Hello. And welcome to another "talking dead: Home edition."
So this week's episode took us on a wild ride
Inside the mind of princess.
We learned what makes her tick,
How she copes with stress and trauma.
We learned about her pre-apocalyptic past.
But what was real and what was a figment
Of princess' imagination?
We're going to talk all about that.
Also, are the soldiers in white armor
Going to harm eugene, yumiko, and ezekiel,
Or are they there to help them? We don't know.
And how will princess' state of mind
Affect her standing within the group going forward?
We have interviews with the executive producers
All about what you just watched,
Some inside info from tonight's episode
That you can't get anywhere else,
A very special "in memoriam", and an exclusive sneak peek
Of next week's episode of "the walking dead."
My guests tonight are princess herself, paola lázaro,
Khary payton, aka ezekiel,
Supervising producer and co-writer of tonight's episode
Vivian tse,
And comedian and one of my all-time favorite people
In the world ron funches.
I am chris hardwick,
And this is "talking dead: Home edition."
♪♪
All right, the conversation's just beginning.
Of course we want to hear from you.
Tweet us, hit us up on instagram @amctalkingdead.
Or you can go to "talking dead's" facebook page.
Please say hello to my guests, paola lázaro, khary payton,
Vivian tse, and ron funches.
Paola, were you given a heads-up
About the twists in the episode before you read the script?
I was not given a heads-up,
And I am so thankful that I was not given a heads-up
Because when I read it, I mean, I spoke to khary afterwards,
And -- and when we were reading it,
We were like, "why is ezekiel being so mean?"
Like, I was like, "what -- what is going on?
Are we changing? Like, the show is changing. What is this?"
And khary was like, "yeah, I didn't know
What was going on with my character.
I was mad. Like, why is he being so mean?"
So not knowing the twist that was going to happen
In the script was perfect for reading it
Because it really, once that shift happened,
It really broke me emotionally, and I love that I didn't know.
Yeah, no, I love that I didn't know, either,
Because, honestly, uh, julia and vivian,
Who wrote this episode, didn't tell anybody.
They had this idea, and they kept it a secret from everybody.
And it was, like -- and it was the best secret to keep
Because I was so mad.
I was like -- I was like my grandma watching her stories.
She was like, "why would so and so talk like that?
He would never say that to so and so."
I was -- it was -- I was just -- I was mad. I was angry.
I was -- I was sending e-mails.
And then -- and then I read the -- read the --
The -- the -- the switch.
And I just thought, "this is the most brilliant thing."
So brilliant. -Ron, when did you realize
That we were basically in a "fight club" moment?
[laughs]
When that soldier was coughing up blood.
I didn't know what was going on.
And, oh, I just was like,
"okay, this is" -- first of all, I was excited
Because I was like, "the princess and the king.
This is fun for me. I like this duo together."
And then he started getting very aggressive
And then was like, "no one's hurting me anymore."
And I was like, "this is more information
Than I was aware of."
And then it turned, and I was like, "oh, I get this.
It makes sense." and it was a new part
In "the walking dead" universe I'd never really seen before.
We've seen a lot of trauma and emotional struggles,
But mostly how they portray that is outwardly,
The way that they act towards each other.
To see someone actually deal with traumas and visions
And things of that nature, I thought, was very interesting,
And I enjoyed it very much.
Khary, how did it affect your performance,
Knowing that ezekiel is a figment
Or an extension of princess in that moment?
I just loved it.
It really let me kind of, you know, release
All of that worry about, you know, you know,
Am I being true to the character, you know?
Because it was -- because I --
Because princess barely knew ezekiel.
So -- so she was really just unloading a lot of herself
Onto -- onto this guy,
And -- and, you know?
And so, I felt like he was part family, part protector,
And -- and maybe like -- like pieces
Of several different human beings
That she's met along her journey, you know.
So it kind of let me go for broke.
You know, I loved -- I loved stepping behind her
And kind of whispering in her ear
Like the devil on her shoulder,
You know, or -- or that -- or that guy at the club
Who's just trying to instigate a fight, you know?
He doesn't want to fight. He's just -- he's saying,
"no, no, man, he can't stand you.
I heard him say it the other day."
You know what I mean?
Just -- just try and get him to --
Get him to get something started.
It was a lot of fun for me.
