John Hawkes Explains Why He
Turned Down Walking Dead Role

 

Weeks before AMC announced that veteran English actor Paul Morrissey will play The Governor in the third season of The Walking Dead, rumor circulated that Deadwood alum John Hawkes was being pursued for the role. The Oscar nominee’s publicist quickly sprang into action, insisting that the Oscar nominee would not appear on the hit horror series.

However, it turns out that Hawkes was indeed offered the part, but in the end he felt it wasn’t the right one for him.

“They offered me the role, and I just felt there would be someone else who could do it better,” Hawkes tells MovieWeb. “I was flattered, and I took a look at the series. It held interest for me, but I just didn’t feel like I was the guy for it. I have to be careful of what TV shows I choose, particularly ones that have commercials in them, because it’s going to be a different kind of television show. There are going to be sponsors. No matter how good the show is, if there are commercials, it’s going to be a different show, to me. That’s just my personal feeling. Yeah, it was nice of them to ask, and it’s a good show, but, again, I just didn’t feel I was the guy. They came to me and sent me the graphic novel and the first two seasons. I took a look at them, and just didn’t feel like it was for me.”

Hawkes, who was nominated for an Academy Award for his role in the 2010 drama Winter’s Bone, last appeared on television on ABC’s Lost and HBO’s Eastbound & Down. He also shot the Southern crime pilot Outlaw Country, which FX ultimately rejected.