The Walking Dead star Josh McDermitt has talked about his character’s recent surprise actions in a new interview.

Last week’s episode saw McDermitt’s character Eugene join villain Negan’s crew.

Speaking in a roundtable interview, McDermitt said: “When I read it in the script, I was initially so excited. I threw my hands in the air like ‘Yes’, it’s such a great turn. But then I got scared. You don’t go against Rick and have the fans embrace you still. It’s only recently I’ve got over the backlash of not actually having ‘the cure’.”

“Seriously, Chris Hardwick, who hosts The Talking Dead, said a couple of weeks ago: ‘I understand that a lot of the fans feel like this show is a documentary'”.

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He added: “I was so afraid of this backlash but it’s been amazing. I think people understand where this character is and they’re kind of giving him a pass. I get asked a lot if he’s really ‘Team Negan’ or what are his intentions but I’ve told Scott Gimpler, our showrunner, that I don’t want to know. Let me just play it how you give it to me and it also helps with people reading my face. I’m playing it that he’s ‘Team Negan’. If it says I’m ‘Team Negan’ then that’s what I’m doing.”

“After [Eugene] watching his friends die and picking up the pieces and thinking ‘I don’t ever want to feel like this again’, he’s trying to figure out how he can live in this world again and he’s got the Apex predator going ‘hey align with me and you don’t ever have to feel scared again.’ I think everyone would take that deal.”

The seventh season of The Walking Dead is continuing in the US and UK – although two of the main character were recently rumoured to be leaving the show.

The post The Walking Dead’s Josh McDermitt on whether Eugene is really ‘Team Negan’ appeared first on NME.

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