Jeffrey Dean Morgan Calls Out Toxic 'The Walking Dead' Fans After Melissa McBride's Return

By Dustin Rowles | TV | June 23, 2023 |

By Dustin Rowles | TV | June 23, 2023 |

In April 2022, Melissa McBride — who played Carol on The Walking Dead for 11 seasons — exited the planned spin-off she was set to star in alongside Norman Reedus, who plays Daryl Dixon. The reasons at the time were not immediately clear, but the sometimes toxic The Walking Dead fandom inexplicably blamed Norman Reedus, suggesting that he had her fired or had pulled some diva business or single-handedly had the show relocated to Europe to be closer to his wife, Diane Kruger.

The reality — as Norman Reedus explained to deaf ears — is that McBride was just tired. She’d done 11 seasons of The Walking Dead in the Georgia heat, and the final season took a year and a half to shoot under pandemic restrictions. She exited in April, six months before the final episode of The Walking Dead had even aired. Who could blame McBride for wanting some time off, particularly since the spin-off would not only be a long, arduous shoot but it’d take place in France?

However, Melissa McBride’s hiatus was short-lived, as she has signed back on to the second season of the Daryl spin-off, which has already begun shooting (the first season of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon will air in the fall). A photographer caught the two in action over in France.

Meanwhile, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, who is in another spin-off, The Walking Dead: Dead City (review coming after I’ve seen a couple of episodes), has been something of the de facto leader on set since the departure of Andrew Lincoln. Last year, he called out TWD fans for accusing Norman Reedus of sabotaging McBride’s involvement. “Some of you have gone WAY too far. TOXIC. Attacking Norm for crap he has NOTHING to do with? Melissa made a call that was hers alone. She wants/needs a break. Respect that. Factors involved that are nobody’s business. Norm, who’s given more than anyone to you all. Just SHITTY,” Morgan tweeted at the time.

Once McBride was back in the fold, Jeffrey Dean Morgan decided to give those toxic fans an “I told you so,” tweeting yesterday, “Well well. We’re sorry Norman … fer talking oodles of shit to you when we thought Melissa wasn’t doing show! Golly … this must of been in the works for ages! (Twas from start). Goddamn it’s great seeing these two together! Can’t wait! Xojd.”

It is good to see them back together again. My question, however, is how, in the logic of the series did that happen? A teaser for the Daryl Dixon show recently surfaced, which suggests that Daryl kind of floated on the underside of a boat across the ocean 4,000 miles from Virginia to France.

I love that he’s still wearing his jacket and motorcycle gloves while drifting across the ocean on a boat. It’s absurd, obviously, but what’s more absurd is Carol also somehow finding her way to France and locating Daryl. That said, ultimately I expect that Daryl, Carol, Morgan, Negan, and Maggie will all end up in Europe, where they will reunite with Rick and Michonne in what will essentially be the 13th season of The Walking Dead, only they’re rebranded as spin-offs to save money.