Negan knew how to drop the ole F-word with real panache. After Jeffrey Dean Morgan showed up to portray the skull-crushing, barbed wire bat-wielding Negan in the Season 6 finale ofThe Walking Dead, the F-bombs started dropping with a lot more regularity. But according toThe Walking Dead: The Ones Who Liveshowrunner Scott M. Gimple, AMC’s mothership series could have done with some more “f—ing” language. Gimple cited Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and his group’s encounter with the cannibals of Terminus in particular. Gimple said in an exclusive interview withComicBook.com:
At the end of Season 4, we could have used one f-bomb for the last line of Season 4: ‘They’re screwing with the wrong people.’
The Walking Dead
Based on one of the most successful and popular comic books of all time, AMC’s The Walking Dead captures the ongoing human drama following a zombie apocalypse. The series, developed for television by Frank Darabont, follows a group of survivors, led by police officer Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), who are traveling in search of a safe and secure home. However, instead of the zombies, it is the living who remain that truly become the walking dead. The Walking Dead lasted for eleven seasons and spawned several spinoff shows, such as Fear the Walking Dead and The Walking Dead: World Beyond.
“Screwing” turned to “f—ing” in the uncensored version of the episode, which is available on physical media. The iconic line comes in Season 4, Episode 16, which is titledA. The true nature of the sanctuary known as Terminus becomes clear as Rick (Lincoln) and his group of survivors find themselves facing the unthinkable. And as they are forced into the ominous train car, Rick says in the uncensored version:
They’re f—ing with the wrong people.
Gimple then commented on how things have changed on television and streaming since the Season 4 finale aired on AMC back in March of 2014, which was nearly 10 years ago. Gimple said in the same interview:
People can do that now a lot on TV.
The Ones Who Live
According toThe Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live’sshowrunner, Scott M. Gimple,TWDwas never meant to come to an end. Before taking the helm of the highly anticipated spin-off, Gimple’s skills were honed as he first served as the showrunner of the original series during Season 4 through Season 8. But, ultimately,The Ones Who Livewas a foregone conclusion. Gimple explained in an exclusive interview withEntertainment Weekly:
We were planning on making the show forever.
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As the spin-off’s series premiere nears, the show is already scoring well with the critics. At the time of this writing,The Ones Who Liveregisters 92%on the Tomatometer. And one reason for the new story’s ability to resonate with its viewers is the return of the franchise’s most important character, Rick Grimes. And actor Andrew Lincoln, who playedTWD’sprotagonist until Season 9, Episode 5, addressed Grimes’ return in the same interview with EW. Lincoln said:
“If I’d walked off into the sunset, it would’ve been easier not to come back. But because I went away on a bit of a cliffhanger, for the last five years people have been saying, ‘Where have you gone? When are you coming back?’ So it sort of felt impolite not to finish a story that was left dangling. There was one other much simpler reason as well: I miss the sheriff, man [laughs]. He’s a great guy, and he’s a complicated cat.”
Lincoln also addressedThe Ones Who Live’slove story, which continues between fan-favorite Rick and his long-lost wife Michonne (Danai Gurira) during the same sit-down:
I said, ‘If we’re going to do something, let’s do something brave. Let’s not do the same thing that we’ve done for nine years. Let’s try and reach for a different kind of story.’
The premiere ofThe Walking Dead: The Ones Who Livecan be seen on AMC and AMC+ when the spin-off series drops on Sunday, February 25.
