The Walking Dead Star Almost Left The Franchise After Dead City Season 2

The Walking Dead Star Almost Left The Franchise After Dead City Season 2 Over Major Creative Differences Image via AMC Published Aug 11, 2026, 7:35 PM EDT Jennifer is a TV and Movie News Editor at ScreenRant. She started her journey in entertainment media in 2022 when she first joined Valnet at CBR before coming to ScreenRant. Jennifer loves TV, especially science fiction. She also loves late-night talk shows, due to her insomnia. Alien: Earth is definitely one of her favorite shows, and she jumps on any chance she gets to write about it. Even on her days off, she will claim an Alien Earth article if one is available. Jimmy Kimmel and Jimmy Fallon are two of her favorite late-night hosts, and Conan O'Brien before he left his show. Her Alien: Earth coverage for ScreenRant is by far the work that she is most proud of so far. She was initially a finance and political editor, but her passion for pop culture convinced her to transition into entertainment journalism. During her off time, she loves to binge-watch cooking shows such as Kitchen Nightmares. Jennifer also loves spending time with her daughter and cherishes every moment of it. Sign in to your ScreenRant account The Walking Dead: Dead City star revealed why he almost left the spinoff after season 2. Jeffrey Dean Morgan plays Negan in The Walking Dead: Dead City and the flagship series. He has become one of the franchise's most recognizable faces ever since his introduction in The Walking Dead season 5. However, in an interview on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, the actor explained how certain creative decisions almost made him part ways with the show. The Ultimate · Horror Quote Challenge Name That Horror Movie “They’re coming to get you, Barbara.” ☠1960s 🔪1970s 👻1980s 💀1990s 🎭2000s ENTER IF YOU DARE → 01 Which horror movie features this iconic line?“I am your number one fan.” ASingle White Female (1992) BCape Fear (1991) CMisery (1990) DFatal Attraction (1987) ✓ Correct! Annie Wilkes’s obsessive declaration to author Paul Sheldon in Misery — Kathy Bates won the Oscar for this role. ✗ Not quite — it’s Misery (1990). Kathy Bates as Annie Wilkes delivers this line before things get very, very painful for her favorite author. NEXT → 02 Which horror movie features this iconic line?“We all go a little mad sometimes.” APeeping Tom (1960) BThe Birds (1963) CWhatever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) DPsycho (1960) ✓ Correct! Norman Bates’s unsettling confession in Hitchcock’s Psycho — the film that invented the slasher. ✗ Not quite — it’s Psycho (1960). Norman Bates delivers this chilling line to Marion Crane before the shower scene changes cinema forever. NEXT → 03 Which horror movie features this iconic line?“Here’s Johnny!” AThe Amityville Horror (1979) BPoltergeist (1982) CThe Changeling (1980) DThe Shining (1980) ✓ Correct! Jack Nicholson’s terrifying ad-lib as he axes through the bathroom door in The Shining. ✗ Not quite — it’s The Shining (1980). Nicholson improvised this line while hacking through the door — Kubrick kept the cameras rolling. NEXT → 04 Which horror movie features this iconic line?“They’re all gonna laugh at you!” ACarrie (1976) BThe Exorcist (1973) CThe Omen (1976) DSuspiria (1977) ✓ Correct! Margaret White’s cruel warning to her daughter before prom night turns deadly in Carrie. ✗ Not quite — it’s Carrie (1976). Piper Laurie as Margaret White torments her telekinetic daughter with this prophetic warning. NEXT → 05 Which horror movie features this iconic line?“One, two, Freddy’s coming for you.” AFriday the 13th (1980) BChild’s Play (1988) CHellraiser (1987) DA Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) ✓ Correct! The eerie children’s jump-rope rhyme that haunts the dreams of Elm Street. ✗ Not quite — it’s A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). The nursery rhyme warning of Freddy Krueger’s arrival. All five are iconic slashers, but only one invades your dreams. NEXT → 06 Which horror movie features this iconic line?“I want to play a game.” AHostel (2005) BSaw (2004) CThe Collector (2009) DCube (1997) ✓ Correct! Jigsaw’s signature greeting, delivered through his puppet Billy in Saw. ✗ Not quite — it’s Saw (2004). The Jigsaw Killer’s chilling invitation before his victims face impossible choices. NEXT → 07 Which horror movie features this iconic line?“It was the boogeyman.” ABlack Christmas (1974) BThe Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) CHalloween (1978) DWhen a Stranger Calls (1979) ✓ Correct! Laurie Strode’s terrified whisper to Dr. Loomis after surviving Michael Myers in Halloween. ✗ Not quite — it’s Halloween (1978). Laurie Strode whispers this to Dr. Loomis, who replies: “As a matter of fact, it was.” NEXT → 08 Which horror movie features this iconic line?“It rubs the lotion on its skin or else it gets the hose again.” ASe7en (1995) BAmerican Psycho (2000) CRed Dragon (2002) DThe Silence of the Lambs (1991) ✓ Correct! Buffalo Bill’s skin-crawling command to his captive in The Silence of the Lambs. ✗ Not quite — it’s The Silence of the Lambs (1991). Buffalo Bill delivers this disturbing line from his basement. All five films feature serial killers, but only one has this scene. REVEAL MY SCORE → The Body Count Your Survival Score 💀 / 8 Did you survive the horror quiz? ↻ SURVIVE AGAIN Morgan admitted that he almost bid the hit zombie show farewell after his character significantly changed in the second season of the spinoff series. According to the actor, Negan lost his spark when the creative team made the character more serious, and as a result, less charismatic than he was when he first joined the franchise. Additionally, Morgan explained that he felt The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2 took Negan in a direction that removed a lot of the elements that made his character memorable. From his perspective, Negan spent too much of the season being too emotional and overwhelmed. Meanwhile, the larger than life presence that had long defined him was almost completely gone. Morgan said he wanted Dead City to bring back the qualities that had made Negan such an interesting character that was worthy of his own show. His frustration became serious enough that, on the final day of filming the second season, he contacted AMC and said that he was ready to leave the series. However, he ultimately decided to stay after the studio hired a new writer (Seth Hoffman) for the show who took all of his advice and concerns into consideration. Morgan said he told Hoffman that the relationship between Negan and Maggie (Lauren Cohan) also needed to change. He felt the series shouldn't be reusing the same problems that the characters have with one another. In Morgan’s view, their original dynamic had already been explored thoroughly enough and needed to evolve into something deeper for better or worse. The Walking Dead: Dead City takes place several years after the original series. It revolves around Negan and Maggie as they make their way through New York City while searching for the latter's son after he gets kidnapped. Their partnership is complicated because Negan brutally murdered her husband, Glenn (Steven Yeun), in the flagship show. The Walking Dead: Dead City season 3 releases new episodes every Sunday at 9:00 PM ET and 6:00 PM PT on AMC and AMC+. Release Date June 15, 2023 Network AMC Showrunner Eli Jorne, Seth Hoffman Directors Kevin Dowling, Loren Yaconelli Writers Brenna Kouf Franchise(s) The Walking Dead Creator(s) Eli Jorne