Kim Dickens, Danay Garcia & Rubén Blades – Fear the Walking Dead

By: Jamie Steinberg

Q) Kim, what an arc to come back to this season. What’s it bene like to play some very different fascites for Madison this year?

Kim: It’s always challenging. This show is always put us through our courses. And that’s what we love about it. When I first spoke to Ian [Goldberg] and Andrew [Chambliss]  about coming back on the show, they sort of presented the arc to me and it was very exciting to me, more than I expected it to be. And so I just jumped in and did it. This season I think we really see Madison – we start with Madison in the place that’s her lowest I’ve ever played. The darkest I’ve ever played. And then part of Madison’s arc will be how does she find herself? How does she reconcile the things she’s done? How does she put herself back together if she does? That’s been the journey to play, which was very challenging.

Q) This is obviously sadly the end of the line Fear the Walking Dead. What has the journey has meant to all of you throughout these years?

Kim: I think I said it at WonderCon. I said it the day I wrapped. But this job has really been profound for me. I’ve never led a show, as I did for the first four seasons. I never have been on a show for this amount of time. I’ve never been so challenged personally and professionally. And I’ve never been so rewarded by a role and a job. When I got the role of Madison I felt like everything I’ve done in my life, every class I’ve taken and every job I’ve done, everything sort of led me to that role and and I felt so fortunate. And so for it to have lasted as long as it has for us it’s just been profound. It really has. So much has happened in our lives. We’ve grown professionally and personally. We’ve created this familythat’s phenomenal. And it’s emotional to let it go but it’s it feels right. I think we all feel good about it.

Danay: Yes, I was listening to Kim and I felt the same. I joined the show we were in Mexico. It was a different landscape. It was a different country. It felt like so long agom but we were there. We were together. We were there from day one and then the last season we finished in Georgia – in Savannah. It is like another landscape, another struggle. It was struggles to deal with the days and the heat and but at the same time looking at each other we’re still together. We’re still here and, for me, was I didn’t realize how important it was to finish with Kim until she showed up. I realized when she left out what a hole she created. It’s like as a kid you grow up you’re like, “I’m gonna be a big girl.” Then mom comes and you’re like, “Ahh!” She really filled that in. And also we were in Savannah, which is like a new place that all of us kind of reunited for the first time so it was weird, I’ve never been to Savannah. I don’t know if Kim has been to Savannah. I know Ruben hasn’t been there. Like he was just this middle ground of us finding a spot to live and to eat. It felt really interesting to kind of like reconnect in a middle ground place, personally and as an artist. Seeing those faces that you know, you started this big job it meant so much and I felt so grateful to be part of that for my journey as an artist . And I felt like this job has prepared me for so much in the future. Definitely I learned that nobody’s gone until they’re gone for real. [laughs] And like it’s crazy. And that there’s always room for surprises. Tthis is this kind of career that just never stopped surprising us really. Never. It just never stops.

Ruben: Well, first of all, it took me out of unemployment. That’s very good. Secondly, as an actor, I thought it is a dream of every actor to play a character that does not correspond to you – to your own self. And the possibilities of Daniel Salazar were like a constant source of change, challenge and amazement, because there was this person that has nothing to do with me, the way I am, the way I usually act and think, and yet I had to find a way to, to understand the character and to bring out of whatever lines I’ve been given the humanity of the character in spite of the fact that it was somebody that in real life probably we would have not been friends. Every single time that I worked throughout this eight seasons there was always a discovery for me. That’s the thing about acting, it forces you to to acknowledge things about yourself or about other people that you probably ordinarily wouldn’t address. As far as everybody, I mean I’m super glad that Kim is back and with us at the end of the eight seasons. I mean, I’m not gonna get into…When she left it was a surprise me. And so I was very, very happy that somehow it worked that she could come and finish with us when we started. And so that’s one thing that made me very happy that she came back.

Q) When I heard that Kim was coming back to the show. One of the things I was looking forward to was a reunion with Alicia. But then again, like Danay said, “Nobody’s gone until they’re gone.” Right? Like we haven’t seen a body yet. Could we maybe see Alicia return to the show? Is that something you would like to see personally?

Kim: Personally, yeah. love the whole cast. I love my original family. You know? I love working with Alycia Debnam-Carey. We’re still friends. But she she left and has things going on and everything. But I think in this universe never say never. And I think what has been interesting how that even though Madison wasn’t around how much her presence was felt in Alicia’s growth, becoming her own leader and becoming a woman and an adult and a warrior and everything and I think it was interesting how they sort of kept Madison alive in that way. And I think they do the same thing with my children for Madison, you know? Yeah, but you never say never.

