Ross Marquand on Aaron's Angst and the "Epic" End of The Walking Dead

03/20/2022 10:15 pm EDT

Warning: this story contains spoilers for Sunday's "Warlords" episode of The Walking Dead. "Together, we're strong. You can make us even stronger," Alexandria recruiter Aaron (Ross Marquand) tells Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and his group of zombie apocalypse survivors in Season 5 of The Walking Dead. Years later, Aaron and Father Gabriel (Seth Gilliam) are emissaries for the Commonwealth, an advanced community of 50,000 people living in Ohio. After surviving attacks by wind, walkers, and Whisperers, the Alexandria Safe-Zone is undergoing a rebuild as part of the ambitious Lance Hornsby's (Josh Hamilton) communal project he told Aaron is going to "remake the world." 

An NGO worker before the world fell, Aaron agrees to help with the Commonwealth's new immigration initiative to make first contact and bring in people who need help. Partnered with the zen Toby Carlson (Jason Butler Harner) and a squad of white-armored Commonwealth troopers, Aaron and Gabriel's outreach mission is to Riverbend, a group of 40 people holed up in an apartment complex on the western border of Virginia.

But Carlson tortures and kills Riverbend's warlord leader Ian (guest star Michael Biehn), who accuses the Commonwealth diplomats of being "wolves dressed as sheep." Revealed as a former assassin for the CIA, Carlson used Aaron and Gabriel to get the religious Riverbend's guard down in his covert mission to infiltrate the complex and recover a stolen shipment of guns for Hornsby.

We reached out to Ross Marquand to ask about the rotten core of the Commonwealth, Aaron's angst and anger at Carlson, and what happens after that cliffhanger as we barrel towards the end of Part 2 of the three-part finale season of The Walking Dead.

ComicBook: "Warlords" sits you and Seth in front of a volatile warlord, Ian, played by Michael Biehn. Last season, it was Robert Patrick's Mays [in "One More"]. Both episodes from [writers] Jim Barnes and Erik Mountain, who must be big Terminator fans. Tell me about filming that tense scene in Ian's office and working with Michael.

Ross Marquand: Well, it's so funny, because I definitely kind of laughed when I heard that Michael was going to be playing the part [laughs]. Because I was so excited to work with Robert last year and excited but also intimidated because I love his body of work and also, he usually plays such scary badasses that I was worried that he was going to come to set and be kind of gruff or whatever. Robert couldn't have been nicer, couldn't have been more fun to talk to. We were laughing and joking around half the time. And then it came time to work, he was most professional and easy to work with.

And I got to say, I had the same trepidation about working with Michael because he also plays gruff badasses [laughs]. They were both just the most lovely, affable, fun-to-talk-to guys. I mean, we're so lucky to have such incredible veteran actors like them to play on our show, even if it was just for an episode. I mean, we really lucked out getting both of them to play in our universe. And I wish there were more versions of them, like more twins or triplets in the case of Mays. But they were both so much fun to work with and I'm just really pleased that they got to play in our world. And I think the fans are really going to like it a lot.

ComicBook: This episode recalls Aaron's history as an NGO worker turned recruiter for Alexandria. Aaron abandoned some of that diplomacy in Season 10 when dealing with The Whisperers. Here, Aaron thinks he's on this outreach mission to help people, but it turns out to be a covert operation of Hornsby and Carlson's to kill people suspected of stealing weapons. What is Aaron thinking when it's revealed this mission is the opposite of what he's been out to do?

Ross Marquand: Well, I think he's obviously furious. I mean, no one thought that the Commonwealth would stoop this low. I think that everyone had their doubts about them, but they certainly didn't think that they had something like this in mind. And the very fact that this man, Carlson, is so willing to just turn the situation so unnecessarily dark so quickly, I think it really shocks Aaron at first. And then all of a sudden he just snaps back to reality and realizes, "Oh my God, we really thought that these guys were on the level and now we're realizing they're just another Governor. They're just another Savior group."

After he snaps back to reality and realizes just how grim the circumstances they're in are, I mean, he's just taken out the head of this complex, and now they've got to fight their way out of this horribly scary place that has skulls and all sorts of craziness going on. So I think he's really upset. I think he's furious that Carlson decided to go this route. He believed that was a totally unnecessary course of action. And of course, his actions later in the episode definitely showed that he's not going to stand for it.

ComicBook: You mentioned Carlson's dark turn. Earlier in the season, Aaron interrogated and tortured Whisperer Keith [Brad Fleischer] at Hilltop. Carol [Melissa McBride] warned Aaron that's a dark path he doesn't want to go down. Here he's visibly shocked to see Carlson do the same thing to Ian. Is this going to reel in Aaron's darker side we've been seeing? Or push him more over the edge?

