The Walking Dead's Lauren Cohan Reveals What Part Of The Show She Dreaded: "It's A Rare Experience"

The Walking Dead star Lauren Cohan revealed the part of the show she dreaded the most in a newly released interview about her time starring as Maggie Green. Cohan played her character across 10 seasons of the seminal horror drama series, during which time she had to say goodbye to many of her fellow main TWD cast members, as their characters were killed off one by one. Most notably, Maggie’s husband, Glenn Rhee, who was played by Steven Yeun, was killed off in one of The Walking Dead’s defining scenes.

In an interview with Tommy DiDario for his podcast I’ve Never Said This Before, exclusively previewed by Collider on Tuesday, June 10, Cohan explained that it was actually the deaths of other longtime characters that she dreaded while working on the show. On the one hand, she was empathizing with the loss her character felt each time someone died in The Walking Dead, and on the other, the actor herself was losing real-life friends she’d made through their years working together. Check out her comments to DiDario:

“There were times I felt dread for depicting the moments of loss that Maggie had, but they’re obviously the things that are so great about the show. The things you dread are when your friends get the call and the scene of them dying is coming and you don’t want to do it. It’s a rare experience to feel so deeply with people and connect.”

What Lauren Cohan’s Revelation About Character Deaths Means For The Walking Dead

Her Comments With How Both Fans & Creator Robert Kirkman Often Felt

Lauren Cohan’s revelation about how she felt when hearing that another character was killed off in The Walking Dead shows that it wasn’t just fans who took these deaths to heart. The series' cast also grieved the loss of their colleagues, friends, and characters who’d been part of their working lives for a long time. Her comments chime with a previous confession from Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman that character deaths even took their toll on him.

The killing off of main characters was a necessary part of what made the series so great, as it underlined that absolutely no one was safe in this ultra-realistic depiction of a zombie apocalypse. At the same time, several key deaths during the course of The Walking Dead’s run faced a significant backlash, as they divided the show’s fanbase. Cohan’s comments reveal that cast members weren’t particularly happy about these deaths either.

Our Take On Lauren Cohan’s Comments About The Part Of The Walking Dead She Dreaded

Cohan Felt A Powerful Sense Of Loss As Both An Actor & A Character

It’s completely understandable that Lauren Cohan would feel so much dread in anticipation of a major character dying in The Walking Dead. First and foremost, these events meant that she would be bidding farewell to a longtime colleague who’d likely become a personal friend, after working closely with them on long shoots for several months at a time across an entire decade.

However, it’s interesting that Cohan also talks about her sense of dread in relation to “depicting the moments of loss that Maggie had.” This sentiment reflects how deeply the actor was immersed in the world of her character, to the extent that she seemed to feel how Maggie herself would have felt if she knew a friend or loved one was going to die. It indicates Cohan’s profound commitment to her role, which explains why she was consistently one of the standout performers throughout her time on The Walking Dead.