The Walking Dead Season 5: Alanna Masterson, Andrew J. West, Christian Serratos Upped to Series Regulars

We still have about a month or so before the cast of The Walking Dead descends on Atlanta to begin filming the show’s highly-anticipated fifth season, but we already received some major casting news just hours after the March 30 Season 4 finale. Deadline reports that three cast members — Alanna Masterson (Tara Chambler), Andrew J. West (Gareth), and Christian Serratos (Rosita Espinosa) — have been promoted to series regulars for Season 5.
Alana joined the show near the back half of Season 4, and when her casting news was announced several months ago we noted that her contract included the option for her to become a full-time cast member in Season 5, and now she’s done just that. Way to go, girl! Her character, Tara, was one of The Governor’s (David Morrissey) earliest supporters in his quest to overtake the prison in the midseason finale, but after one-eyed Bri brutally beheaded Hershel Greene (Scott Wilson) Tara knew she had made a terrible mistake. In the last half of the season Tara teamed up with Glenn Rhee (Steven Yeun) and made it her mission to bring him and Maggie Greene (Lauren Cohan) back together.
In Season 4, Episode 15: “Us”, Tara, Glenn, Rosita, Abraham Ford (Michael Cudlitz) and Dr. Eugene Porter (Josh McDermitt) reunited with Maggie, Bob Stookey (Larry Gilliard Jr.), and Sasha (Sonequa Martin-Green). Christian’s character Rosita will also be a regular for Season 5, a surefire sign that Abraham’s Army will play a crucial role in TWD’s next chapter. In the comics, Abraham’s Army joins forces with Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and his crew and everyone hits the road for Washington D.C. (with all-knowing Eugene) in search of a cure. Could we follow a similar trajectory in Season 5? It sure sounds like it!
Rounding out the trio of new series regulars is Andrew J. West, who plays Gareth. Andrew’s casting was also announced several months ago but Gareth made his first appearance in last Sunday’s season finale. We don’t know that much about Gareth just yet, but he seems to be the leader of Terminus, and is responsible for locking our survivors in a train car. Comic book creator and executive producer Robert Kirkman recently revealed that we most definitely haven’t seen the last of him yet. “I will say that he is a version of a comic book character, as Scott Gimple says he’s a remix of something we did in the comics, so there are elements of the comics that will be brought into the show through Gareth in a different way. I would expect a lot more out of that character when we come back,” he dished.
Are you pleased that Alanna, Andrew, and Christian will be series regulars on TWD Season 5? Tell us your thoughts below!
The Walking Dead Season 5 premieres in October 2014 on AMC.


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'The Walking Dead': Robert Kirkman on why you need to 'stay tuned for season 5

The Walking Dead took its first trip to Cliffhanger City with its season 4 finale, leaving Rick Grimes and most of the group reunited in the worst of all places — locked in a train car by the baddies of Terminus. But there is hope because at least the group has Rick back at his badass best. The finale used a flashback framework to show Rick’s transformation from a leader into a farmer after the fall of Woodbury, at the urging of Scott Wilson’s Hershel. That was juxtaposed against the things Rick had to do now to keep his family and friends safe — things like biting one marauder’s neck off and gutting another. Translation: the old Rick is finally back. And it is the Rick the group will need if they are to survive this encounter with their latest foes. We caught up with Walking Deadcreator Robert Kirkman to get his thoughts on the finale, the evolution of Rick Grimes, and the fact that nobody major died, as well as get some insight into Terminus leader Gareth (that dude in the photo above) and what will happen when things pick back up in season 5. (Click through both pages to read the entire interview. Also make sure to read our finale interviews with showrunner Scott M. Gimple and star Andrew Lincoln.)

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Why are you doing this, Robert? Making the poor fans suffer for 6 months worrying about these guys stuck in a train car? How dare you, sir?

ROBERT KIRKMAN: [Laughs] If we could do the show year round and produce an episode every week, we totally would, but every now and then you gotta stop and make the show great and stuff.