Ross Marquand: I don't think so because what Aaron did to the Whisperer earlier in the season, I think was more than justified. I mean, everything the Whisperers had done to our group for the better portion of two seasons was just absolutely inhumane, animalistic, savage behavior. And even though, as I mentioned before, of course, this group certainly has skulls in their cabinets, that doesn't necessarily mean that they're bad people. It just means that they are a little intense and they don't take kindly to strangers.

So I think that their warning was very clear and it was very heartfelt. And I feel like Aaron and Gabriel were more than willing to just take a step back and say, "Hey, no worries. We get it. You don't want us here. We're willing to take off." And he was certainly willing to do that, but Carlson's darkness was less coming from a place of self-protection and more so from a place of subjugation. "How can we take from these people? How can we get more from these people?" And less about protecting himself or the rest of us.

ComicBook: Aaron's always been the peacekeeper and a good judge of character, but Ian was right: Carlson is a wolf. He slips back into this former CIA operative, Jason Bourne-type killer. What do you think it means for Aaron that he was wrong about Carlson's heart being in the right place?

Ross Marquand: I think that definitely stings a lot because one of the things that Aaron has always prided himself on of course is knowing who good people are. I mean, that's why he brought Rick [Andrew Lincoln] and the group in the first place. That's why he brought a lot of people in Alexandria. So clearly his meter is off a little bit. He's got to recalibrate that. But at the end of the day, I think he likes to believe that everyone is trustworthy until proven otherwise, and the deception is less a fault of Aaron and more a fault of Carlson, I would say.

ComicBook: Definitely. Let's talk about the scene between you and Seth in the church. Father Gabriel this season has lost and found his faith, a one-eighty from where he was last season [in "One More"]. Does seeing this give Aaron hope he's right to have more faith in humanity again? 

Ross Marquand: Oh, absolutely. I think seeing his friend lose his faith so profoundly and even take out a relative stranger in Mays, I think it really shocked Aaron. Because one of the things that I think Aaron and Gabriel always had in common is the fact that they do see the goodness in people, they do see the need to forgive people for their past mistakes. That's what they both believe in more than anything.

To see Gabriel act so viciously towards this very fragile, very broken man, I think it gave him pause in terms of how he saw his friend. So seeing this genuine reaction from Gabriel when Carlson decides to go AWOL and take out Michael Biehn's character, I think it was a nice moment for Aaron to check in and say, "Okay, my friend is back, he's coming back into the fold, he's coming back to his faith and we can now fight this guy together because we're on the same page."

ComicBook: As you said, Aaron's always been about mercy and forgiveness, but he's about to fight Carlson before being forced to flee. What happens if those troopers don't interrupt? Does Aaron kill Carlson right then and there? 

Ross Marquand: Yeah. I mean, gosh, I'd like to think that he would have a little bit more mercy than that, but Carlson literally just pulled a gun and pulled the trigger on him, and if it had not been for the lack of bullets or gun jam, he would've killed Aaron. So I think in that moment, Aaron's blood is so high, I mean, he just took out a soldier for shooting the guy on the horse. So, I mean, I think it's well within the realm of possibility that after that misfire, Aaron most definitely would've come up and knocked Carlson's head off.

ComicBook: We've seen Aaron is, obviously, very skeptical of Hornsby and the Commonwealth, even as they rebuild Alexandria. After everything that happens in this episode, is Aaron regretting this partnership? Or is it worth the cost if it means Gracie [Anabelle Holloway] isn't starving and their home is safe? 

Ross Marquand: I think it's definitely a potential for regret because I think in this moment, he's trying to suss out whether or not Carlson is acting as a rogue agent on his own, someone who maybe has PTSD from his time as a CIA agent, and just has some knee-jerk reaction to being in a hot button situation. But it certainly will now, once he has some time away from the situation, give him a moment of pause to think, "Oh gosh, was this Hornsby's plan all along, or is Carlson acting on his own?" I think he's definitely going to have to ask those questions as time goes on.

ComicBook: This episode ends on a cliffhanger. Aaron and Maggie's group infiltrate the Riverbend complex as Carlson orders the residents to be killed. What can you tease about what's next? 

Ross Marquand: Unfortunately, not much [laughs]. Except that it's going to be a very exciting episode, what comes next. I'm really excited for the fan reaction — for the last few weeks, honestly — but especially for this episode coming up, I think they're really going to like it.

