Negan actor reveals secret behind The Walking Dead’s zombies in Hot Ones

Jeffrey Dean Morgan, the popular actor bringing The Walking Dead’s Negan to life, just revealed a new secret as to how the iconic cast actually fight off zombies.

AMC’s The Walking Dead has been one of the most popular shows for more than a decade now. Before the highly anticipated final season comes to a close, however, there’s still plenty of secrets to uncover.

While the storyline itself remains a mystery, as the show divulges from Robert Kirkman’s comic books, a juicy behind-the-scenes detail was just revealed by none other than Negan himself.

In the midst of eating some spicy chicken wings on an April 2 episode of Hot Ones, Morgan delved into his life on set. When it comes to killing zombies on camera, there’s a unique trick to it that you might not have considered.

AMC

Negan used to be The Walking Dead’s biggest villain, and he’s revealed one of the show’s biggest special effect tricks. 

Jeffrey Dean Morgan Hot Ones challenge

“You’d be amazed how little we actually touch the zombies when we’re killing them,” he explained. Despite racking up dozens of zombie kills as the infamous Negan, there’s not much physicality to it, based on Morgan’s description.

“I’ll give you a little secret… I went out of frame today with the crowbar. I dipped the end of the crowbar into a bucket of pig guts, came up with it, and it looked like I’d just wiped out the zombie.”

Rather than actually connecting, The Walking Dead’s cast simply act out the motions in close proximity. The gruesome impact from killing a zombie still comes through, but the actual collision is added in through CG.

• Read more: Here’s everything we know about The Walking Dead movies

“All sorts of little things like that” are a natural part of life on set, according to Morgan. However, the biggest boon for The Walking Dead is Greg Nicotero, he explained.

“He’s a genius when it comes to that. We have the best in the world with special effects makeup.”

Morgan delves into the zombie-killing process at the 4:10 mark below.

After more than 175 episodes, the show is always looking for fresh ways to present zombies. From armored undead, to aged and mossy walkers, Nicotero appears to be the brains behind it all.

• Read more: Walking Dead World Beyond may have revealed source of zombie outbreak

While the comics may have come to an end in 2019, there’s still a little life left in the TV show. AMC’s The Walking Dead is set to conclude with Season 11 in 2022.