Mathew August Jaffers reveals the moment he learned about his character’s destiny in ‘The Walking Dead’
Mathew August Jaffers reflected on the moment he first learned about his character and his role in The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Love.
Note: Spoilers ahead for The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live, Episode 2 ‘Gone’.
Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Jeffers who portrayed Nat in the horror series shared that he wasn’t ‘certain’ about the fate of Nat but admitted it was a possibility.
He said, “As it got closer, it was looking more like a one-episode guest star. I was like, “Okay, great! But I didn’t get the script until after I had signed on”.
The actor also continued to share how he was initially optimistic regarding his role. Recounting the first time he read the script he revealed, “I was like, ‘Oh my God, this character! This beautiful, beautiful man!’”.
“There’s a scene toward the end at the campfire where Nat says, “I can come with you. We’ll do it.” I was like, “Oh my God, we’re going to make a whole life together and it’s going to be a happy ending!”, he added.
However, upon realizing Nat’s role was limited to one episode only, he explained, “I immediately went to YouTube to search ‘How to die on screen’. It’s literally in my YouTube history.”
“I was like: I’ve never done this, so this will be interesting”, Jaffer admitted.
Jaffer also remarked Nat’s death as ‘Painful’ yet ‘Poetic’. He believed that Nat’s death was not a tragic loss but a reflection of his character’s loyalty and commitment to fulfilling the dreams of those he loved.
He explained that when “Nat sees Michonne in unison with Rick, it’s like, okay, I can walk off into the sunset in this kind of beautiful, tragic ending” deeming his end as a befitting yet bittersweet resolution.
For those who haven’t explored, Jaffer is an actor with Unidentified Objects, FBI and The Blacklist to his credit. He is currently busy in his Broadway show An Enemy of the People which premiered on 27 February.
