The day after The Walking Dead: Dead City opened the 65th Monte-Carlo Television Festival with a world premiere of its third season, the show’s cast and creative team gathered at the Grimaldi Forum for a panel that ranged from immigration and hope to the moment that changed television. 

Showrunner Seth Hoffman, who wrote for the original Walking Dead series during Seasons 4 and 5 before returning to lead this spin-off, was joined by actors Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Lauren Cohan for a wide-ranging conversation with the international press, including Monaco Life’s Cassandra Tanti.

A different kind of Maggie and Negan

The central thread running through the discussion on Saturday was the transformation of Dead City‘s core relationship — between Maggie Greene, played by Lauren Cohan, and Negan, played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan — from enemies to unlikely allies. The two characters have spent a decade defined by the fact that Negan murdered Maggie’s husband, Glenn Rhee, in what remains one of the most shocking scenes in television history.

Morgan reflected on how far Negan had travelled from the character who stepped out of a Winnebago in Season 6 swinging a barbed-wire bat — and why, more than a decade later, he still wants to play him. “I think that will always be part of who Negan is. But he’s much more three-dimensional now,” he said. “We’ve added layers through the years and I think this season in particular, there’s such a shift in Negan’s relationship that it brings yet another side of Negan out. Those sides are the reason I still want to play the character – even after 10-plus years. It’s still new to me every year because there’s always something added to the character and to the story.”

For Lauren Cohan, Season 3 represents a turning point — the first time Maggie is given permission, within the story, to stop being defined by loss.

“I think a huge part of what has made her relatable, and what has given me such pleasure and depth as an actor over all these years, is the fact that her highs feel especially high in a world that has so many lows. But this is really the first year where Maggie recognises that being defined by grief, and operating from a place of grief, doesn’t serve her anymore,” she said.

‘The longest-living person Maggie knows’

When asked how the two actors had experienced the evolution of their on-screen dynamic, Lauren Cohan highlighted the irony of the Maggie-Negan relationship. “I think what I enjoy so much are the surprises and the unlikely pairing of a widow and the person responsible for making her a widow,” she said.

“And yet Negan is now the longest-living person Maggie knows in this universe. So the irony of the breadth and depth of their relationship compared with how they met is pretty interesting.”

Morgan agreed, and pointed to something that neither character had been allowed much of in the previous two seasons: lightness. “We’ve spent years being at each other’s throats. So to suddenly have scenes that have genuine meaning and emotional depth was amazing. Seeing Maggie smile is so nice,” he said. “I don’t think we’ve seen her smile in 10 years. It kind of took me by surprise.”

The death that still haunts television

Monaco Life asked whether anything in The Walking Dead universe had ever matched the impact of Glenn’s death — the brutal scene in which Negan used his barbwire bat Lucille to kill Maggie’s husband, complete with the now-infamous eye-popping visual that shocked audiences around the world.

Cohan revealed that she recently rewatched the episode with neighbours who had never seen the series before and admitted she found it just as difficult the second time around.

“I felt protective of them because they had never experienced it before. But honestly, I also felt protective of myself,” she said. “Watching it again reminded me just how intense it was.”

The experience reinforced her view that the scene remains in a league of its own.

“I don’t think we’ve matched that moment. And honestly, I’m okay with that. I think it will always stand as one of the most impactful moments in television history. For me, it’s up there with the Red Wedding from Game of Thrones. Those are two moments that genuinely changed television. We were very privileged to be part of something that moved the needle in that way. For better or worse, it’s unforgettable.”

Morgan’s memories of filming the scene were somewhat lighter.

“Everyone remembers the eye popping out. Everyone remembers how shocking it was,” Morgan laughed. “What I remember is Steven Yeun running around with that prosthetic on. He was singing and dancing in the makeup trailer with Michael Cudlitz. The two of them were basically making what would be a TikTok video today. They were having an absolute blast while everybody else was horrified. That’s what I remember.”

