The Walking Dead: AMC’s Q&A With Melissa McBride
After this week’s revelatory episode, AMC recently spoke with The Walking Dead actress Melissa McBride.
Caution: If you haven’t seen this week’s episode of The Walking Dead, watch it, then read the interview. (Spoilers ahead.)
Melissa’s character, Carol Peletier, has been thought to be dead by the rest of the group for several episodes. This week we found out that Carol did in fact survive the zombie attack on the prison and has been trapped and starving inside of a cell.
Melissa caught up with AMC’s blog staff to discuss how she prepared for Season Three. She also talked about her feelings for Norman Reedus, who plays Carol’s rescuer and potential love interest Daryl on the show.
On preparing for a new and improved Carol in Season Three:
“There wasn’t really practice, it was just getting acquainted with the gun, getting used to if there was any kind of kickback or anything. The difficult thing is if you’re putting down the walker with any kind of instrument in your hands — like the crowbar, or a machete — it has to be so precise, you don’t want to actually hurt anybody. The actors who play the walkers often can’t see much, but we practice those moves lots of times before we do it. Last season I smacked one of the zombies’ hands with a plank of wood, and I was petrified. But she was OK!”
How she feels about being a real fighter for the first time on the show:
“It’s everything I hoped for and a lot more. The psychology of it is interesting. My first zombie kill, at the fence, with a crowbar, it was so weird to put one down, that was the first time for me as an actor. It was kind of heart-breaking; I mean you know you have to do it, but always there’s this thought in the back of your mind like this is supposed to be somebody.”
Fans of the show love to talk about the developing attraction between Carol and Daryl Dixon. McBride shed some light on the secret behind their chemistry:
“I love my scenes with Norman [Reedus]. He is such a fun guy to be around and he throws in some great stuff. He’s always unpredictable and organic. It really is something that’s evolved. We had a great sit down in Season Two, and we were talking about our own lives. He gets me and I get him and I feel like Carol and Daryl are sort of the same way.”
On whether she used the episodes she was missing to get any downtime:
“I actually like to go to the set and hang out and watch everybody. When you’re acting in a scene, you’re focused on doing the scene. You can’t break character and go, “Oh my God, I love what you’re doing”! But these are such great actors and I love to go see them perform. I was there when Rick broke down. They did it many times, and it was so beautiful every time and a little different. I was there when Sarah had the baby and Maggie delivered it and Carl put her down. It’s wonderful to watch and makes me proud. It inspires me to see these incredible performances.”
Lastly, McBride shared her favorite moment for Carol from Season Three:
“I love the scene where Daryl finds Carol, in the cell. It was funny we were joking about making sure that he would be able to pick me up, and I told him that I lost four pounds just so he could pick me up. He was like, “What are you saying?” I was like, “Nothing, Carol is supposed to be dehydrated and tired!”
You can visit AMC to read their full interview with Melissa McBride on her character Carol Peletier. Keep coming back to The Inquisitr for all things The Walking Dead.