Well, vivian, as co-writer of tonight's episode,
Thank you so much for coming to the show, by the way.
It's so wonderful to be able to have writers and producers on.
Just, sort of, we've had such a wonderful time
Get-- getting y'all's insight into how this all happened.
And you wrote this episode with julia ruchman.
How did you pitch this idea to angela
Without spoiling the twist?
No. I mean, usually, you know, you don't hide stuff from the showrunner.
That's not really how it goes.
You know, usually the showrunner --
[laughter]
Usually the showrunner knows what you're doing,
And she knows the arc of the episode,
And she'll generally know what we're --
You know, what story you're telling.
But we realized, as we were coming up with this that,
You know, it's sort of like, if you tell a joke too many times,
It just loses its -- its funny.
So we pitched it to her cold in the room.
She had no idea what was happening.
And she -- she -- she heard the t-- the turn
Like everybody else did, so...
And it worked, so she let us write it. Yeah.
I mean, we were this close to not being able to write it
Because she was like, "what is the idea?"
And we were like, "I can't give you the idea
Without giving it away.
Like, I can't tell you the idea.
You'll know everything."
And so, we just had to, like, tell our showrunner
She couldn't know what the episode was about.
Oh, well. -That's great, but it obviously worked.
It obviously worked.
Well, just sort of talking about the larger story
That's going on in this episode.
Ron, do you think eugene is to blame for this whole mess?
Do you think stephanie set a trap,
Or -- or do you think like, "no, no, no,
It's -- it's all going to be fine"?
No, chris, I've seen this before.
I've seen this many times
As a person who watches a lot of reality shows
And a lot of -- in particular "90 day fiancé" --
I know when a guy is getting catfished.
And eugene is the perfect person for that to happen to.
He is so sweet. He is so trusting. -Ohh!
He is like, "oh, I never met her,
But I'm sending her 2 grand a month."
I'm sure that she'll [indistinct] into this society."
[all laughing]
-Oh! -She's really with the only guy that could get catfished
With, like, a ham radio.
Like, that's just so -- that's just so eugene.
-Poor guy. -Oh, man.
If eugene showed up and stephanie
Was a literal catfish being like,
"I was just messing with you," I think we'd go, "it checks.
It checks out. It checks out."
Well, we're going to take a quick break.
Coming up next, we have interviews
With the executive producers about tonight's episode,
Plus an exclusive sneak peek
Of next week's episode of "the walking dead."
But first, before you expect to see an "in memoriam" this week
And discover that this is the first time
In "walking dead" history that no person or walker has died,
Let's slow things down and say a temporary farewell
To the "in memoriam" we've lost tonight.
♪♪
Angela: The title "splinter" refers to, obviously, the literal splinter
That she gets in the present day,
As well as this memory she has of her abusive family
And what it was like to live within that family.
And then, obviously, there's this more figurative meaning
Of as reality and sort of the fantasy
That she has as a coping mechanism
Sort of splinter off from each other.
That was kind of the idea for this episode.
I think princess is such an interesting character,
And paola is such a fabulous actress
And has brought such a great energy to the show.
And we don't know much about her yet.
So, again, the fact that we were given this opportunity
To really delve into some of these characters,
She was one that is really fun to get to know.
She didn't have the best childhood.
Her life wasn't perfect pre-apocalypse.
As a result of that, how she's chosen
To take care of herself and protect herself,
And we see through the course of this episode
A few of her defense mechanisms.
She's basically talking to herself,
And I think that's something princess has probably
Had to do a lot of her life,
Even before the apocalypse, to sort of be her own friend,
To take care of herself because she's led such a lonely life.
♪♪
Welcome back to "talking dead: Home edition."
That was executive producers angela kang and denise huth
Discussing how this episode explores
Not only how princess copes with her past,
But the apocalyptic world as a whole.
And we're back with paola, khary, vivian, and ron.
Paola, how did it feel for you to learn more
About princess' pre-apocalypse backstory in this episode?
I mean, it -- it was super-exciting for me.
Um, as an actor and as a performer,
You want to be able to, like,
Peel down the layers of the facade.
Or, I mean, most of us have, like, a mask that we carry.
And to be able to pull that mask off, you know,
I got to relive moments of trauma for princess.
