Jeffrey Dean Morgan Joins The Walking Dead as Negan

Nobody will be safe in season seven of the AMC series

By Chris Harnick Nov 10, 2015 3:34 PMTags
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Negan is finally coming to The Walking Dead in the form of Jeffrey Dean Morgan. E! News has confirmed Morgan, who is currently starring opposite Julianna Margulies on The Good Wife, will play the infamous Walking Dead comic book character on the AMC TV show.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Morgan will appear as a guest star in the season six finale and then be upped to series regular for the already ordered seventh season of The Walking Dead.

Now for some spoilers. In the comics, Negan is the leader of the Saviors, a ruthless group of survivors and actually kills Glenn with Lucille, his baseball bat covered in barbed wire. So...even if Glenn (Steven Yeun) survived that zombie herd (we're 99 percent sure he did), he may not be too long for The Walking Dead TV world. Also in Robert Kirkman's comic series, Rick Grimes and his group in Alexandria battle with Negan several times before ultimately defeating the character (with some help from the inside) and Rick takes Negan prisoner.

The Mindy Project star Garret Dillahunt ignited fan speculation that he would be playing the character after tweeting that he was reading the comics that introduced the villain. THR reports he was considered, as was Matt Dillon and Timothy Olyphant. "1) It's true, I am a @WalkingDead_AMC fan. I want #Negan. They are looking at some great actors and will make the best choice for the show," Dillahunt later tweeted. "2) So surprised and grateful for all the support my public lobbying has received. Thank you. If not #Negan then something else someday! #WD"

Negan isn't the only new comic character coming to the series. Luck star Tom Payne has been cast as Paul Monroe, known to comic readers as Jesus, a pivotal character in the books.

Morgan's other TV credits include Magic City, Grey's Anatomy and Supernatural. This isn't his first foray into the world of comics either, he starred in the movie adaptation of the classic comic story Watchmen.

The Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on AMC.

Watch: How Have "The Walking Dead" Stars Changed?