āThe Walking Deadā Season 5 is currently running Sunday nights on AMC. For all you āWalking Deadā fanatics, the sixth season was renewed even before the long awaited premiere. This season, it looks like Andrew J. West is playing the main villain, Gareth. While Terminus has been destroyed, Gareth and his group are still out there making trouble for Rick Grimes and his friends.Ā
West made his first appearance on the series in the final episode of season 4. When CraveOnline spoke with West earlier this month, he couldnāt confirm the rumorsĀ about Garethās cannibalismā¦ which were confirmed on last nightās episode.
However, West didĀ tell us about his journey with the show. From working with Andrew Lincoln, to hanging with the crew after a long day of shooting, West divulges what itās like to be part of the hottest show on TV. He also gives us clues about Gareth and reveals what about the character heās most excited to share with audiences. That, and his experiences with fan art. Apparently Norman Reedusā has an entire room of itā¦
CraveOnline: You had only a 24-hour turnaround after getting cast before you flew to Atlanta to shoot! How did you prep?
Andrew J West: Itās tough. I donāt know if it was exactly 24 hours, it was about that length of time. I got off the flight in Atlanta and went straight to a fitting from the airport. The first taste I got was the clothes. I was trying to figure out who my character would be based on what he dressed in. I was grasping for any clue. Scott Gimple [the showrunner] called me into his office and he sat me down and he gave me really all the information that I needed to know to approach the finale of season 4. Gimple is great at giving you the information [needed] in order to do your job well but not giving too much so the story of the show isnāt compromised. Scott is extremely hands on and made himself available to answer any questions.
Was it liberating to move forward not knowing the steps in front of you?
Absolutely! I loved it in fact. What it does is it forces you to rely on your instincts. You donāt have time to overthink anything or think too much about how should I approach this scene or that scene. How should I say this line? You should be thinking about what it is youāre trying to achieve. When a scene becomes really exciting is when youāve got that spontaneity. You know what youāre trying to achieve but you donāt know how youāll get it done. In the finale of season 4, Gareth has a plan, an endgame in mind, but he doesnāt know how Rick, Michelle and Darrell and Carl [will] react to him. Thereās no reason I should know as an actor. I love working like that. I think it makes more exciting.
How much of is Gareth you? That may be a scary question given heās pretty evil!
Weāll see if heās evil or not! I have a tough time putting those labels on a character I play. There are aspects of this character that are exactly me. You and the character just become the same person in a way. There isnāt really a character; itās just you creating this illusion. In any given scene, the thing that Gareth is trying to achieve is made up in this world of The Walking Dead. But the way that the character goes about it is not unlike the way Iād go about it. There are aspects about him that are me.
Like being a cannibal? Thereās talk about thatā¦
[Laughing] Iāve heard that talk! But I donāt know about that exactly. Weāre going to see a lot of interesting decisions that Gareth makes when the season starts up again. A lot of these things are going to be fascinating to watch because the skill of the writers, but as an actor itās exciting to play. Itās the middle of the zombie apocalypse! How do you know how someone would react? It teaches you about yourself as a person.
Youāve said this season advances into some uncharted territory. Whatās it like as an actor to be apart of that? Itās brave!
Itās certainly overwhelming and scary in a way because you do feel like youāre probably going to be pushed in ways other jobs have not pushed you before. Accepting the job is easy. You know you want to be part of a job like this. The bravery comes later when youāre jumping into the scenes and not filtering yourself and allowing yourself to sink into that world. That can be scary. Our impulse as people is to try to control, as an actor you have to give up that control.
Whatās set life like? Itās such a dark show; what do you guys do to chill?
It is such a heavy show and you canāt maintain levity on set all the time when youāre dealing with such heavy subject matter. The cast and the crew and everybody is good at maintain a balance. When we step away from work, we have a lot of fun, group dinners on the weekends, cast and crew getting together and hanging out; participating in real life to off set the darkness of the show.
Is there an actor in particular or crew member whoās been impactful to you?
Just as a fan of the show, I am continually surprised and impressed with what Melissa McBride brings to the show. She is just always has a profound effect on me when Iām watching her work. I have had the opportunity to work with Andy Lincoln a lot. Heās got a remarkable process. He just has these ways of sinking into the scene and into character that are very physical. Heāll make these sounds and these grunts and these moansā¦I donāt know what it is that heās channeling! It lets you know itās okay for you to do that too. Do whatever it takes to get the job done. It allows you let go of your self-consciousness. Thereās always a fire in those scenes; thereās always something thatās extra intense.
There is so much fanfare around the show! It must be a challenge to go from that to the serious nature of the set. Youāre sort of required to play two roles with a show like this.
Itās been great. Iāve been shocked with the outpouring of support and how excited the fans are about this new character. Iām learning how to strike that balance. We shoot the show that exists in this horrific fantasy world and you want to make that a reality for yourself while youāre working. Then you come out of it you have the conventions and you donāt want to tarnish that world. You want to leave a little bit of mystery so that when people turn the show on, itās easy for them to sink back into that world. Itās an issue that Iāve thought about. I donāt think itās too difficult for the fans to separate you two, see you as a normal person, and then turn on the show. You want to make sure that the fans are seeing that character and not seeing you. That breaks the spell.
Have you been to these conventions yet? Whatās the craziest fan art youāve received?
Iām going to the Walker Stalker convention. A lot of the Wizard cons, Columbus, Ohio, New Orleans. People on Twitter have sent a few things; some paintings. Theyāre very cool. Iāve heard that Norman Reedus has an entire room thatās just dedicated to all the art he gets! I think he released a book! As far as fan art, he is definitely the guy to talk to! I love seeing that stuff though. Itās so exciting.
Without giving away too many spoilers, what elements of the show are you most excited to share?
The fact that Gareth is revealed to be a very complicated character. Thereās nothing one dimensional about him. I think people arenāt going to know exactly how to feel about this character. I love that. I donāt think that it should be obvious. Every person that you get to know well, you have moments where you disagree with them, dislike them, maybe thereās something that someone does that makes you look at them in a different light, those are the most interesting relationships. I hope the audience will develop that type of relationship with this character.