And -- and again, as an actor,
Like, getting to go to those places
In, like, such a little timeframe is --
I mean, that's how I -- why I fell in love with the character.
And do you feel like you have a-a deeper understanding of her
After this episode than you had previously?
Absolutely. Absolutely.
I-I understand why she's impulsive.
I understand why she laughs when it's not appropriate.
Um, I understand why she's loud.
Like, I always had an instinct
That, obviously, it came from the past and from trauma.
But now I know exactly where those triggers come from.
So it's -- it's super-exciting.
And sort of -- and building off that, for vivian,
What do you think it says about princess
That she imagines these new friends of hers
Acting pretty harshly towards her?
What does that -- what does that say about her,
That that's what's going on in her mind?
Well, I think that says a lot
About how she treats herself in general,
You know, that she's pretty tough on herself.
And that's probably because people were tough on her.
And she probably comes from --
Well, I know she comes from a background
Where people were hard on her
And treated her a certain way.
And -- and so, I think a lot of times,
People, especially women, internalize that kind of stuff,
Right, then, and they think it's their fault
And they get worried that they're messing things up
Or that they're going to ruin something
Or that there's something not worthy about them.
When she's projecting all those things
That she thinks about herself on to these new friends that she makes,
Like, it's just her coping with all the things
That she maybe hates about herself
Or worries that other people will hate about her.
I mean, um, I'm getting -- I'm sorry.
I'm, like, crying when you were speaking about that.
It's the visual --
These -- these visions that she's having of her "friends"
Are the visual representation of self-sabotage
And -- and us, you know,
Speaking negatively to ourselves,
And, oh, my god, it's just --
It was just so beautifully written.
And I'm sorry I got emotional, but -- because it's so true
What you just said.
-Well -- -thank you for sharing that. It's so true.
But it's also -- it's also beautifully performed, paola.
I mean, it's -- you understand so much in one episode.
She's managed to -- to overcome a lot.
And we've seen a lot of characters sort of have,
I think, kind of what ron was saying before,
This kind of external conflict
But really seeing this one solitary character
Come -- come through who has overcome
A tremendous amount of internal conflict.
Would you -- would you agree with that?
Absolutely. Absolutely.
And it's a -- it's a great honor
To get to portray that character.
And -- and, yeah, and I think she has overcome that.
And we see that at the end of the episode
When she decides not to leave.
That is growth for her. Her instinct is always like,
"oh, I'm f'ing this up. I got to run.
I got to run. This is why I can't be around people.
This is why I can't have nice things.
I got to run."
And we see the shift that she decides,
"I know I got to learn to live in a family,
In a society, in a world."
Um, so, yeah, I agree with what you said,
But I also think that there's a beautiful moment,
And maybe, vivian, you could correct me if I'm wrong,
But there is a --
It's her kind of choosing to be a part of the group
And choosing to be a part of the world and surviving
And choosing something for herself,
Saying, "I am worthy to have these things.
I deserve to have these things.
And I'm -- I'm good. I should have these things."
Is that -- would you say that's true?
It's all of that. It's like, "I am worthy,
And in this moment, I feel worthy.
Tomorrow I might not, but that's okay.
I'll deal with that tomorrow."
But it is absolutely her accepting herself in that moment
And saying that, "there isn't anything wrong with me,
That -- that -- that I'm okay right now.
And I'm just going to go with that for now,
Because these are my friends and I'm going to choose them
For a second," you know?
But as we're reminded --
Because I -- it is -- it is hard to lose track of
Just because of how the season sort of stretched out.
"oh, yeah, she's only known this group for, like, a week."
So from that perspective, you know,
Do you think ezekiel and the group would trust princess
To help save their lives at this point?
I think that yumiko maybe takes it --
Takes a little bit longer to -- to come around.
But I think that -- I think that
Ezekiel has an immediate kinship with -- with princess, you know,
Not just because they -- they --
They both tended towards, you know, nicknames of royalty,
But they are a little bit extra.
You know, both of them are a little bit extra.
And -- and I think he sees her --
Her -- her journey
And her way of coping with that journey
And -- and -- and understands it and appreciates it.
You know, it's like a -- it's like a football team
Or a basketball team -- you know, everybody's not point guard.
You got to have your center and your power forward.
You got to have your -- your defensive linemen,
And you got to have your -- your speedy receiver.
