5 actors who almost played Negan from The Walking Dead before Jeffrey Dean Morgan

One of the most memorable (and controversial) characters on “The Walking Dead” was Negan by Jeffrey Dean Morgan. It is a villain who presented himself in the comics, disparaging in the head of one of the most loved characters in the series, and he presented himself in the show by doing this twice. While the big bad guy of the show, the governor, was killed after only one and a half season of Chaos, the reign of Negan’s terror lasted two complete seasons – and he was not dead at the end. He has remained and haunted the franchise for years, and is now the co-chief of a series of spin-off alongside Maggie Greene (Lauren Cohen).

But Negan’s enemies cannot even be crazy, because Negan is undeniably a fun and intriguing character at this stage. It is a little crazy and, thanks to its very low Introduction expectations Re: its moral fiber, it can pleasantly surprise viewers by showing occasional shreds of humanity from time to time. This is the kind of role that many actors would like to play, which is not surprising that the casting list of potential negans is long and varied. You will find below five famous actors who have almost obtained the role of Negan. Which of them have done the best job?

If you are a fan of “Scream”, you should instantly see Lillard’s appeal in this kind of role. His performance as a psychopath Sta Maher was a highlight of the first “cry”, and it is not a coincidence that fans so seriously wanted his character to return to the franchise despite his very final death. These days, Lillard seems to be up, but in the mid-2010s, his career was in alcohol. Being interpreted as the villain in the biggest television program would have been enormous for him.

In a 2022 Con-Walker Stalker panel, Lillard explained his hearing process for Negan:

“”So I received a call. They said they wanted you to hear for ‘The Walking Dead. This is a large part. I say to myself: “Okay, cool.” I didn’t watch the show, sorry. So I went to audition and they loved it. They were like: “Wow, they really loved it, you are in the running for this game.” I say to myself: ‘Oh, it’s great. It usually means that it goes to someone else. ‘”

Lillard revealed that the casting team had told her that she had come to him and Morgan, but ultimately Morgan had delivered a “more fierce” performance and won. Fortunately, things would improve for Lillard after this point anyway. A year and a half after Negan murdered Glenn, “Twin Peaks: The Return” was created on Showtime, where Lillard was able to give one of the most impressive performances of his career. In 2024, he played in “Five Nights at Freddy’s”, a film that was not a critical darling but was undeniably popular with children. He did not play in something as high as “The Walking Dead”, of course, but it is always very good.

The actor / legend of estimated music Henry Rollins seems perfect for the role of Negan, mainly because the comic strip character was drawn on the appearance of Rollins. In a 2016 interview, Rollins himself shared the story of the way he almost played the character:

“Since I did not get the game, I can tell you this. I was ready for the role of Negan because Charlie Adlard, who worked on comics, based this guy on me and that I was therefore a shoo-in for an audition. The Internet was wild with speculation because in the coming season, they were going to present the character. A woman who worked in my office for the publication and the name of the Internet Dialogue with all these curses and it was magnificent, but I did not understand it.

Many fans believe that it is a shame that Rollins never got the role, including a “woman to [his] Bureau “who had been a fan of the show. Rollins recalled how she told him after watching the first of season 7”, it should have been you. “”

In November 2015, Garret Dillahunt aroused the interest of fans by tweeting a photo of his “reading material for the day”, which was the collection 3 of the comic strip “The Walking Dead”. This is the volume where the war with Negan plays, and the cover of the book present Negan holding its famous Bat Lucille.

Dillahunt said he did not intend to deceive the fans with this tweet, that he posted it because he is really a fan of the show and wanted to read the Negan tradition before the show could do it. But by realizing how fans interpreted the tweet, Dillahunt realized that they could be on something. “Then I started looking at him,” said Dillahunt, “and I said to myself:” It would be cool to be Negan. “”

Dillahunt revealed that his interest in Negan led him to speak to the showrunner “Walking Dead” Scott Gimple, who, according to him, may have led him to be thrown in “Fear the Walking Dead” shortly after. But as for the role of Negan himself, Dillahunt does not think that he never had a shot, especially since he was currently occupied in his own television program at the time. As he explained:

“There was a discussion on the possibility of this, but I could not do it with” Hand of God “, on Amazon. Not that it was offered to me. … I continue to say to Jeffrey,” it was always yours, guy. I could never have obtained this part. “”

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Matt Dillon was taken into account for the role of Negan. Admittedly, they also pointed out that Timothy Olyphant had interviewed, but Olyphant himself would come out later to confirm that it was not true. Neither Dillon nor Olyphant seemed particularly occupied around 2016, with “justified” who was wrapped for Olyphant and Dillon who ended his time in the television program “Wayward Pines”.

Dillon has not said much about being manifested like Negan, but it is easy to see the appeal for him in the role. His subsequent role of 2018 in “The House That Jack built”, a film where he played a disturbing serial killer, clearly shows how intimidating he is. He is also famous for his shady role in “There is something about Mary”, where he played a similar man with a questionable moral code. There is no legion of “Walking Dead” fans have devastated that Dillon never obtained the role, but he could probably have managed it very well.

As “The Walking Dead” was looking for his Negan, the last season of “Mad Men” ended and Jon Hamm suddenly had additional free time. “I think Jon Hamm would be perfect [for Negan]”Said the creator of the comic strip Robert Kirkman in an interview of 2015. Hamm himself quickly discussed the role publicly, saying:

“I met Robert several times. He is an adorable guy and I think he did wonders with this show and I know that it is very close to him, of course. It is, you know, I am always very nervous about anyone who says” or “do that”. I say to myself: ‘okay.’ This is why I am in a hundred things, because I always say yes.

For reasons that no one has ever revealed, Hamm has never obtained the role. It could have been for better, because honestly? I don’t see it. Hamm is a good actor, but I don’t know if the viewers could have come out of Don Draper from their heads watching Negan Intimider Rick’s Crew of Hamm. I preferred to see Hamm in his roles at the time as in “Baby Driver” or “unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”. Although it would have been cool to see Hamm Cement himself as the unofficial King of AMC, I am happy that Hamm followed a lighter path in his post-Mad Men career.