The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon airs its season 3 finale on Sunday, nearly 15 years since the original Walking Dead series premiered on Oct. 31, 2010.
Norman Reedus plays Daryl and is one of only a few actors who’s remained in The Walking Dead universe over those 15 years. He says it has been an honor fighting zombies all this time.
“It’s been a great opportunity to be able to play this character this long and keep him interesting, and be interested in it. It’s taught me a lot,” Reedus tells ABC Audio.
Melissa McBride also returned for season 3. She plays fan-favorite Carol from the original show, who met up with Daryl in France in season 2 of Daryl Dixon.
“Melissa and I have that kind of a relationship where we are really close,” says Reedus. “When we’re in a scene together I know it’s going to work.”
Fans have long speculated about a relationship between their two characters, but Reedus says he’s glad the writers prioritized their friendship.
“I’m glad that we never went down that road of, ‘We’re together, we’re a couple.’ … They value their friendship so much that — why mess with it?” he says.
He also discovered how global The Walking Dead fanbase has become while filming in Spain this season.
“The Spanish people—they’re very passionate,” says Reedus. “They like to hug, they like to talk, they like to smile, they like to have conversations. It’s really fun to be there and work there.”
As for the future of the show, Reedus says fans should expect to see a more introspective side of Daryl in season 4.
“Daryl goes deep deep inside himself,” he says, referencing a conversation from early this season. “All we do is run and fight — maybe there’s a better way to live.’”
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