And -- and he sees her -- her -- th-that she is that flash.
She is that -- she is that running back that you give it to
And -- and watch her go, you know?
And you don't -- and it's the things that you don't practice,
It's the things -- it's -- it's -- it's --
It's those jukes and moves that -- that she makes
That you can't teach that -- that --
That makes -- makes princess special.
And, by the way, it also is -- is what makes paola special.
And I -- and I just have to -- I have to say,
Just seeing the way that she reacts
To the way that when vivian is explaining this character...
I just hope everybody understands how --
How -- how awesome it is that -- that we found paola
To -- to -- to play this part because -- because she wears it.
-Agree. -Thank you.
Ron, really quickly,
What imaginary friend from "the walking dead"
Would you conjure up to help you cope with stress?
Oh, maggie because she is resilient
And beautiful and just fun to be around.
That's an easy question. The answer.
That's a simple question. -I got -- I got to go dale,
Because if I were stressed out,
I'd just want to see that winnebago pulling up
And a guy in a fishing hat being like,
"come on, let's get out on the roof and go catch some fish."
I'd be like, "take me!"
-Yes. -You know, like I -- I -- I-I feel like, for me,
It would be dale reaching down from the top of that rv,
Just pulling me up to the top to -- to watch the sunset. -To get up.
Well, chris, you and I have different priorities.
[laughter]
I think it's because -- I think it's because
I'm getting to that place in my life
Where I'm starting to feel like --
Like I want to put on a fishing hat and just hop in an rv.
Like, I'm -- I'm starting to --
-Why not? -You know, like, I'm -- I'm missing the white beard,
But it's -- but it's coming.
I can feel it, you know?
Yeah. You got a griswold look to you.
I see it. -Exactly.
[laughter]
-Chris is like, "I'm gonna hit 40 national parks this year." -oh (bleep) oh, shoot.
-Well... -Wally world.
Before we go to break --
[laughing]
Before we go to break, if you want to get early access
To episodes of "the walking dead"
And "talking dead" and to see other shows you'll enjoy,
Sign up for amc plus at amcplus.Com.
Coming up, another interview with executive producer
And showrunner angela kang.
And later, we have an exclusive sneak peek
Of next week's episode.
We'll be right back.
♪♪
Angela: The interrogation that happens is incredibly intense,
And I think there's a couple things at play.
One is you're learning that this group is very serious
And there are certain questions that they're asking that
She doesn't really understand why it's important to them.
But you're just getting kind of a window
Into the way that they work, because there is a bureaucracy,
And there are kind of protocols that they follow.
And as real-life protocols can sometimes be,
They're a little terrifying.
Huth: We really only see princess' interrogation,
But we get the sense they're asking everybody the same questions.
And are the stories lining up? Is everybody telling the truth?
I do think most of that interrogation was real.
It actually happened.
And she's very much afraid of being the person to make it worse.
And so, in that conversation, in trying not to make it worse,
She probably, in some ways, did.
She's not just going to give up information and play nice.
She's going to say, "you don't get anything out of me
Until I know my friends are okay."
Her loyalty is absolute, and she will absolutely
Never do anything to hurt these ♪♪people, if she can avoid it.
♪♪
Welcome back to "talking dead: Home edition."
That was executive producers angela kang and denise huth
Discussing what that interrogation scene
Tells us about this new group
And what it means that princess is so loyal.
We're back with paola, khary, vivian, and ron.
So, vivian, when deciphering
Fact from fiction in this episode --
And I feel like this will be a great episode to go back
And rewatch right away to sort of kind of see
If anything tips in the beginning
That it -- that it's all happening inside her head --
What can you tell us definitively
About this new group?
They're nothing like what our people
Have, you know, ever run into before.
They're organized, they have weapons, they have armor,
And they have more rules than our people are used to.
So that's probably going to take some acclimating for them.
But, yeah, definitely different
Than anything they've ever been through, for sure.
So just -- just really quick, if you don't mind,
Just sort of bullet point of,
So ezekiel -- not real.
Eugene crawling through the tr-- the hole in the train door,
That -- that was not real? -Not real. Not real.
-The interrogation was real, though,
And the guy that she's punching is real. -Real.
Yes. Yep. Mm-hmm, yeah. -Okay.