EW: It’s your first real cliffhanger and a different finale for you guys in that sense.
KIRKMAN: Yeah, well, it all came naturally from the story. We knew that Terminus was going to be a great place to leave things. We kind of wanted to leave this season with a little more punch than we’ve left it in past years. I think the no cliffhanger thing has worked for us so far but I personally as a viewer have always been a big fan of season-ender cliffhangers and I enjoy that anticipation when that last minute rolls by and you’re going “WHAT THE HECK? OH, COME ON!” Like, that’s something that I thoroughly enjoy and I think Scott Gimple is into it too. So we’re very excited about the idea of ending this season on a cliffhanger and hopefully the viewers will like it too and it will make it that much harder to wait for season 5 and will make the anticipation that much higher.

EW: With all those flashbacks this episode really felt like the evolution of Rick Grimes back into a do-whatever-it-takes leadership position, which ultimately I guess is the arc of the whole season, right?
KIRKMAN: I’m really proud of what Scott Gimple, our showrunner, was able to do with this season and the way that it kind of does dovetail back into itself and by the end of the finale you kind of see how there was this grand plan from day 1 of the beginning of season 4 and everything does kind of interconnect and drive this forward into this Rick Grimes story which is an exploration into who this guy is and how he is uniquely suited to be the leader in this new form of civilization and how he is evolving into the guy that is going to be able to keep people safe and keep people alive and how he is finally accepting that role.

EW: What about that breaking point scene for Rick where he bites off Joe’s neck and then guts that other dude who had Carl pinned down?
KIRKMAN: In that scene Rick realizes he is a guy who will do absolutely anything to survive. There has been all of this discussion about retaining your humanity and not losing who it is that you are. We started this season with Rick putting his gun away and trying to live a peaceful life and trying to be there for his son in a way that he hadn’t been in the seasons previous and to try to show his son how to live and be a human being. And in this episode he kind of has to become a monster, otherwise something terrible is going to happen to Carl, possibly all of them are going to die. It’s him being pushed to his breaking point and him realizing no, this is the world we’re in and I have to be in this world so now I’m going to do whatever I have to do. And in a sense he almost becomes a walker when he’s biting that guy’s neck out and savagely murdering this other guy. He really loses his humanity in a very big way. Which is something we’ll be exploring moving forward.

EW: Even though the season ends with the group in this terrible situation, in a weird way it’s almost an upbeat note with that proclamation by Rick of “They’re screwing with the wrong people.”
KIRKMAN: Rick Grimes’ evolution has come at the exact right point. This is the Rick Grimes that they need in that train car. And this is the Rick Grimes that the people of Terminus should not have encountered. It is the exact wrong time for them to encounter this guy. So it is supposed to be a somewhat uplifting kind of cliffhanger because you should get a sense that this guy is now ready for anything. He can handle absolutely whatever the word is going to throw at him and that is something we’re going to be exploring in season 5.

EW: When you guys mapped out season 4 and especially the back half of the season, were you worried about having Rick MIA so much since he really is the face of the franchise?
KIRKMAN: Well, you know, being apart makes the heart grow fonder and all that stuff. That was all by design. We knew this was going to be a very Rick centric end of the season and we really wanted to come back with Rick Grimes in a big way in this last episode and it was kind of important to the overall arc of the show to build up some of these other side characters and bring them to the forefront and help us get to know them a little bit more and also keep Rick in our back pocket so that the last episode seemed a little bit more unexpected than it would have otherwise.

source  EW

The Walking Dead Season 4 New Pictures Philippines Promo 4x16 A Terminus

The Walking Dead Season 4 Finale Promos, Sneak Peeks: "A" Episode 16 Analysis

Savage. Brutal. Shocking. These are words we’ve been told to keep in mind about The Walking Dead Season 4 finale. Episode 16, “A,” airs this Sunday, March 30 at 9 p.m. ET on AMC.
We’re certainly worried for Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), especially with The Marauders after him, but anyone who messes with The Ricktator should really be worried. Our boy won’t go down without a fight! He’s in for a brawl this week, and so is his buddy Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus), who will be caught in the middle, along with the other Team Richonne players, Michonne (Danai Gurira) and Carl Grimes (Chandler Riggs). They are foremost in our minds as we watch the promos and sneak peeks for the final hour of this very tense and unusual season.
Here are 10 things we’re taking away from the footage shown so far:


1. Meet Gareth
A great New Zealand promo was released and then deleted on YouTube, but you can still see it here. We finally see the mysterious Gareth (Andrew J. West) we’ve been hearing about. We hear him say "Welcome to Terminus." So maybe he's the leader here? However, it looks like he might have a confrontation with Rick.