Q) I want to ask you about fan favorite moments. Fans adore this show. They’re gonna miss it when it’s over. What is a moment that you remember most that a fan said to you, gave you or something that will stick with you from a fan?

[Ruben displays his first ever headshot.]

Kim: Who’s that handsome guy?

Ruben: That was me. The thing with the fans that I always liked very much was the fact that they send us paintings. And very good ones too. They would send us like their images of our work. And as far as anything, I mean, I’m just grateful that they supported us for all these seasons. I’m sure that that Daniel Salazar kept surviving because of the fan support. And I will never have enough words to thank them for for that – never ever. I mean, I’m convinced that Salazar, who gone through like from being hit by lightning to like, whatever shot, hit, whatever. I’m alive because of the fans. So that to me was the biggest show of affection and support and one that I will never be able to fulfill- to correctly thank for.

Danay: I was just asking Kim if we were going to ComicCon because I will never forget you know that first year ComicCon. I remember it was the entire original family. It was overwhelming what it was already created with the show and I was just getting splashed of that love that was so powerful and for days too! It was like a four day ComicCon experience. Even Abigail made it there! Even Abigail was loved by the fans! They had a tour and even I had the tour and I didn’t touch Abigail! I mean, seriously! When I left that beautiful experience with the fans, it was a one on one, I remember thinking, “I’m in a special place with special people and special fans.” And years after tha,t they just they haven’t stopped surprising me to that level of love and the fan art that Ruben is saying. Like the curiosity of the of the universe. They are really truly hard fans and it’s it was shown to me really quickly at that ComicCon and it was so special. I’ve never forget that and every year after that has been just really fulfilling to me. I can never thank them enough. Because of them. We had this great experience on this great run. Even through a pandemic. We actually survived the pandemic as a show like so many shows get canceled! Like that’s crazy. And all that happened because of them. And what’s funny is that I actually asked a few of them, “Now that we’ve been through a pandemic and there has been it’s been so difficult, are you guys okay watching a show that is also talks about a virus?” And they were like, “Yes, that feels like home. Our normal life here does not feel like home but you guys made us make us feel like we’re at home.” And so I was like, “Great. I’m glad that we’re helping you guys cope with what’s real out there”. So, it was a true blessing to be part of it.

Kim: Yeah, I think like Ruben and Danay the fans literally brought me back to life. I really believe that…I moved on with my life after the show after they killed Madison off and I every so often I started to get wind of like the sort of fan uproar, if you will. And I do think that sort of passion was the match that lit the flame to the idea to bring Madison back and I’m forever grateful for that too so that I get to finish the show. My gratitude is endless to this fan base. I’ve never experienced a more mobilized, passionate, ravenous fan base and it’s exciting. The exchange is so fun. We don’t always get that, so it’s like a collaboration in a way. So, I value that so much. And the other thing that I can recall as far as fan moments was really in first season and after first season when we were doing the meet and greets and things like that. I just remember a lot of mothers coming up to me and families coming up together saying , “We were watching this as a family,” because we really were an imperfect family unit. Tthere was a son with drug problems. There was a daughter that was a golden child but overlooked because the son needed more attention. There was the new stepfather. There was the previously deceased father. For a lack of a better word, the dysfunction of really what normal families are and it was reflected on television and I think people embrace that and said, “There we are. We’re not perfect, but we love each other.” So, I think that really resonated with the fans in the beginning. And a lot of mothers would say to me, “Thank you for telling the story because my son struggles, and I love him so much, and I tried to find the best way to to help him through that.” And so that was sort of surprising how much that really resonated with people.

Q) This is such a special series for all of you. And it’s meant so much as we’ve touched on to so many people. What can tease maybe some mementos you’re taking with you from your time working on a series? I know Ruben’s talked about paintings, but are there some personal items from your character that each of you are taking with you?

Ruben: I took one of the hats. I should have taken both but I took one. I took the hat – the little hat.

Kim: Ruben, look what I have..

[Kim displays a sledgehammer]

Kim: Somebody asked me before so I got it out of the closet. I have my my leather jacket.

Danay: Oh good. I love that jacket.

Ruben: I couldn’t bring any of the clothes because they were always dirty.
clothes because they were always dirty.

Danay: They asked me, “Hey, what do you want to keep?” They asked me that when I was working and I just looked down I was like, “My boots!” I thought they were gonna give me like new boots a little bit. No, they gave me the one that I actually wore! They actually came in a box and I was like, “What is this?” And it comes as just dirty boots. I was like, “Oh my god! Obviously, this is the apocalypse.” Right? And I kept Luciana’s bracelet.

*CONFERENCE CALL*