol costar McBride, 59, among those he creatively thrived with, he acknowledged that as the seasons went on and the cast grew bigger, connecting with new costars became difficult.
“Towards the end of what we were doing in Georgia, it wasn’t so much like that,” Reedus said. “There’s a lot of new characters and you join a show that’s so big, you’re an action figure in the first 10 minutes and you’re a T-shirt and we put a lot of effort into getting where we got, you know what I mean? I miss that with those guys.”
The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon — The Book of Carol picks up where Season 1 of the series left off. Daryl is still struggling with his decision to stay in France as their safe haven — the Nest — is under attack. The intensity also ramps up when Daryl and his friends learn that the “Walkers” can now run.
On the original The Walking Dead series, Reedus and McBride’s characters had a strong sibling-like bond and have called each other their “best friends.”
Now back with his longtime pal and ever evolving, Reedus said Daryl is trying not to be “such a hotheaded character” on the spinoff — which has already been renewed for a third season — and is instead attempting “to be more diplomatic, more restrained.”
“I’m trying to play it [now] in a way where Daryl’s maturing,” Reedus told Us. “He’s trying to make decisions based on other characters that he’s met along the way.”
Reedus reflected on Daryl’s growth over the years, telling Us, “I think early Daryl wasn’t much of a negotiator, and now I’m trying to come into situations and think, what would Hershel do? What would Rick do?”
New episodes of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon — The Book of Carol air on AMC on Sundays at 9:00 p.m. ET.
