‘The Walking Dead’ Stars Discuss the Season’s Most Terrifying Episode

You expect a fair amount of horror on AMC’s The Walking Dead… But not like this. On this week’s episode, “On The Inside,” and spoilers past this point, we finally reunited with Connie (Lauren Ridloff) and Virgil (Kevin Carroll), only for them to be trapped inside a dilapidated house filled with feral cannibals right out of The Hills Have Eyes. They’re pale, fast, crawl on all fours, and constantly popping out of the walls. And it is terrifying.

“With the regular episodes on the Walking Dead, the main horror element really are the Walkers,” Ridloff told Decider, “and they’re moving so slowly that we see it coming from a mile away. Whereas in this episode, it’s more focused on the jump scare elements.”

And it is extremely scary, as Connie — who is deaf, like Ridloff in real life — becomes trapped in the walls while Virgil is fighting off the ferals. Since Virgil doesn’t know American Sign Language (ASL) the episode becomes about fighting off this new threat, but also how these two relative strangers can figure out how to communicate.

To find out more about filming the episode, as well as Connie and Virgil’s journey into the next part of the season — and Connie potentially reuniting with Daryl (Norman Reedus) — read on.

[Note: Ridloff’s portion of the interview was conducted with the assistance of an American Sign Language interpreter.]

Decider: This episode was honestly one of the most terrifying things I’ve seen on the show in years… So what overall was the experience of filming this like? And how was it different than a regular episode of Walking Dead, for both of you?

Kevin Carroll: Well, for me, Virgil has been in and out of the journey of Walking Dead. So the whole notion of it being centered around horror for the sake of a genre, for me, was the real difference. And having a chance to do that with [director] Greg [Nicotero] and Lauren was really incredible, and a great learning experience along the way. Walking Dead is generally scary, but when it was focused in this genre with specific genre elements of horror it took it out of a familiarity of the world being scary on Walking Dead, and put it in a different context. In the way we told the story of being scared. It’s interesting learning, and I love it, and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Lauren Ridloff: I mean it’s so different because I think with the regular episodes on the Walking Dead, the main horror element really are the Walkers, and they’re moving so slowly that we see it coming from a mile away. Whereas in this episode, it’s more focused on the jump scare elements. You jumped out of your seat and the monsters that you have in this episode move quickly, and they’re unpredictable. And so I do think that that episode really brings an interesting sense of risk and danger. It’s an immediate danger that you’re facing. And also, I think what makes this episode so unique is that there are moments when the audience can actually really experience things from Connie’s perspective as a deaf person, and being stuck in a situation where you just don’t know what’s going to happen next. You know, she’s just unaware what’s chasing after her.

I’ve been on set a couple of times, so I know there’s always a disconnect between the zombie actors growling at everybody when the cameras roll versus, they’re shambling along at craft services and eating with everybody else. Was it like that with the feral cannibals as well? Did they just sort of pop up and start chatting up a storm?

Lauren Ridloff: Well yeah, that was what was so interesting. I was talking with one of the ferals. I know Kevin is quite familiar with… I mean I love having those conversations, and I found out that one of them actually was a performer from Cirque du Soleil. And then another one was a Walker in previous episodes. So yeah, there’s definitely that big disconnect from the ferals, and also the actors who play the ferals.

Kevin Carroll: Yeah, absolutely. The whole show moves and breathes as a team. So underneath everything that’s going on, there are people who appreciate being connected and working in the world of The Walking Dead, who all go home with families and have issues and talk about life issues between takes or whenever it’s appropriate. But when it’s time to do the work, everybody gets focused. And The Walking Dead has really, really incredible stunt people that help tell that side of the story. But they’re people, we’re a team.

I mean, speaking of that, one of the interesting things about the episode is throwing Connie and Virgil together — two characters you wouldn’t necessarily expect to see together. So what does each one bring to the other, would you say? What does Connie bring to Virgil, and what does Virgil bring to Connie?

Lauren Ridloff: It’s funny that Kevin was talking about the team element. I think that this episode really focused on the developing relationship between two people. And we could actually see that obviously, Connie and Virgil are not team players at the beginning. There’s a lot of disagreement. There’s a lot of back and forth in tension. One has the idea to go one way, and the other one wants to go the opposite way. Throughout the episode, I think that people start to see those moments where Virgil and Connie become closer and closer throughout the episode. And I think that that pivotal moment in the episode is when Virgil pulls Connie out of the wall.

That’s when they really have that break through, so to speak. It’s that physical connection that they have. Thank God that we’re together again. Moving forward, you get that sense of a team element, of teamwork.

Kevin Carroll: There’s an incredible parallel to Virgil and Connie’s journey happening in the world right now, which is that they are forced to be team players with each other for a greater good, which is survival. And although they may not agree on everything, there’s a point at which they have to decide that we are better and stronger together than apart. That is such an immediate notion of where we are in the world. And a bigger conversation, cultural compensation, that we see through Virgil and Connie. On some level, I really think that it’s interesting that Connie exists in a world primarily through sight. And Virgil, having sight, can take it for granted. But Virgil has the ability to hear, so in a way she’s his eyes and he’s her ears, and they make one. I think it’s just beautiful.

Lauren, I did want to ask you about the scene towards the end of the episode where Connie finally reunites with Kelly… What was it like for you playing that scene, as well as just reuniting and seeing Angel Theory again on set?

Lauren Ridloff: Well, actually, when I first read the script, I was thinking about that specific scene and it made me tear up. Just because it made me realize how much I actually missed Angel, and because I hadn’t seen her for a while because of COVID, and you know, that kept us apart. So it got my mind spinning, should I reach out to Greg about the possibility of not allowing… To see if it would be possible to work out the schedule where I wouldn’t see Angel until we actually, physically shot that scene.

I really wanted that scene to really be the first time that I, personally, Lauren, and Angel saw each other. And I do think that what we see in that final scene is actually very authentic and we were so happy to see each other. We have the lockdown, and we have this massive shift during the pandemic, and now we’re reuniting again. And I just think that really played into Connie and Kelly’s scene quite easily.

Virgil, assuming he survives his multiple stab wounds at the end of the episode, is finally going to be joining a group again, a journey that he’s been on since he first encountered Michonne. How, potentially is that going to change him?

Kevin Carroll: Well, I think that’s the great mystery. What we know at this point is that because of Virgil’s time with Michonne, he has been changed in some way. And now it’s about how will use that growth in the journey moving forward. And [showrunner] Angela [Kang] and the team were so great at unveiling that, that that’s kind of I guess what we’re excited to see.

Lauren, the other half of the episode is all about Daryl and what’s going on with him, with Leah. He’s obviously in a very different place at this point than the last time Connie saw him. So potentially when they reunite, what, if anything, can we expect? Will there be sparks again? Is there going to be a love triangle situation with Connie, and Daryl, and Leah?

Lauren Ridloff: One thing that is quite clear is that Connie has changed, also. She’s in a different place mentally, as opposed to before the cave. And now when she actually, finally reunites with part of her group, her sister specifically. So I do think that Connie now has some PTSD that she’s dealing with, and she needs to deal with that first and how that actually affects her and her relationships. Whether it be with Daryl, or her reentering into that community again. So only time will tell.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

The Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9/8c on AMC, and streams a week early on AMC+.

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