NOCC: The Walking Dead Q&A
Company: Wizard World Product: New Orleans Comic Con 2012 Coverage
With the return of The Walking Dead a mere two weeks away, Walking Dead mania was in full swing at New Orleans Comic Con 2012. To help sate the fans during this dreadfully long mid-season break, Madison Lintz, who plays Sophia, and Chandler Riggs, who plays Carl, were on hand to answer questions from the fans. I saw Chandler last year, along with two other panel members, and he seemed even more comfortable this year than last, although he was far from nervous last year. Madison seemed composed, if a bit shy, but humble and a bit overwhelmed by the fandom, although she enjoyed herself. When fans asked the pair what was on the horizon for the two of them, Madison stated that she just finished the movie Parental Guidance with Bette Midler, Billy Crystal and Marisa Tomei, so she was excited about that, and she was flying to L.A. for the next few weeks for pilot season. Chandler is auditioning for the role of Ethan Hawke and Lena Headey's son in the upcoming sci-fi thriller Vigilandia, about a financially devastated America 12 years in the future, where the government is purchased by a weapons development company who mandates that one day a year, anything is legal... even murder. Sounds like interesting stuff. When the pair was asked about how they are handling stardom and facing the hordes of fans, Madison admitted that she has stage fright and it has taken her a while to get accustomed to it. Chandler, on the other hand, has been acting since he was 4 years old, and did only stage acting until he was 8 or 9 so he's used to sitting in front of thousands of people, so he doesn't have stage fright.
Chandler was asked how he feels about Carl's character getting much more involved with weapons and his character's future. Chandler announced a spoiler alert and then started discussing how far he has read in the graphic novel, up to the point that his character gets shot in the face. Talk about a spoiler! Who knows how they will handle it in the TV series. They were asked how they have been handling being kids and appearing on such a dark television show. Madison admitted that The Walking Dead has certainly hardened her, because of the gore, but she also believes her part has been a blessing and she is grateful. Chandler said it's like living Black Ops Zombies, so for him, its awesome. He's a big fan of zombie videogames, so it all works for him. When asked if they'd prefer to do something lighter, Madison stated she wants to do comedy or animation, but Chandler wants to stick to the gore side. It's more difficult for him to do other genres like comedy, although he did audition for a Disney Jr. show. A fan asked how Madison reacted when she discovered she was going to become a zombie in the pivotal mid-season finale. She said she was upset at first because she wouldn't be seeing the cast on a regular basis, but realized that every character must come to an end at some point, so at least hers was a big ending. It was fun playing a zombie, gross and hot, but fun.
When asked how they got into acting or whether there was one particular audition that really set them on the path to acting, Chandler said he started in community theater. His parents were in a Guys and Dolls show and he was used to going on set. He started off in a church play and it went from there. Madison's mom has been an actress for a long time and Madison would go to set with her, so it was in her blood. Madison told the story about how the cast didn't see her made up as Zombie Sophia until it was time to film and she walked out of the barn, so they were able to get the maximum effect it had on the other cast members when filming the take. She liked having 4 bodyguards to protect her from being seen, since it made her feel pretty special. Madison was asked if there were plans to show how Sophia ended up in the barn through webisodes and she said she didn't know, but thought it was likely. There are also other stories to fall back on like Jim and Keisha and what became of them. Chandler chimed in with the fact that in the original draft, there was a teaser where Otis was supposed to find Sophia and put her into the barn. There was also an alternate ending where Sophia comes out of the barn looking almost normal, but then you see the bite mark on her neck and she is far from normal.
Madison said that she had trouble eating lunch when the zombie table was within sight and at one point, she even had to turn down a huge slice of chocolate cake when she saw the zombie with the giant tongue. The pair noted that the adult actors will try to censor themselves around the kids, but there's plenty of cursing anyway. When Chandler was asked if the actors who play his parents, Rick and Lori, treated him as if they were his second parents, he said not really, but they are really nice. On the other hand, Madison said that Melissa McBride, who plays her onscreen mom, is like her second mom and they spend a lot of time together. On the topic of school, Chandler was in public school, but his teachers wouldn't work with his schedule, so he switched to home study, whereas Madison was on home study for most of her life and is now in private school. When the pair was asked if they had realized how epic and iconic some of their shots would end up being (Sophia coming out of the barn and Carl getting shot), Madison said she thought the show would be big, but she didn't realize just how big. Chandler didn't think a zombie show would ever be this popular, but he says being recognized on the street is like a mini-Comic Con. He loves it. Jarrett "The Defuser" Krippen, who emceed the panel, asked the pair to identify just when stardom hit them and Madison humbly replied, "We aren't stars. I don't think we are." Chandler, however, said that he doesn't really like looking at himself onscreen because it doesn't look like him. They both talked about the fact that Andrew Lincoln, who plays Rick Grimes on the show, never watches himself on screen. When asked about co-star Norman Reedus who plays Darrell, Madison blushed and said, "Norman is the best guy ever. I love him, love him, love him, love him, times 10 and he's my boyfriend." He even took her to the premiere, with his actual girlfriend on his other arm. Chandler said, "Well, uh, he's nice, yeah." Krippen jokingly asked Chandler, "But do you love him, love him, love him?" to which Chandler replied, "Maybe" which brought a lot of laughs from the audience. Lastly, the kids were asked about Robert Kirkman (The Walking Dead creator) being onset and Chandler joked that he just sits there. Although he was kidding, he said Kirkman has been there a few times, but he is not there a lot because he is pretty busy writing the comic. He has stated he will write them up to #300 and they are somewhere in the 90's, so he's got a lot of work to do. Overall, Madison Lintz and Chandler Riggs were an absolute delight, and we can't wait for more Walking Dead!
-Psibabe, GameVortex Communications AKA Ashley Perkins
Related Links: Madison Lintz on IMDb.com Chandler Riggs on IMDb.com
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