Andrew Lincoln (Rick Grimes of ‘The Walking Dead’) marvels over good fortune
An image of Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes from this Sunday's season one finale, which is shot inside the former Sci-Trek museum space with exteriors of Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre masquerading as the CDC.
Until a few weeks ago, Andrew Lincoln was a successful actor in England best known in the United States for a role in “Love Actually” a few years back. Then “The Walking Dead” dropped in his lap. Now as the lead character, the determined cop Rick Grimes, he’s on the cover of Entertainment Weekly. The magazine dubbed the zombie drama “the best new show on TV.”
“Even in my wildest dreams, I never envisioned this,” said Lincoln, in an exuberant interview earlier this week. “It’s kind of rare when everybody gets the gist of the show and has the same excitement and enthusiasm you have. We’re all kind of emailing and Skyping each other and just pinching ourselves.”
The series, shot during the summer in Atlanta and based on a series of graphic novels, opened at a surprisingly robust 5.3 million on Halloween. Its fifth episode last Sunday hit a series high 5.6 million. These are double the numbers of AMC’s heralded “Mad Men” and better than many network shows.
Unfortunately for AMC, there are only six episodes to open the first season. Next year, expect 13.
When publicizing the show before it launched, many folks joked about how ridiculously hot it was in Atlanta. Lincoln himself had lost weight for the role and lost even more because of the outdoor shoots in punishing 90-plus degree weather. “I probably shouldn’t say this but I had a great time out there,” the Brit said. “We just hope it’s not another record-breaking hot year next year.”
The season one finale this Sunday was primarily shot inside the former Sci-Trek space downtown at the Atlanta Civic Center masquerading as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The outdoor portions were shot at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre.
It was the only one of the six episodes in which the actors were in air conditioning. “We used to walk around joking, ‘I’m not sweaty enough! We’re not hot enough!” Lincoln said. “We felt like rats trapped in this sterile environment. We were used to grunging it up in the countryside.”
Not to give too much away, but Grimes & Co. may soon been leaving Atlanta proper into more rural areas to get away from the high concentrations of zombies. “But I’m loathe to pre-empt what [executive producer] Frank [Darabont] and the team have in store. Frank’s written this exquisite thing. I’ll do whatever he says!”
While they were here for more than two months to shoot six episodes this past summer, a 13-episode shoot should take five or six months next year. Lincoln can’t wait to put on the cop uniform and play Grimes again.
“He’s driven by this instinct to protect,” he said. In Sunday’s episode, “you realize how tautly wound this guy is. He has a public face he has to keep up as the leader. People look up to him. That puts undue pressure on him. He needs to keep moving. He needs a mission or a goal or he’ll die. Some characters just give up. I think having a family is vital to keeping him going, to give him momentum. He has to look after them. ”
In a later press conference, Lincoln said he was unaware of Darabont’s decision to possibly drop the writing staff and rely on freelancers, news broken earlier in the week by deadline.com. He said he implicitly trusts Darabont.
Robert Kirkman, who created the graphic novels and is actively involved with the TV series, clarified the issue a bit in TV Guide, saying any news about how the writing staff will be configured is premature.
On TV
“The Walking Dead,” season finale, 10 p.m. AMC Sunday
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46 comments Add your comment
levelhead
December 3rd, 2010
3:12 pm
Excellent show for Sunday night. Zombies from L5P would be an excellent twist.
Truthpaste
December 3rd, 2010
4:29 pm
I can’t believe the season finale is next week. How soon before they start shooting season 2?
Rodney Ho
December 3rd, 2010
4:31 pm
@Truthpaste: they have not set a time when they will be back in Atlanta to shoot season two. My guess is late spring 2011 if they plan to launch season two in October, 2011.
zanesmith's teeth
December 3rd, 2010
5:06 pm
Any long time Atlanta resident knows zombies roam the streets of Atlanta….
Downtown, 5 points MARTA, etc… this is nothing new.
Randy
December 3rd, 2010
5:14 pm
I want to hook up with Sarah Tancreti. LOL
Trashy
December 3rd, 2010
5:43 pm
Rodney, I think you are the hardest working on staff at the AJC, seriously.
RadioGaGa
December 3rd, 2010
5:46 pm
I’m glad the rest of the nation likes it as much as I do. Occasionally, the nation gets it right.
The Real Fan
December 3rd, 2010
5:52 pm
I LOVE THIS SHOW!
Laura
December 3rd, 2010
5:53 pm
I love, love, love this show!