So, really, the first time we see everyone for real,
The rest of the -- like yumiko and ezekiel and eugene,
That's not till the end of the episode
When they have the sacks on their heads.
That's the first time we actually --
That they're really appearing in the episode.
The teaser -- the teaser's real, and the end is real.
The two -- those -- those two --
Those are the only times that those people are real
In -- in princess' head.
I mean, in princess -- in -- in real life.
That's the only time they're real.
Not in princess' head. Yeah.
So, paola, can you talk a bit about --
So that interrogation scene is very interesting
Because she does decide to commit and protect her friends.
Can you talk a little bit about that scene
And her, you know, being so resolved
To, like -- to really lock in and dig her heels in
And -- and protect the group?
I think it goes back to, you know,
She -- like I always say, she has a huge.
Princess has a huge heart.
But I think she protects others more than she protects herself.
And -- and that goes back to her old trauma.
I think she gets very defensive
When somebody else gets treated badly.
And that's why she tries to,
Like, get the knife in the beginning,
And, like, she tries to help yumiko.
Um, it just shows you that she is loyal
And that she is willing to put herself at risk for them.
Because she's putting herself at risk for them
When she flips out in that scene,
When she, like, goes to him and tries to, like, hit him
And then she gets hit.
It just shows her loyalty.
I think it's like summer camp, man.
It's like -- you know, you got that -- you got that
Tight-knit group for summer camp for like a week,
And it feels like it's your whole life.
And when you leave them, you're crying,
And it's like, "we're going to be best friends forever,"
And you never see them again, man, I --
That's what it feels like to me.
It's like it just took a couple of days,
And it was like summer camp friendship, like we're together.
Ron, as a fan, what -- what do you think is going on?
Like, what do you think with this group
And the type of organization that they have?
Well, I mean, it's confusing to me
Because it makes you -- you have two minds,
Especially at the end when they have them all hooded up
And -- and how aggressive they are
And how armored they are.
It seems like they, like --
Is there a group that can't be trusted?
Or they have a lot to hide, they have a lot to lose,
And they're just really good at putting together surprise parties.
So they were like, "you can't wear --
You have to wear these masks."
And you go in there, and there she is,
And there's a cake, and it's going to be fun.
It -- it could be either way.
I-I'm sorry. I j-- I just --
I just need a spin-off of "ron's world."
I -- I -- I need -- I need "the walk"--
"the walking dead: Ron's world."
I-I want to -- I want to see this birthday party.
I am -- I am all for it. It needs to happen.
You know, amc has got some -- you know what?
We can do it at 2:00 in the morning. We can --
Let's make it a podcast. I don't know.
I just -- I just -- I'm -- I'm here for it.
I am here for it. -I just wanted to give
Paola little bit of love and respect in this episode
Because this is one of the ones that I related to
The most as a comedian,
Because you see that she uses comedy and humor
And aloofness and fun as coping mechanisms for trauma.
And I thought this episode was a great way of showcasing
Just what happens when all your coping mechanisms
Start to fail you.
Like, you see it go from comedy,
To the state capitals, to everything.
And when those leave you
And you really have to just deal with what you've gone through,
I-it can be, you know, terrifying.
So I just thought that was something that I related to
And that I understood as a comedian,
As a person who has gone through trauma.
And I just thought that was a great episode.
And I just wanted to give you, paola,
Respect for the way that you portrayed it.
And so, I just want to mention that if I didn't get a chance to do so.
Thank you so much. Thank you. I appreciate that.
Khary, can you talk about
Playing such an aggressive version of ezekiel
When he's attacking the soldier?
Because at that point, I still --
Like, I hadn't caught on.
I don't know if anyone else had caught on yet.
I hadn't caught on yet.
And I just felt like, "oh, wow, this is --
We haven't seen ezekiel for like a minute,
And stuff has changed."
I wasn't even feeling like ezekiel at that point.
I think -- I think I had --
I had kind of left ezekiel behind.
You know, he's another person in -- in princess' life.
He's the protector. He's the aggressor.
He's the -- he's -- he's her fight-or-flight mode, you know?
And -- and I think she --
I think she literally takes away ezekiel
And just puts on his armor, you know, that -- that he's wearing
And -- and uses that, you know?
He looks kind of like -- he's got that predator hair.
You know, he just goes full predator, I think, you know?
He's just like, "any time, any time."