2. Rick's Group Arrives at Terminus
And those who arrive ... get shot at. We see Rick, Michonne, and Carl as they are escorted into Terminus, alongside a dark-haired guy, with a woman behind them. So Mary is definitely not alone at this place. At one point, it looks like Rick holds a gun to the dark-haired guy's head in front of Gareth. There are apparently people with guns on the Terminus roof and they shoot at Rick, Michonne, and Carl. Perhaps that's how they keep the peace at this place. Remember, there was a sign in Ep 15 that directed people to lower their weapons. It's not because they're all love and happiness hippies. They have rules, like anywhere else.

3. Joe's Marauders Attack
In the NZ promo, they also show dark scenes (at night or inside) with Joe's group confronting Rick and company. Joe’s voice says “You screwed up, you hear me? You screwed up. … Today’s a day of reckoning, sir” Is Joe talking to Rick both times — since Rick will be the one Tony recognizes as having killed Lou in Episode 11, “Claimed”? Or is some of that for Daryl, since Daryl will probably jump ship from Team Marauders to help his old friends? Carl is seen hiding in what looks like a car during the dark scene, so the marauder guys may be going after him and Michonne too.

4. How Does Daryl Get Hurt?

One shot at the 20-second mark of the U.S. promo, shown in light — not like one of the night/dark scenes — shows Daryl's face. He has a black eye and a cut around his mouth. Is that after a run-in with the Marauders? If so, it at least shows he lived.

5. Michonne Hugs and Holds Carl

In one of the U.S. promos, we see Michonne hug Carl outside in daylight — they appear to be alone, but it could just be for the moment, with Rick nearby. But the NZ promo shows Carl (with blood on his cheek) glaring at someone as Michonne holds him. Is that in response to something happening to them, or to Rick? As Robert Kirkman teased to Entertainment Weekly, "This is Rick Grimes being pushed to his absolute limit," in the finale. "And if you think you’ve seen that before, you haven’t. And the Rick Grimes that comes out of this is really going to shock people.” What if Rick goes to town, brutally slaying all of the Marauders in a way that shocks even Michonne and Carl? Or what if we're shocked by what happens to Rick?

6. Who Are We?

One of the sneak peek videos shows Rick, Carl and Michonne walking in the woods, on their way to Terminus. Carl wants to know what they'll tell people about all the things they've done. Will they tell them the truth? Rick said they'd tell them who they are. "But how do you say that?” Carl asks. “I mean, who are we?" We’re Team Richonne, beyotch! But in that moment, a walker approaches and they prepare to take it down. It's just one walker at this point, so not a big deal. But maybe the Carl question is meant to be referenced again when they confront their own humanity — who are they, and what does it take to get by in his world? That's a key question of the season and maybe it's one Rick will have to face and answer, then live with.

7. Some Guy Is Screaming

In another sneak peek, after Rick gives Carl a lesson in trapping in the woods, they hear a man's voice scream for help. Without pause, Carl runs after the voice. Rick is left to scream "Carl!" and run after him. We don't see how that ends, but the promo shows Carl running and, separately, pointing a gun. Those are daylight scenes. There's also a brief shot at the 22-second mark of what looks like a man being swarmed. Perhaps that is the screaming guy? If not, what the heck is up with that swarm scene?

8. Rick's Haunted Face
In that promo with the creepy echoing voiceover repeating "Terminus," the final shot is Rick appearing to be sitting down, face bloody, looking haunted. Maybe he's reflecting on what he just did — the brutality he dished out in response to what was done to him and his new family. How much more can Rick take?

9. What's With the Candle Room?

The U.S. promo shows a room with candles all over the ground, like they’re in memory of the departed, with the word "ALWAYS" seen on a wall. There could be religious significance to this room, so what if it's tied to the person who took Beth Greene (Emily Kinney)? She was taken in a car with a white cross on the back. What if there's a connection here? We know the person in that funeral home loved to light candles since Beth and Daryl basically used them all up when they re-claimed the place.

