A lake on fire.
Humans having their flesh ripped off by ravenous zombies.
(Click through both pages to read the entire interview.
Credit: Gene Page/AMC
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ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: What was the hardest thing about shooting this at night?
What logistical challenges did that cause?
Gene Page/AMC
GREG NICOTERO:The real challenge was we shot in August.
It was basically the shortest amount of night that we could shoot with.
So shootable light would be 8:30 at night, and then the sun would come up at 6.
Gene Page/AMC
Then I said, no, no, no, no, well cut the shooting day.
How is approaching these touchstone moments form the comic different from a regular scene?
We got to get going.
I wanted it to be a shock and a surprise when the walkers grab him.
And then of course the second that hes bitten, Jessies gone.
So theres no struggle.
So to have the walkers transition from biting Sam and then have Jessie get swarmed.
It was a delicate balance I think more emotionally than actually physically choreographing it.
Yeah, because you guys dont do that much, if at all.
I cant off the top of my head remember you guys doing flashbacks like that really.
So all those different things have to be conveyed in the space of 18 seconds.
So it was definitely a juggling act to check that that we had every single one of those beats.
And for me, the actual gag where Sam is bitten needed to be a shock.
I didnt want to use CG blood.
I didnt want to put a prosthetic on [actor Major Dodsons] forehead.
So we came up with a rig where we made dentures that had blood tubing attached to them.
So I wanted it to be real.
I wanted it to be raw.
I wanted it to be emotional, and when he screams Mommy!
Theres no coming back from that.
Why am I not allowed to cut my hair?
Everybody else is getting haircuts in Alexandria.
In the comic book, the wound really defines who Carl becomes in subsequent issues and subsequent episodes.
So it was important, just like with Hershel or Merle.
Those things happen, and they shape who that character is going to be down the line.
And it gets faster and faster and faster, almost showing how they are all becoming one.
Where did that come from?
You know, this is the end of our story up to this point.
We dont leave people.
We actually shot that the last day of principal photography.
And it was like a catwalk.
It was a like a murder catwalk of having them go down.
One line would have them end up in one camera position.
Another line would be a different camera position.
So when we shot it, we shot them six people at a time.
The whole lake on fire idea came up from a location scout on the first episode.
And I remember saying to Scott, This is a stunning looking location.
All the trees were dead.
All the brush was dead.
So we laid the groundwork in the show that zombies dont walk away from it, but they walktowardsit.
How much fire can we put in the real lake?
I mean, it was like watchingThe Ten Commandments, you know?
So all the walkers walking into the lake, its all practical.
It was real stunt people being on fire walking into a lake that was physically on fire.
And it doesnt work otherwise.
There was so much going on in that episode starting with the opening with Daryl.
For that explosion, we did a jump cut.
We detonated three explosions and blew the bodies to pieces.
So you actually physically see pieces of bodies.
And again, that was something that was really important to me.
I wanted that explosion to feel real.
I wanted you to see pieces of bodies blowing apart in the frame and all that.
What was that like?
He knows who Rick is, and he knows when Rick needs to be vulnerable.
One of the things you do with him is you just let him go.
You literally stand back and watch where he goes emotionally.
We generally dont cut when Im shooting a scene like that.
So what can you tease about whats coming up next?
Well, I think weve effectively seeded the crops, you know?
We introduced the Saviors.
The lead biker says it and teases it perfectly in the opening.
So I think our group is in for something they have never dealt with before.
