Sunday night saw the debut of AMC’s latest spinoff series set within The Walking Dead Universe.
Tales of The Walking Dead is an anthology show that will introduce new characters week to week and give viewers a different perspective on the zombie outbreak from the original series.
The first episode saw Joe (Terry Crews), a doomsday prepper who should have been totally prepared for the end of the world. But after the loss of his canine companion, Joe realizes that he needs companionship.
Enter Evie (Olivia Munn), a vegetarian hippy who is also searching for someone.
The pair are at loggerheads to start with but by the end of the episode, they become firm friends.
Now, Terry Crews opens up about what it was like to join The Walking Dead universe.
Terry Crews is a fan of The Walking Dead
Terry Crews is a long-time fan of The Walking Dead, so when he saw the chance to be involved, he certainly leaped at the opportunity.
“It was just an honor,” Crews told ET Online.
“To be in the same sort of world with The Walking Dead, it’s like, ‘Oh my God, I’m here!” Crews added.
In Episode 1, titled “Evie/Joe,” Crews’ character was ready for the apocalypse, but he wasn’t at all ready for the desire to get out of his bunker when he became lonely. However, Crews could sympathize with his character.
“I remember just feeling like I gotta get outta here,” Crews said in response to his upbringing in Flint, Michigan, during the crack epidemic and closure of local auto plants.
“I felt like Joe did. I felt like, ‘Man, I gotta get ready for this end.'”
While Crews’ role was in a standalone episode, the actor revealed that he would be open to reprising his role in the future.
“I would be willing to come back at any time in any of these spinoffs,” Crews said.
“I do want to do more. I am open to any way they want the Joe storyline to go. I would really be open to that because I trust this team so much.”
Episode 1 is like ‘Duane Jones, part two’
Besides the draw of being in one of his favorite TV shows, Crews also felt a deep connection to a classic zombie movie.
George A. Romero’s 1968 horror movie, Night of the Living Dead, was iconic for many reasons. However, for Crews, it was the fact that a black man was cast as one of the main protagonists.
Duane Jones played Ben and, as Crews points out, he was “a Black hero [who] actually [survived] to the end” of the movie rather than succumbing to the undead.
“It was like Duane Jones, part two, you know what I mean?” Crews explained. “That’s all I could think about. I mean, I must have been 11 years old the first time I saw Night of the Living Dead. So, I was shook.”
Tales of The Walking Dead airs every Sunday night on AMC at 9/8c.