Ben
December 3rd, 2010
5:55 pm
Decent show but how is this about him loving Atlanta?
J.J.M.
December 3rd, 2010
6:33 pm
im still wondering why the show is pg-13
The Crunk Jedi
December 3rd, 2010
6:41 pm
This series made me feel the same way Battlestar Galactica did when it first came out. They did a damn good job with this series. AMC you guys did the damn thing! EEEYEAAA!!!
ROBOCOP
December 3rd, 2010
6:47 pm
This is a great show. I was a little angry about Lori Grimes and Shane’s little “get together” in Episode 2, but she redeemed herself. in Episode 3 when we learned that Shane told her Rick was dead. I thought he was supposed to be a great friend to Rick. Great show, great story and great actors.
Jon
December 3rd, 2010
7:14 pm
Great show.
Glad to hear they plan on staying in Atlanta and not moving the whole thing to a LA soundstage.
Kat
December 3rd, 2010
7:34 pm
This show is fantastic. It lived up to all the hype preceding its debut. It’s a show that I look forward to watching every Sunday, and it’ll be sad when Sunday night’s episode is over – that’s a long wait until next October. Great show with incredible acting and amazing effects throughout!
Rodney Ho
December 3rd, 2010
7:47 pm
@Kat. You’re going to enjoy the finale. It’s great!
Rodney Ho
December 3rd, 2010
7:48 pm
Nope. They are definitely staying in metro Atlanta, along with Lifetime’s “Drop Dead Diva” and CW’s “Vampire Diaries.”
E Rogers
December 3rd, 2010
8:26 pm
I think a lot of location shoots for the series were also done in Mansfield, near Covington where Vampire Diaries is filmed as well.
Scholar
December 3rd, 2010
8:33 pm
“Walking Dead” Observations:
- Why would they camp out in the open rather than find an abandoned farm house they could fortify?
- In some scenes they show the skyline of Atlanta in the background so close that one would have to be inside the perimeter to see it that clearly, yet the people are supposed to be in the “country”.
Rodney Ho
December 3rd, 2010
9:52 pm
@Scholar Good observations. They were sitting ducks at that camp with no obvious barriers from the zombies, who appear to be stupid enough to fortify against. I don’t get the impression they ever said they were far far from Atlanta, just a few miles away though perhaps they did say “country” at some point.That actual former quarry is just a few miles from northwest of downtown Atlanta.
TV Viewer
December 3rd, 2010
9:58 pm
Hey WD,
May I borrow some of your zombies? I have a couple of managers for them to meet!
sansho1
December 3rd, 2010
10:33 pm
Love the show. That said, they dropped the writing staff because the show is a far bigger hit than anyone expected, and Darabont et al don’t want to share the backend with union writers, who would be entitled to a cut. They’ll use contract writers for season two who will sign away backend rights.
Unlucky Me
December 3rd, 2010
10:46 pm
I think Im married to one of the Vampires.
Emmie
December 3rd, 2010
10:55 pm
Rodney, in one episode they actually say they are in the mountains while they are discussing the camp. (Episode 3 maybe?) I remember because I live in North GA and had to laugh at how flat their “mountain” area was.
blackbird13
December 3rd, 2010
11:10 pm
I think it’s the second best television horror series I’ve seen; the Night Stalker series from the 70s being the best, though I could see this show ultimately surpassing it. I’m a GSU grad and get a kick out of spotting their signs in the street scenes. Loved the idea of tricking the zombies’ sense of smell with dead flesh coats.
Brenda
December 3rd, 2010
11:51 pm
love the show– keep trying to get folks to watch cause even though it is very graphic it has a great SL — sad there is only 6 eppies this season– did not know that– definately will watch again next season!
American chav
December 4th, 2010
12:58 am
I simply LOVE this show. Seeing familiar parts of Atlanta deserted with zombies walking around is fantastic.I hope that the possible change in writers doesn’t ruin a perfectly good show.
Change It Up
December 4th, 2010
5:47 am
Definitely need to freshen up the writing. Show started dragging in Ep.3, and that continued though Eps. 4 and 5.
rob
December 4th, 2010
6:06 am
after working at the CDC for many years, I know why they don’t actually film there, the real zombies workers there would get in the way of the actor zombies who actually do a job!
DW
December 4th, 2010
8:14 am
GREAT FREAKING SHOW!