He's just ready to go.
Paola, what do you think is going through princess' mind
When she looks down and sees the blood on her hands
And realizes she's the one who attacked the soldier?
I think she -- she, like, goes back in her mind
To every moment in that episode
And every moment before that to see if these people even exist.
It might just -- she might have never met them, you know?
So I think she revisits
Everything that's happened in her life in the past week
And then -- and then some, you know?
I think it's -- I mean, I think it's that fear
That all of us have of losing control.
Ron, do you think the soldier was telling princess the truth,
That he was just a grunt?
No, I don't believe him at all. Not at all.
He was a great actor. He was believable in his words.
But just after, you know,
She came out of the interrogation,
You're not just going to say you're a grunt.
He was there to get information is what I believe.
I don't trust him at all.
Also, I just don't trust people with that type of haircut in general.
But that's just personal.
[laughter]
Oh, my goodness. I've never seen a-a stormtrooper
Who could hit the broadside of a barn.
I'm not scared of a stormtrooper. -Fair point.
But I was like, "how scared could you be
If a joker is wearing that much spandex
Underneath all of that stuff?"
If you -- there's a -- you know, just --
The way that cup is, I'm telling you --
I mean, the first thing I thought when I looked at him,
I was like -- I was like, "listen, you just go
Right underneath that cup, man.
That's -- and just keep moving.
Just pop him right under the cup
And get out of there."
Ohh, I can't wait till cons are a thing again.
I cannot wait. I miss it so much.
All right, coming up, some inside info
From tonight's episode that you can't get anywhere else.
And then later, of course, a sneak peek of next week's episode.
But first, make sure to follow twduniverse on twitch.
They are live up to five days a week
Playing games with guests, interacting with fans.
So please make sure to check that out.
That's, again, twitch -- twduniverse.
We will be right back on "talking dead."
♪♪
Welcome back to "talking dead: Home edition."
We're back with paola, khary, vivian, and ron.
Vivian, can you talk a little bit about the creative decision
To have the dressed-up walkers in this episode?
Well, it was a very princess thing, right?
So the other thing, too, is, like, you know,
We realized, as we were breaking the story,
That we had no walkers in this episode at all.
So we -- we kind of, like, tried to figure out
What the most organic way we could include one was.
And we realized that it actually helped us with princess' story,
With her arc, in that it's the moment
Where she kind of accepts
That she is having this hallucination
Or having this moment, and --
And she kind of accepts that about herself.
And she's aware. She's like, "okay, well,
This isn't ezekiel, clearly.
I'm going to have a conversation with him,
But it's clearly not ezekiel.
And these are just how sometimes I see walkers,
And I know that that's not what's really there."
We wanted to kind of, you know, give a what's up
To, like, how -- how we met princess. -Mm-hmm.
And sort of just hammer in that this is just what she's like
And she's, you know, okay with it
And she's just going to accept
That that's how she sees the world
And that's okay.
Um, so it was more of, like, I guess,
A fun way of using walkers on our show
And a way that we hadn't really ever used them before.
Not a lot of comedy walkers
I've noticed in the last 11 years.
Not -- -no. No.
Very limited
In terms of bits
That they -- that they do. -Yeah.
We get the award for that. Yeah, right?
Too many bites, not enough bits.
Come on, ron, back me up on that one.
That was a good joke. Come on, ron. -Hey!
-I agree with you. -That was good.
That was -- that was a quality pun.
-I've been saying it for years. -That was good.
That was -- [laughs]
Khary, khary, what did you enjoy most
About working with the dressed-up walkers?
You know what? I just immediately realized --
I was like, "nobody ever gets to do this.
Nobody ever gets to hang out with -- with walkers
Like they're your boys, you know?"
I -- and -- and they were --
And, you know, and I walked up, and I know that
They were the, you know, the -- the conductor and the engineer.
But when I stepped up and -- and they were literally --
I mean, the dude still had his pocket watch.
And I-I was like, "come here, man."
And I put my arm around one,
And I was like, "I'm gonna lean against you."
I can have my -- my arm around him,
And literally, he's just -- he's just, you know,
Kind of growling in my ear the whole time, you know?
And -- and he's -- he's just -- he's just --
We just a bunch of boys hanging out on the corner.