10. Where Is Everyone Else?
We don’t see any footage of the people we saw arriving at Terminus in Ep 15: Glenn Rhee (Steven Yeun), Maggie Greene (Lauren Cohan), Tara (Alanna Masterson), Bob Stookey (Larry Gilliard Jr.), Sasha (Sonequa Martin-Green), Abraham Ford (Michael Cudlitz),Eugene Porter (Josh McDermitt) and Rosita Espinosa (Christian Serratos). We also don’t see the people we’ve yet to see arrive — Carol Peletier (Melissa McBride), Tyreese (Chad Coleman) and baby Judith. But we also don’t know the timeline here — is Rick’s group actually getting there first or is this in chronological order? There’s a point in the NZ promo where it sounds like Rick whisper-growls, "Where are our people?" He could be saying "We're all people,” but it sounds like he’s asking about the others. Will we see them too? We’re anxious for a Team Prison reunion, with Rick and Carl seeing Judith, Sasha seeing Tyreese, Carol reuniting with Daryl, etc. It would also be nice for Maggie to reunite with Beth, but at this point we’re just hoping for any hint of Beth’s whereabouts at all. A big cliffhanger is coming, but we don’t anything about it.
What are your theories about “A”? What’s the title about? Who will survive? Will Rick, Daryl, Michonne and Carl kill all the Marauders? If so, at what cost? Is Terminus connected to The Hunters or not?

The Walking Dead Season 4 finale airs Sunday, March 30, at 9 p.m. ET on AMC.

The Walking Dead Season 4 Spoilers: What Happens in Episode 16 Finale, "A"?

The sixteenth and final hour of The Walking Dead Season 4 is almost upon us. The season finale, Episode 16, "A," airs Sunday, March 30 at 9 p.m. ET on AMC.

Are you ready? How could you be?!

Here are three TV synopses: 1) "Many paths collide; Rick faces sheer brutality; the group struggles to survive." 2) "Rick comes face-to-face with sheer brutality when multiple paths collide.” 3) "Factions begin to near an inevitable collision, which brings Rick face to face with a shocking form of brutality that threatens the lives of everyone he has become responsible for, so the group must find a way to survive the oncoming storm."

So we're expecting a Team Prison reunion at Terminus, “brutality” for Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln), and the group struggling to survive. Let's break that down, factoring in previous spoilers and teases released from The Powers That Be. Don't forget to come back when promos and sneak peek videos are released so we can add them to the speculation mix!


1. Rick’s Brutality — Marauders?: Obviously we’re linking at least some of Rick’s “brutality” to Joe (Jeff Kober) and his band of marauders, since they are tracking Rick with the plan to exact revenge for the Episode 11 death of their friend, bathroom guy. Tony (guy who was strangled in the “Claimed” house) will recognize Rick and no good can come of that. The Marauders are bandits in the comic book series who ambush Rick, Carl Grimes (Chandler Riggs) and Abraham Ford (Michael Cudlitz) on the road. The TV show could do a remix of that, replacing Abe with Michonne (Danai Gurira). In the books, they try to rape Carl. Maybe they do the same on TV or try the move on Michonne. (Remember how, back in Ep 11, they called dibs on who would get first crack at the woman shacking up in the house? That woman was Michonne, and they said that when they found her shirt. Foreshadowing?)

Either way, in the books, Rick and Abraham save Carl and kill the bad guys. We wouldn’t be upset with that happening on TV, but we know Rick will be pushed to his very limit on the finale, with comic book writer/executive producer Robert Kirkman adding that if we think we’ve seen Rick pushed to his limit before, we haven’t. The poor Ricktator! What’s going to happen? We’re not expecting Rick to die, but could Carl die? Michonne? Baby Judith? Other? Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus)? Daryl dying may be even less likely than Rick dying, but maybe Daryl swoops in and saves Rick, putting himself in danger with the marauders too.