Becoming Negan

Jeffrey Dean Morgan also spoke about the role Negan’s iconic weapon, Lucille, plays in helping him slip back into character more than a decade after first joining The Walking Dead universe.

“It’s honestly the only prop I’ve ever had as an actor that I truly loved,” he said. “There’s something about holding that bat. Resting it on my shoulder. It changes my posture. It changes the way I speak. It changes the way I move. It immediately helps me become Negan. And that’s rare. Most props don’t do that.”

He added, to audience laughter, that the electrified version of Lucille seen in recent seasons had lost some of its menace.

“The battery ran out. So that’s unfortunate.”

The alternate reality episode fans are talking about

Asked about season three’s alternate reality episode — a storyline that has already sparked excitement among fans — showrunner Seth Hoffman revealed that the concept was actually the first idea he developed for the new season.

Having initially come to The Walking Dead as a fan before later writing for the series, Hoffman said the episode offered a rare opportunity to revisit characters audiences may not have seen in years.

“If you do an alternate reality episode where the apocalypse never happened, suddenly you can bring back characters who haven’t been part of the franchise in years,” he explained.

But for Hoffman, the appeal goes beyond nostalgia. The episode asks a question that cuts to the heart of the entire Walking Dead universe. “It raises a question,” he said. “Are these people actually better off for having gone through the apocalypse? Or would they have been better if it had never happened? That’s one of the questions we want the audience to explore when they watch that episode.”

Immigration, hope and the Statue of Liberty

New York itself plays a larger role in season three than simply serving as the backdrop to the action. Hoffman said the creative team wanted some of the city’s most recognisable landmarks to become characters in their own right.

“We’re setting the story in New York and we wanted those places to matter,” he said. “So in addition to the Statue of Liberty, you’ll see the Empire State Building, a Broadway theatre, Grand Central Station. We wanted New York itself to feel like a character.”

The Statue of Liberty, however, carries particular weight as the story explores questions of immigration, belonging and who gets welcomed into a community.

“We’re aware that not everyone in the United States shares the same views on immigration and inclusion,” Hoffman said. “There are people who don’t necessarily believe bringing more people into a community is a good thing. As the season progresses, there are characters within Maggie’s community who oppose what’s happening. That debate continues throughout the season.”

Cohan said those themes resonate because they reflect one of the core ideas that has always driven both America and The Walking Dead — the belief that people can reinvent themselves and build something better.

“One of the things that makes me proud — and I’m both American and British — is that America has always had this idea that people can define themselves differently. You can prove yourself in different ways. And I actually think there’s a parallel between that and The Walking Dead. It’s one of the reasons people have connected with the show for so long.”

Saying goodbye

While The Walking Dead has built its reputation on shocking character deaths, the cast admitted that losing castmates never becomes routine. All three paid tribute to Željko Ivanek (who plays ‘The Croat’ on The Walking Dead: Dead City), describing him as both an exceptional actor and a valued colleague, with Morgan summing up the experience of long-running departures across the franchise.

“One thing I’ve learned is that you never get good at it,” he said. “Every time somebody leaves, it hurts. You lose friends. You lose colleagues. You lose actors you care about. And it never becomes easier.”

New territory for the undead

Hoffman said one of the challenges facing any long-running franchise is finding ways to surprise audiences without abandoning what made them fans in the first place. Season three attempts to do exactly that, introducing concepts and storylines that push the boundaries of The Walking Dead universe in unexpected directions.

“One thing we’re intentionally doing this year is exploring the humanity of the walkers,” he said. “We have recurring walkers. We have walkers who have names. Walkers who have personalities, to some extent. We wanted to ask questions that The Walking Dead hasn’t really explored before. We wanted audiences to feel: ‘Yes, this is definitely The Walking Dead.’ But at the same time: ‘I’ve never seen this before.’ That balance was really important.”

The Walking Dead: Dead City Season 3 is due to air on AMC and AMC+ later this summer.

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Main photo source: Monte-Carlo Television Festival