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Exclusive: Lennie James on Kim Dicken's Return to Fear the Walking Dead & How Morgan’s Mission is Changing Again

Lennie JamesEarlier in the season of Fear the Walking Dead, Morgan Jones, played by Lennie James, brought a sick baby Mo into the tower and used the opportunity to try to try to kill Victor Strand (Colman Domingo). Why was now the time? According to the actor, who talked to Jamie Ruby of SciFi Vision in an exclusive interview, Morgan’s mission is to keep Grace (Karen David) and Baby Mo safe, and he’s become desperate. “I think Morgan operates best when he has a mission,” said James, “almost every time we see him, he's either setting himself a mission, or a mission has been provided for him…whether it's him setting off on a mission to get away from people, [or] whether it's the current mission that is occupying his soul, which is to find someplace that is safe and livable for Grace and Baby Mo…I think it's a measure of the level of desperation they find themselves in on the sub. They've got weeks left of food, and food is scarce, and he has to find an alternative, and the thing that's in his way is Strand. I believe he goes into the tower with already the intention of taking Strand out one way or another, and while he's there, he formulates the plan of how he's going to do it.”

His mission is changing again, and Morgan doesn’t want to be the one in the lead anymore. In the mid-season finale, which aired last week on AMC, he looked to Alicia (Alycia Debnam-Carey) for help. “I do believe that he did come to a realization that he could lead the place, but, again, in the sense of him having ambition, every single time with Morgan, he's saying, ‘I'm going to take you someplace that we can build a world.’ And it's always that once that mission is achieved, I will move on, or I will step back. He's not interested in governing. He's not interested in being in in charge. He's interested in keeping the people he loves safe.”

Lennie JamesAlicia, however, is now ready to go to war with Strand, which includes all those currently in the tower, and not only Morgan, but many others will have to decide where their allegiances lie. “[H]ow do you go to war with family? Because that's basically what's going on; this is a family squabble," teased James. "…It's going to force a lot of people to decide where their allegiances lie. A lot of people are going to have that conundrum; it's not even about right or wrong. A lot of people have already compromised themselves and are living underneath a compromise in order to be in the tower. Other people are living in a compromise in order not to be in the tower, and all of those things are going to be challenged; all of those things are going to be tested…All of our major characters, their loyalties are going to be tested; their commitments are going to be tested. Their lives and where they live are going to be threatened and tested. It's kind of full on for everybody.”

Last week it was announced that even more will be brought into the mix in the back half of the season with the return of Alicia’s mother, Madison (Kim Dickens). James told SciFi Vision that he originally decided to come over to the series to work with Dickens, but due to character timelines, it never happened, so he was happy to find out he would get to do it now, “The fact that I might get the chance to do it this time around, I was very excited about, and I'm still excited about.”

For the rest of the interview read the full transcript below, and be sure to catch all-new episodes of Fear the Walking Dead, Sunday April 17th on AMC.

SCIFI VISION:
  
I guess the first thing I have to ask, because everybody keeps sending me questions about it, is can you talk about how you found out that Madison would be returning? How do you think that that's going to change the dynamic of the groups in the show?

LENNIE JAMES:  
I found out like everybody else did, really. I got a telephone call from the showrunners and Scott [Gimple] saying, “This is a possibility; we're sounding Kim out, and what do you feel about it?” And I said, what I believe really, which is part of me deciding to come over to Fear was to work with Kim. And in the storytelling, our paths didn't cross, because we're operating on different timelines in season four, so I didn't get that chance. So, the fact that I might get the chance to do it this time around, I was very excited about, and I'm still excited about. 

Morgan has gone back and forth about whether or not he’s willing to kill people. When he tries to kill Strand earlier in the season, it's not really in self defense. Can you talk about if you feel that there was a moment that he decided that he was willing to do that and also put the baby at risk? And I guess maybe even a little more importantly, why did he decide not to go through with it, do you think?

Oh, that's a very good question. I think Morgan operates best when he has a mission. Almost every time we see him, he's either setting himself a mission, or a mission has been provided for him, whether it's Rick (Andrew Lincoln) going, “Give me this time, when I'm coming up against Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan);” whether it's him saying, “I've got to clear;” whether it's him setting off on a mission to get away from people, [or] whether it's the current mission that is occupying his soul, which is to find someplace that is safe and livable for Grace and baby Mo. He's always best when he has a mission, and I think he's got to a level of desperation. I think trying to kill Strand is not so much a measure of whether or not Morgan is in his killing phase or his not killing phase; I think it's a measure of the level of desperation they find themselves in on the sub. They've got weeks left of food, and food is scarce, and he has to find an alternative, and the thing that's in his way is Strand. I believe he goes into the tower with already the intention of taking Strand out one way or another, and while he's there, he formulates the plan of how he's going to do it.

Lennie JamesWhy do you think he decided to let him live though, in the end?

I think it's partly that he sees himself. I think Strand forces him to see himself. I think if he could throw Strand down the down the elevator shaft, he would throw Strand down the elevator shaft, but I just don't think that he believes that his mission will be successful, because it's not about ending Strand completely. It's about removing Strand and being able to live in the tower. Once he's been found out, in the situation he's in, if he ended Strand, he's the obvious suspect, and that only defeats the purpose, because it just puts baby Mo in more danger, not less.