2. What's With the Title?: The title “A” is interesting and could mean any number of things. An AMC exec previously teased, "We know where this season ends, which is not unlike when we got to the prison — it’s a glimpse of what Season 5 will be." They got to the prison on the Season 3 premiere, ending a long stint on the road by finally finding a safe haven. (For a while anyway.) That’s why we initially thought "A" might refer to the Alexandria Safe-Zone, a place the group does end up in the comics. Now maybe it’s Atlanta or something else, ‘cause it doesn’t seem like we’re headed to Alexandria, Virginia in the finale. Robert Kirkman told TV Guide the second half of Season 4 would start bleak but end on a “more hopeful” note so it would make sense if they did find a new safe place. Is it Terminus? Do they think Terminus is safe and it’s not?


3. Are The Hunters at Terminus? Robert Kirkman recently teased that the finale will be “SAVAGE. Honestly... people are going to be talking about this one. The cliffhanger at the end of season 4 will make the wait between seasons 4 and 5 the hardest wait we've ever had. ENJOY!” Savage could be tied to Rick’s brutality, but also potentially The Hunters, a group of cannibals whose story may be adapted for TV. What if Rick and company think Terminus is safe, except for the stalking Marauders, and it turns out The Hunters cook and eat people? Is that how we’ll leave the season, perhaps with someone’s body part missing? Don’t forget the rumor that actress Anissa Matlock was cast on Episode 16 (she is still credited on IMDb for “A”) possibly playing one of The Hunters. Or she could just be a nice lady at Terminus.


4. Where’s Gareth? We’ve given up on the idea of Gareth (Andrew J. West) having a major presence this season, but he’s meant to be a remix of a comic book character. Is he a version of Father Gabriel Stokes, and he’s the one who kidnapped Beth, but not for nefarious purposes? Or is he perhaps a version of Chris, leader of The Hunters? Other? Will we even see him at all? Update: Greg Nicotero said we will find Gareth at Terminus. So there's that.

5. Is Morgan Coming Or Not? If you check out IMDb’s listing for Episode 16, Lennie James is still credited as appearing in “A.” Someone could just be messing with us, but that credit has yet to budge. Showrunner Scott Gimple did recently say he was misquoted when he said Morgan Jones would return in Season 4. Maybe he meant Morgan would return at some point and it was assumed he meant this season. Or maybe Scott was just aiming to avoid spoilers. Maybe Morgan is meant to be a big surprise? Or he could not appear at all. Dammit, Lennie James, just show the hell up so we can stop speculating about you! Please?


6. The Finale Will Be "Ambitious," "Savage" and "Cool": A while back, Norman Reedus told Vulture the finale would be a "very ambitious" episode, adding "they went big with it." RK already said it would be "savage" with a torturous cliffhanger, but he also said, “There are some moments in the finale that I think are some of the coolest stuff we’ve done in the show, and that’s the stuff I’m really excited about. We’re wrapping this season up in pretty great form.” He warned that there’s a lot of “shock” coming and fans will be “startled” with what happens and we’ll be anticipating the return of Season 5 in October.


7. Promo and Sneak Peek Intel: One AMC sneak peek shows Rick, Carl and Michonne in the woods. Rick teaches Carl how to trap an animal in the woods. They hear someone yelling and Carl runs, apparently to help. Rick breaks out his classic "Cahhrl! CAHHRLL!" call. Why doesn't Carl listen? The sneak peek on Talking Dead also shows the trio in the woods. Carl wants to know if they'll tell the people at Terminus the truth about all the stuff they've done. Rick says, "We're going to tell them who we are." Carl argues. "Who are we?" They see a walker in the woods. Michonne whips out her katana and approaches. The promo also shows Carl running, and Michonne slicing walkers on the train tracks. What's with the candles in the room, and Rick looking so beat up in the end? What happens to him? Is he shaken by what happens to him or what he does in response?

If we had to guess, we’d say we’re staying at Terminus into Season 5, but perhaps our former Team Prison group isn’t up to date on what’s really happening there. We’re curious to see if Beth Greene (Emily Kinney) will be involved at all in the finale or if they’re saving the rest of her story for Season 5.


Any theories about the big season finale and what the cliffhanger will entail? What do you think will happen to poor Rick who can’t stop getting his arse beat down? What paths will collide and who might not make it? Will any main characters … have to look at the flowers?

The Walking Dead Season 4 4x16 "A" Terminus Pictures + Gareth And terminus Spoilers