You know, it was -- I-I felt really lucky because,
Like you said, I-I don't think this has ever happened,
You're able to be -- be able to be this familiar
With, you know, with walkers in a situation.
So it was pretty cool.
Ron, if you could collaborate with princess
To dress up walkers, what would you want to see?
Pfft! Easy!
This is very easy.
Police officer, a construction worker,
Native american chief.
We make the village walkers. We're having a great time.
[laughter]
Oh! Yes!
Number-one album in the apocalypse.
"village walkers."
This is a question for paola from twitter, from...
Paola, if suddenly walkers stopped existing,
What do you think princess would do?
What would her plans for life be?
She would be a deejay, and she would host apocalypse parties.
Just, like, dance parties. Like, real chill every night.
Whoever wants to come, whoever's around can come through.
But she'd be the deejay of those parties,
And she would host them, yeah.
-Perfect answer. -May I also recommend therapy
Copious amounts of therapy will also be helpful.
Oh, yeah, that too. That would help, too.
But, you know, the deejay parties are very therapeutic.
You know? Like, that is also -- that would be very therapeutic.
Dancing is therapeutic.
-Absolutely. -Yeah.
Coming up, we have an exclusive sneak peek
Of next week's episode of "the walking dead,"
But, first, are you ready to go inside "the dead"?
Here's some inside info from tonight's episode
That you can't get anywhere else.
Please enjoy.
♪♪
Welcome back to "talking dead: Home edition."
I am very happy to welcome a fan to the show.
Joining us virtually is tyson from british columbia, canada.
Tyson, thank you for being here. Who do you have a question for?
I have a question for everyone, actually.
If princess's imagination could, say,
Spawn a tv crossover episode,
What tv character outside of the "walking dead" universe
Would you guys want to see her interact with?
Ooh! I mean, for me, that's an easy one.
I would, a thousand percent, cross over with "scooby-doo"
Just to watch the mystery machine pull up and be like --
And they just jump out.
You know how -- they'd have -- they just, like, run into
Celebrity guests, like, in the middle of a swamp.
"rick grimes?!" "howdy, kids."
You know, like, I would totally, totally --
"scooby-doo" crossover. A hundred percent.
Animated "walking dead?" without a doubt.
I don't know. Paola, what do you think?
You know, as princess, I would want to cross over to "ozark."
[laughter]
Just as the character in that world
That is so different from her.
I just want to be part of that crew. I just --
It would be terrible.
What about you, khary?
I had two, and one of them was literally "scooby-doo."
I was like -- -that means it's a good idea,
If we both came up with it.
It's got --
Vivian, you're not writing this down!
Why aren't you typing?!
I know! I'm sorry! I got it!
But my first choice would be "the a-team."
That was my other one! I wanna see -- really?!
Oh, wow.
Yes, because I thought about b.A. And hannibal and the van,
And as soon as I thought "van," I was like, "oh, no.
'scooby-doo.' better van. It's got to be animated."
Vivian. Vivian, do you have a dream television-show crossover?
I think it's really funny, and maybe because
I'm watching it now and --
I thought it would be really funny. Is "ted lasso."
I think it'd be funny to see princess
Crossed with "ted lasso."
[laughter]
And that entire football team.
Could she be the goalie? I want her to be the goalie!
I don't know. I think she'd be a trainer.
I mean, she would kill in that locker room, don't you think?
Like -- I don't know.
-Ron funches? -That was mine.
Oh. Walter white. 'cause I think the only thing
That can make "the walking dead" scarier
Is methamphetamines.
Well, ron, I have some -- ron, I have some news for you.
I have some news for you.
The universes of "the walking dead"
And "breaking bad" are connected in season two
Just as a nod to the prop departments.
There is blue meth in merle's --
Merle has, like, a knapsack, and there's blue meth in it,
So those two worlds are connected.
-Oh, wow. -And I had this working theory
That "breaking bad" caused "the walking dead"
Because after -- spoiler alert --
After heisenberg dies, someone tries to
Re-engineer the blue meth, and they don't do a good job.
And I wonder if that is what caused it.
I don't know. I'm just throwing it out there.
I'm on board. I'm on board!
-So... -That is brilliant.
Tyson, what about you? Did you have one?
Oh, man.
Probably gonna have to khary's cyborg, for sure.
[laughs]
Just seem him...
Just like... Be like, "all right."