ComicBook: Let's jump back to Episode 12 ["The Lucky Ones"]. Aaron replaces Rick Grimes from the comics when he tours Alexandria with Governor Pamela Milton [Laila Robins]. Should we think this means Aaron takes on more of Rick's story from the final issues? 

Ross Marquand: I don't know. I tend to stray away from the comparisons between Aaron and Rick, because I get the beard thing and the one arm thing are very obvious things to draw comparison to [laughs], but they're such vastly different characters. And I think there's certainly moments from Andrea's [comic book] storyline that were given Sasha [Sonequa Martin-Green] and vice versa, and I think that it's cool how the show constantly keeps the fans on their toes, who read the comic books as well. But at the end of the day, I think they're such vastly different characters that there's no saying that this person's going to get this person's storyline just because there's a few similarities here and there.

ComicBook: As a comic book reader, and as a fan of yours, I've enjoyed where they've taken Aaron on the show as the de facto leader of Alexandria. 

Ross Marquand: Thank you, man. I appreciate that. That's all I really wanted for the character.

ComicBook: I want to ask about Aaron's ominous nightmare earlier this season where he dies protecting Gracie. Fans are worried this is foreshadowing a horrific fate for Aaron. What should we make of that dream? 

Ross Marquand: I think like any dream, it's an indication of where your subconscious mind is at, right? So Aaron is definitely terrified for the future of Alexandria and his daughter and for all the people in it. I think his main goal after the saga with the Whisperers is to rebuild and to make sure that he leaves that community stronger and more sustainable than how he found it. And if he's not able to succeed in doing that, his daughter's life is at risk. So he just wants to provide the very best and most sustainable future for his daughter and everyone else who lives in Alexandria. And it's clearly keeping him up at night [laughs]. 

ComicBook: Aaron doesn't know it yet, but it's Negan [Jeffrey Dean Morgan] who comes to Aaron and Gabriel's rescue when he sends the map to Maggie. Do you ever see Aaron forgiving Negan? Or at least being more tolerant of him being around? 

Ross Marquand: Yeah. I don't think he can. I mean, I think Aaron and Maggie are very much alike in this regard. Listen, I think Aaron has more than tolerated Negan over the last few seasons [laughs]. I mean, there's so many times where he certainly could have killed him, [like] when they were off on their own little private mission when Aaron got partially blinded for a second from the hogweed. I'm a big fan of forgiveness, I know Aaron is a big fan of forgiveness as well, but I think there's just some things like the killing of a loved one, the insane, unnecessary, totally unfathomable and inexcusable killing of a loved one for no other reason than just to intimidate.

I don't think Aaron or Maggie will ever be able to fully forgive Negan and that's okay. There's just some wounds that are too deep, but I do think Aaron has shown, and Maggie has certainly shown, that they can fight alongside him and certainly tolerate him for the greater good, if it means the greater good and not just Negan's good. And I am genuinely happy that Negan has gotten a redemption arc of sorts for the last few seasons, because it's nice to see that person who was so terrible in seasons prior really changed into a different person and a better human. Whether or not Aaron or Maggie will ever forgive him, I think it's pretty safe to say that it's a big no. But yeah, it's cool to see him change and grow as much as he has.

ComicBook: We're speaking halfway through the final season as The Walking Dead films its series finale. What should we expect from the final episodes? What would you like to say to the fans in the final stretch?

Ross Marquand: I definitely can't tell you what to expect from the last few episodes, except that it's going to be epic in true Walking Dead fashion. But if I can say anything to the fans, I just want to thank them. I mean, I was a fan before I got on this show and I feel like I've always thought that I'd won the fan lottery by, at one point, being a fan and watching it on my couch and then actually being inserted into the very TV show that I love so much. And I just want to thank all of them so much for going on this journey for the last 11 years. We literally would not have any of this story, we wouldn't have the opportunity to tell any of these stories without their loyalty and without their support.

And that's just a fact. I mean, I'm not doing lip service here, that's just the truth. We would not have had this long of a run and this many opportunities for such incredible storylines without their support and their love. And I'm going to keep saying it the next few months until the last episodes are there, but I just got to thank the fans so much for their support because it's pretty remarkable. There aren't a lot of shows that have had runs like this, especially not on cable. It's pretty remarkable, kind of a once-in-a-lifetime thing.

ComicBook: I've been watching since the beginning. I'm hoping Aaron gets his happy ending, man, or I'm going to be devastated [laughs].  

Ross Marquand: [Laughs] Me too. You and me both!   

Follow @CameronBonomolo on Twitter and @NewsOfTheDead for TWD Universe coverage all season long. New episodes of The Walking Dead: The Final Season Part 2 of 3 air Sundays on AMC and AMC+.  

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