Rita Hayworth
December 4th, 2010
8:31 am
Nowhere near the caliber of Breaking Bad or Mad Men but it is just the first season after all. I did not develop an “emotional” connection with any of the characters, but I will keep watching. BIG kudos to Norman Reedus (Boondock Saints rocked!) and Michael Rooker for their portrayal of brothers Daryl & Merle. Totally spot-on. (Can’t wait to see when the one-handed Merle returns.) The writers have their hands full if they want to keep this puppy fresh. Love AMC and I do wish the series good luck.
love it
December 4th, 2010
8:38 am
we had a party when they filmed in GRANT PARK. so much fun with zombies walking down our street!!!! LOVE IT!!!
Mel
December 4th, 2010
9:22 am
If you run low on zombies, try the Atlanta airport. You’ll find plenty there, mostly behind the service counters. Wouldn’t even need much wardrobe or makeup!
Mara
December 4th, 2010
9:34 am
For more insight into the show check out my interview with Jon Bernthal who plays Shane
http://bit.ly/etW0bp
Lillith
December 4th, 2010
10:03 am
One of my favorite TV shows ever and I love the fact that it is filmed all around where I live. The one part of the story that I do not like is the fact of how quickly Lori laid down for Shane after she thought Rick was dead. Shame on her. But, of course we know that this will be brought out in the coming season……maybe? We’ll have to wait and see!
jon
December 4th, 2010
10:11 am
I hope this show continue the success it is having. We need to bring more Hollywood to atlanta
‘Now lets all find jobs in Atlanta on http://www.careerDaddy.com‘
"The Walking Dead" Thread - Page 2 - Ultimate Metal Forum
December 4th, 2010
10:43 am
[...] [...]
Kev
December 4th, 2010
12:39 pm
“@Scholar Good observations. They were sitting ducks at that camp with no obvious barriers from the zombies, who appear to be stupid enough to fortify against. I don’t get the impression they ever said they were far far from Atlanta, just a few miles away though perhaps they did say “country” at some point.That actual former quarry is just a few miles from northwest of downtown Atlanta”
They actually had an alarm system of a string of cans around the perimeter. It didn’t work very well, though.
If they don’t film in Little 5 Points that is an opportunity wasted.
Kev
December 4th, 2010
12:41 pm
Oh, and Redneck Legolas is my favorite character so far. I’ve liked Norman Reedus in nearly everything he’s done and this is no exception.
scott
December 4th, 2010
1:41 pm
i,m puzzled when someone says they love Atlanta..its better than a lot of places but its a hell of a lot of other places way better than Atlanta..SEATTLE,TORONTO,ROME,MIAMI,CHARLESTON,SAN FRAN,PARIS,CHARLOTTE,DENVER,SYDNEY,AUSTRALIA…LOS ANGELES ,SANDIEGO…Atlanta??too hot and humid and the winters are gray wet and miserable,racialy divided too the maximum(i have never ran into so many bigots in my life and i,m a white male that see,s no difference in white or black really..the N word here is used by whites like its common and then they smile in blacks face as if all is butter and creame..its behind a good 15 yrs the infrustructure stinks making horrible traffic..its just a big large southern metropolis a slight step up from birmingham..some one please tell me whats the big deal here..we cant wait to retire and move to the Seattle area..get me away from these bigots that have racist attitudes like the 1940,s
Deborah
December 4th, 2010
2:32 pm
Thanks Scott for telling it like it is. So true. DallasGatr must be one of those bigots you were describingand needs to open up eyes and acknowledge the truth…loser!
Shannon
December 5th, 2010
1:19 am
Damn Scott. You should probably be concerned with the company you are keeping because they sound questionable.
KH
December 5th, 2010
7:44 am
No – please don’t tell me that we have to wait until next October for new episodes. By that time the show is forgotten, the storylines are forgotten, and interest is gone. The networks take a big chance by putting so much time in between new episodes. USA network started this way with their original series but they are now airing new episodes more frequently. A year is a long time to expect people to return to watch. Even if we get another short 6 episode “season” in the spring, that is much better than waiting until a year later. Please AMC, don’t wait that long!
Whatever
December 5th, 2010
1:46 pm
needs to be filmed in HD. Only complaint I have!
Inman Park Boy
December 6th, 2010
3:04 pm
I like the writing and the characters. It is far superior to most of the dreadful shows we get on the “major” networks. Thanks AMC.
Will Collier
December 9th, 2010
9:43 am
They should have local celebrity zombies for Season 2. Just imagine: Zombie Monica Kaufmann, Zombie Clark Howard, Zombie Bobby Cox. I would add Zombie Ted Turner and Zombie Jimmy Carter, but I’m not sure you’d be able to tell the difference between the zombie version and the real thing…