Missing The Governor on The Walking Dead? Exec Producers Drop Some Clues on His Return!

Steve Barton |

Nov 9, 2013

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THR’s The Live Feed

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http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/walking-dead-wheres-governor-producers-654512

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Missing The Governor on The Walking Dead? Exec Producers Drop Some Clues on His Return! “The Walking Dead” has been spending lots of quality time with the crew we know and love, but what about the big bad we love to hate: the loathsome Governor? Isn’t he supposed to be back this season? Exec producers Robert Kirkman and Scott Gimple recently spoke about that very topic…

“…It’s not that we don’t like that character; it’s just that we needed to give that character a break,” executive producer Robert Kirkman tells THR’s The Live Feed. “Going right back into that would seem like more retread of Season 3, and that’s the thing we don’t want to do.”

Instead, they’ve focused on setting the group up to be at its weakest point for when the eye-patched villain played by David Morrissey returns to exact revenge on Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and Michonne (Danai Gurira). “He was never supposed to die in Season 3; we always knew there was a bigger story with him, and taking a break from that story is going to make things more heightened when he comes back,” Kirkman explains. “…[I]t adds another layer of tension. We wouldn’t be able to do that if we move right into his story… [Plus,] we’re going to see a very different Governor when he does come back.”

“Different” as in more dangerous or more passive in rethinking his life? “The Governor is going to see quite a leap in who he is and what his motives are. The Governor that we saw at the end of Season 3 was this homicidal maniac who lost control of his town, and we haven’t seen him for a long time. He’s been stewing, and we may be seeing a very different Governor when we finally do catch up to him,” Kirkman says of the character’s eventual return. “…[T]he Governor layer will be thrown in to make things that much more deadly and dangerous [for the weakened survivors]. It’s going to be a really big, memorable moment in the show.”

Adds Gimple: “What the Governor has done weighs upon him; that is the first time he has done something like that. When the Governor comes back, it’s going to be in a very significant way but in a way that we significantly exploit the character and go even deeper into who he is. Because who the hell is he? He has his public face, he has his private face. We know a great deal about him, but we don’t know the truth. When all is said and done, is he the guy who enjoys being a leader and being the salvation to people? Is he this tortured guy who needs to stare at the heads of the men and women he’s killed? Which one is he?”

Well, we can’t wait to find out – what about you? Hit the link below for a few more tidbits, and chime in with your thoughts in the comments section.

“The Walking Dead” Episode 4.05 – “Internment” (airs 11/10/13)
Multiple enemies put pressure on Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and the group. Could this finally be the breaking point for the survivors and the prison? Written by Channing Powell and directed by David Boyd.

Based on the comic book series written by Robert Kirkman and published by Image Comics, “The Walking Dead” stars Andrew Lincoln, Norman Reedus, Steven Yeun, Lauren Cohan, Chandler Riggs, Scott Wilson, Melissa McBride, David Morrissey, Emily Kinney, Danai Gurira, Chad Coleman, and Sonequa Martin-Green. The series is executive produced by Scott M. Gimple, Robert Kirkman, Gale Anne Hurd, David Alpert, Tom Luse, and Greg Nicotero.

To stay up-to-the-minute on all things walker related, follow @WalkingDead_AMC on Twitter and visit “The Walking Dead” on Facebook. For more be sure to hit up the official “The Walking Dead” page on AMC.com.