Okay, and one thing I want to ask, just because this was a little unclear; we were going back and forth about this on our podcast talking about it, but was the baby supposed to be actually sick, and he used it as to his advantage, or did he make up the whole thing and June (Jenna Elfman) kind of caught on? 

The baby’s sick…I think the baby's sick and that just determines that it's now go time, that he has to do it now. And I think like all best deceits, you try and stick as close as possible to the truth, and the way to get in is that the baby's sick. What he's going to do once he's in is something else.

Now, obviously, I'm sure it's not always real, but sometimes there's a real baby playing baby Mo. How has it been working with a baby? Because I know that can be difficult.

It's been lovely when it's been lovely. The thing I say to her folks, and the things I feel myself, is one of the beauties of working with her is that she's kind of always being true to, whatever is happening with her in that particular moment, that is happening with her in that particular moment, whether we're filming or we're not filming. If she's happy and smiling, she's happy and smiling. If she's crying and upset, then she's crying and upset…It's tricky. I'm a father; I'm a father of daughters, and hearing a baby crying, I have a Pavlovian kind of response, and more often than not, I'm the one saying, “We've got to take care of her and continue to allow her to be the truthful little one-year-old that she is,” rather than ask her to do something else in a world that she doesn't understand and doesn't necessarily need to. So, it has it’s challenges, but that's true of some of the cast and crew as well. So, we get through it. We give it allowances; we're a family. 

As an actor, I know sometimes that you are given information that as a viewer we don't get to help you connect to the character. And sometimes maybe you're making up backstory in your head, in order to connect to the character. Is there anything that you're allowed to tell me, anything that maybe the fans don't know about that either you've made up on your own or that is like a little tidbit or something that you were given once upon a time?

I can't - well, I can think of stuff but some of it I can't say. There was a big question at the beginning of this season, because of Morgan's relationship with Grace, about what we do with Morgan's wedding ring, because Morgan has worn his wedding ring the entire time we've known him. He was wearing it in the first-ever episode, and he's worn it every day, every appearance, in every situation since and at the beginning of this season, because of after the end of last season, when Morgan and Grace finally declared their love for each other, albeit under the belief that their lives were about to end, [was] what we did with Morgan's wedding ring. And at the beginning of the season, I got into my costume, and my next question was, “Where is my wedding ring?” It wasn't there, and I said that a man who has defined himself the way that Morgan has defined himself, which was again, until Grace kind of surprised him and opened a part of his heart that he thought was closed, he had defined himself by being the husband of Jenny and the father of Dwayne. I just couldn't believe that he would let that go and take that ring away. So, I don't know if the fans have noticed or the fans haven't noticed, but Morgan wears his wedding ring around his neck on a chain.

Lennie JamesIn the mid season finale, Morgan tells Alicia that he can't do it anymore, that he needs help. What is it do you think that made him feel like he was not capable of leading alone right now?

I think he was coming to that, because he was always a reluctant leader, Morgan. He was there because of his experience. He was there because he had a certain set of skills; he was there because on one level or another, he was a better communicator, he was smarter, he was more equipped than the next best choice, really. And that's not to say that he didn't grow into the role, because I do believe that he did come to a realization that he could lead the place, but, again, in the sense of him having ambition, every single time with Morgan, he's saying, “I'm going to take you someplace that we can build a world.” And it's always that once that mission is achieved, I will move on, or I will step back. He's not interested in governing. He's not interested in being in in charge. He's interested in keeping the people he loves safe.

I think that's why his friendship with John Dory (Garret Dillahunt) was so attractive to him, because they were kindred spirits. They were protectors; they weren't governors. They weren't politicians; they didn't crave that kind of power and responsibility. The responsibility that they knew they could do was to keep the people around them safe, to use the things that they're good at to protect the people they love. That at his core is who Morgan is, and he's always been the one of - again, we saw it in how he left Virginia (Colby Minifie) and how he left, Rick – “I'll do this thing for you, and then I want to be alone. I'll do this thing for you, and then I've got to move on.” That's kind of always been his modus operandi, basically, until he met Grace and took on Mo.

Now, obviously you can't tell me what's going to happen, but maybe you can talk a little bit about what he would be feeling. We at heard the end, Alicia was like, “We're going to war with [Strand]." But obviously, not everybody that is in Strand's tower is bad. Grace is there, but not just Grace; there're other people who aren't maybe even aware of everything that Strand is up to. Is he going to be able to pick a side and fight them? Or is he more going to have to try to figure out a better way? 

I'll be very honest, I think that is the story of the second half of this season: how do you go to war with family? Because that's basically what's going on; this is a family squabble. This is World War One. This is in house; this is one side of the family arguing with the other side of the family, and it's going to force a lot of people to decide where their allegiances lie. A lot of people are going to have that conundrum; it's not even about right or wrong. A lot of people have already compromised themselves and are living underneath a compromise in order to be in the tower. Other people are living in a compromise in order not to be in the tower, and all of those things are going to be challenged; all of those things are going to be tested. And with everybody, I'm trying to think of somebody for whom there isn't a dilemma that they have to face and get through in the second half of season seven, and I can't think of one. So, all of our major characters, their loyalties are going to be tested; their commitments are going to be tested. Their lives and where they live are going to be threatened and tested. It's kind of full on for everybody.

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