-There you go! -[laughs]
That's it. That's it right there.
I didn't know you were a cyborg!
Yeah, yeah. I'm been cyborg for 18 years.
[laughs]
The voice of cyborg. I'm the voice of cyborg.
-Hey. -Yep.
My favorite line in the world in anything I ever seen in life
Is, "I think his dad is a cop!"
It was my favorite thing.
[laughter]
Oh, my god. That was so much fun. That was so much fun.
Tyson, thank you so much for being here.
And before you go, I want to show you guys this.
This is "the walking dead" soldiers t-shirt.
This, plus this brand-new princess sweatshirt,
Which is super-rad, are available, both, at
Thewalkingdeadshop.Com.
And, tyson, because you're such a great fan
And you asked such a wonderful question,
We're going to send you each one of these.
Thank you, guys, so much.
-Tyson! -Thanks, tyson, man!
Thanks, tyson!
Thank you. I hope you guys are all...
Thank you. You too, man.
Coming up, we have the exclusive sneak peek
Of next week's episode of "the walking dead."
We will be right back.
♪♪
Welcome back to "talking dead: Home edition."
Here is the exclusive sneak peek
Of next week's episode of "the walking dead."
Check it out.
You're not coming back with me.
Gonna stay out a little while longer.
Keep looking.
[dog pants]
You want a ride?
My bike's just up further.
No, I'm good.
♪♪
Hey, um --
You don't have to apologize. I'm good, really.
♪♪
I was just gonna say good luck.
♪♪
[clicks tongue]
♪♪
Good luck to you, too.
Thanks.
[panting]
[crow caws in distance]
[dog pants, whimpers]
[clicks tongue]
♪♪
Nice.
♪♪
Well, that -- yeah, I don't know.
They seem to be walking in different directions,
So I guess the daryl and carol saga continues.
I don't want to -- I hope that works out okay.
Wonder what's up with that dog.
Man's best friend, my ass! Huh?
I'm telling you.
[laughing] no.
Daryl seemed pretty salty about the dog --
I mean, he wasn't worried about carol walking off,
But when that dog left, he got salty, man.
Paola, what is going through princess' mind
When her -- when she sees everyone lined up there
In that last scene with the sacks over their heads?
Man, she just -- I mean, I --
Like, as princess, I trusted that dude.
Like -- like, the soldier.
I almost killed you. Cool. I'm sorry about that.
I trusted you, and I gave you all the information
That I do know about these people.
And to see for him --
When I asked, like, "when can I see my friends?"
And I see them all tied up
And with bags over their faces, it's a betrayal.
And -- and I think princess is like,
"oh, my god. Is this my fault?
Is it because I was volatile or, like, impulsive
And now they have this information that I gave them
And they're going to use that against us?"
So princess is just, like, going through all the emotions
At the same time.
Vivian, is there anything you can tell us about
What's in store for princess and the group moving forward?
Mnh-mnh. No.
[laughter]
That's my favorite answer!
Paola: She's like, "unh-unh. That was the best!
I don't think anyone's ever done that.
Usually, it's like, "well, you know, you're gonna have to --"
But I just like the immediate shutdown.
"no, I -- no. No."
She said, "unh-unh." I mean, I don't --
I honestly don't think -- I mean, I'm not being enough --
I mean, sorry. I'm not --
I don't actually -- I mean, you know,
No, I don't think -- that's a fair answer!
Listen, you don't -- that is a fair answer.
That was a straight-up clint eastwood just --
Just fast-draw, just -- mnh-mnh.
Just walk away.
Set strong boundaries, vivian.
We will just keep watching, vivian.
But amazing episode. Beautifully written.
Thank you so much for being here, vivian.
It was such a pleasure to have you on.
Thank you for watching "talking dead: Home edition."
My guests have been vivian and paola lázaro
And khary payton and ron funches.
Make sure to catch ron on "top secret videos" on trutv
And also check out his wonderful podcast,
"gettin' better with ron funches."
And he does a million things that you can see him in,
So follow him.
Also join us next week. We'll be joined by melissa mcbride,
Cooper andrews,
And the director of next week's episode, david boyd.
Also super fan and friend of the show
Property brother drew scott.
So please stay safe. Take care of each other.
I'm chris hardwick. I'll see you next time. Bye-bye.