Just one month after AMC’sFear the Walking Deadwrapped up its third season, casting is already under way on Season 4, with Garret Dillahunt (The Mindy Project) signing on as a series regular. No details have been given for his character inFear the Walking Dead Season 4, but the casting comes almost exactly two years after the actor, a big fan of theWalking Deadfranchise, stated on social media that he wanted to play Negan. While his tweet got quite a bit of support on Twitter, the role ultimately went to Jeffrey Dean Morgan, with Garret Dillahunt later thanking the fans and adding that hopefully he’ll get “something else some day,” hinting that he’d still attempt to land a role in this universe, and it seems that’s finally happened.
This casting comes as the show is undergoing some big changes behind-the-scenes. Dave Erickson, who co-created and developed the series with Robert Kirkman, is parting ways as showrunner, withOnce Upon a Timeexecutive producers Andrew Chambliss and Ian Goldberg coming aboard as showrunners, whileThe Walking Deadshowrunner Scott M. Gimple has also come aboard as executive producer. Scott M. Gimple’s involvement came a few months after it was finally confirmed that there will be aFear the Walking Dead crossoverwith the flagship seriesThe Walking Dead, which may be one of the reasons why Gimple suddenly became an executive producer onFear the Walking Dead.
The crossover announcement came at New York Comic Con, where Robert Kirkman confirmed that one character fromThe Walking Deadwill cross over toFear the Walking Dead. While that character has not yet been confirmed, many have already speculated that the crossover character is none other thanAbraham Ford(Michael Cudlitz), who was killed by Negan in the Season 7 premiere last year, along with Glenn Rhee (Steven Yeun). While that character was not yet confirmed, Michael Cudlitz himself did put out a rather cryptic tweet around the time of Kirkman’s announcement, stating, “Crazy s–t is about to go down. See y’all on the other side.”
Abraham being the crossover character makes sense for a few reasons, one being an opportunity to bring a beloved character back to the franchise, and another being the fact that the new season will be set in Texas, the home state of Abraham Ford. This new report claims that AMC will be filming the new season in Texas, following theFear the Walking Dead Season 3 finale, where the new villain known as Proctor John (Ray McKinnon), states that they will set sail to, “what’s left of Houston.” It was established in both the comics and the TV series that Abraham Ford is from Houston, where he and his wife Beth and their two children survived along with other members of their community in a local grocery store.
It’s possible that Garret Dillahunt is playing one of the new characters we’ll meet in Houston this coming season, although whether or not he has any connection to Abraham Ford, or this potential crossover, remains unclear. There has also been talk that thisWalking Dead crossovercould actually happen inThe Walking DeadSeason 8, but that has yet to be confirmed, and there were no further details about this crossover in today’s report fromThe Hollywood Reporter. Garret Dillahunt is just coming offThe Mindy Project, where he played Jody Kimball-Kinney since the beginning of Season 4, with the series finale airing last night on Hulu, and he also stars as Dr. Roderick Campbell on the new Fox seriesThe Gifted. Take a look at the tweets fromFear the Walking Deadexecutive producer Gale Anne Hurd, welcoming Garret Dillahunt to the show, along with his response.
