Back From The Dead

It’s Been A Rough Season For The Characters, Actors, And Fans Of The Walking Dead. But That’s All About To Change As The War Against Negan Finally Begins.

- Dalton Ross

THE MOMENT IS NOW. IT’S A CRISP NOVEMBER AFTERNOON ON the Senoia, Ga., set of The Walking Dead , and after a long day of filming in the woods, Alanna Masterson is ready for her close-up. The actress, who plays sweet-natured survivor Tara, has a big powerful speech to give in season 7’s penultimate episode, and director Michael Slovis lets her know he has the camera all lined up for her to deliver the knockout blow. “This is the one,” he tells her.

Masterson huddles with costars Andrew Lincoln and Norman Reedus right before the critical take. “Keep doing that s---,” whispers Lincoln. “Own the words. We’re here for you.” The three break amid a flurry of fist bumps (an appropriate gesture if ever there were one, considering Masterson’s character); positions are taken, and the director calls “Action!”

It’s a long speech filled with emotion, delivered under duress, and with characters’ lives—including Tara’s own—at stake. The actress struggles at first to hit all the beats she wants. “F---!” she yells at the top of her lungs, frustration beginning to mount. “You’re doing great,” encourages Slovis from behind a monitor. “Stay in there. You got this!”

Masterson closes her eyes, takes a breath, nods, and then straight-up attacks the scene. Every word. Every emotion. She unleashes it all. And when the director says “Cut!” a completely different—yet just as powerful—scene unfolds. Reedus walks over and engulfs the actress in a hug. Then it’s Lincoln’s turn. Then Slovis. Then Chandler Riggs. Then Seth Gilliam. The line of cast and crew just keeps coming, a seemingly never-ending parade of encouragement and support.