Norman Reedus is one of only a few original cast members of AMC’s “The Walking Dead” whose character, the crossbow-wielding Daryl Dixon, is still alive 10 seasons later.
Since the show’s beginning Reedus has been asked about surviving through a theoretical catastrophe. But this is the first time real-world events — in the form of the coronavirus pandemic — have affected day-to-day life in ways even vaguely hinted at in what’s depicted on “The Walking Dead.”
“I’ve always said the thing about our show that’s most interesting is you see people’s true personalities come out: What you’re willing to fight for, what you’re willing to walk away from, who you’re willing to fight for. Hopefully it doesn’t get to that in real life, but the world is definitely different right now. It’s weird times right now.”
Health concerns meant the finale for “The Walking Dead” was put on hold. So was filming for “Ride with Norman Reedus,” his other show on AMC: “I was supposed to be in Greece, Italy and Croatia right now for that and it all got canceled.” He’s concerned about the crews on both shows, who are out of work for the time being, but said he is holding up well despite the unusual circumstances. “To be honest I haven’t had a break in forever so I’m just kind of enjoying being with my family.”
When asked to share a worst moment in his career, his thoughts turned to the reality of what it means to be a recognizable face no matter where you go.
My worst moment …
“I started going to Costa Rica a lot because Andrew Lincoln, who was on ‘Walking Dead,’ was a big surfer and he was always trying to teach me how to surf, so during our mid-season break he’d take me to Costa Rica. After five or six years, I finally got my own place in Costa Rica.
“I should say, I’m a horrible surfer. If I stand up and go 15 feet, it’s the greatest day ever — and 15 feet is being very generous (laughs).
“So this was maybe the second time I was there after I got my own place, and I really wanted to go surfing one morning and I had just enough of a window to do it before I had to run and catch this little charter plane that zips me to the main airport, which is how you bounce around down there. So I was like, ‘OK, I’m just gonna catch one or two waves, see if I can stand up, and that’s how I’m going to end this trip.’
“I’d like to say this was a long time ago and that I’m a much better surfer, but it wasn’t that long ago. This was, like, two years ago. And I’m still not very good (laughs). But I love it so much.
“I go down to the beach and I have my surfboard and as I’m getting closer to the water I hear, ‘Norman, can I get a selfie?’ And I turn around and there’s two or three girls standing there. And then there’s five or six. Then there’s 10. Then a dozen and it keeps going. Everyone’s on social media so if someone finds you, they blast a picture of you and then the whole beach shows up. And as this is happening, my window for surfing is getting smaller, so I was like, I have just enough time to go out there and catch one wave. So I said, ‘Bye, guys.’ And I started paddling out.
“I finally get out far enough and as I turn around to face the beach, I realize there’s maybe two dozen people by now and they all have their cell phones pointed at me and they’re waving. And again, I am not a good surfer — I may or may not stand up. And there’s already been a couple pictures (taken in the past) of me falling backwards or one foot in the air and my mouth wide open. Just no coordination at all.
“So I’m looking at the beach and there’s this wall of cameras and people waving and I’m like: OK Norman, what are you going to do? Am you going to just paddle in and sort of get off the board and act like that’s what you planned on all along, just so you don’t have to risk someone getting another embarrassing photo?
“And I was like: You know what? (Screw) it, I’m gonna catch a wave. And if I fall and they get a bunch of pictures of me falling backwards? Fine. But I’m just going to go for it.
“So I mustered up the strength and started paddling and I caught the wave and rode it all the way to the beach, standing up like a frickin’ pro the whole way. And then I sort of hopped of my board, flicked my hair a little bit, all Pam Anderson-like on ‘Baywatch,’ I waved to all the girls, they waved back. And then I got on my quad and went back to my house feeling like a king.
“So I left Costa Rica that way instead of the wimpy way, and I felt very proud of myself because it was literally a 50-50 chance I wasn’t going to be able to stand up.”
This is a worst moment? This sounds like a great moment!
“Well, it was a bad moment that turned into a good moment. Trust me, I would have preferred to go down there and have no one watching me. The girls on the beach, they were all super sweet and super nice and that didn’t bother me one bit. I was just embarrassed because I’m not a good surfer and I was like, am I going to fall over or am I actually going to stay up?”
What does it feel like when you’re photographed anywhere you go?
“It’s not great. Somebody was telling me that I was in Page Six for grocery shopping in Los Angeles, just buying things for the house (during the quarantine). There’s a whole bunch of crazy stuff happening in the world and I get a call that I’m in Page Six for buying groceries? It’s not like we’re hoarding things; we have a full house of people we have to feed. The paparazzi guys, they’re in it to make a buck. You have go, ‘Come on guys, please don’t shoot (photos of) my baby daughter. Please just cut it out.’ And they’ll do it anyway.
“In New York, they’ll be hiding behind a pole or a parked car and I just see their shoulder and they’re kind of sneaky, like big game hunters. In California, they surround you a foot from your face and they scream your name and it’s just invasive. It’s not like I’m a (jerk) to those guys. So if I’m like, ‘Come on, cut it out,’ eventually I think they feel like (creeps) and they’ll stop. And sometimes you can say, ‘OK, take a picture and then stop following me,’ and they’ll be like, ‘OK,’ because I don’t think they want to follow me, either. But some of them, I think, get off on thinking they’re hunters or something.
“If someone (a fan) is going to snap a picture on their phone I’d rather they say, ‘Hey, can I do this?’ you know what I mean? Because that’s cool, that’s fine. Everyone’s got a camera phone and everyone wants to take a picture and selfie’s I can almost deal with. But I’m really good at knowing when someone’s pointing a camera at me and trying to be sneaky. The person that’s looking to the left but their phone’s pointing to the right, right at you, and they think that you don’t see them? That happens every time I leave the house. It’s super annoying. Or you’re sitting on an airplane and they walk by you and their iPhone is in a sharpshooter position down at their waist. That’s pretty weird to me.
“And I’ve done the same thing — I took a photo with my phone of the back of Martin Short’s head one time on an airplane because I was like, ‘That’s Martin Short!’ Like, I get it (laughs). I still have that photo somewhere, I’m a big Martin Short fan. But I’m sure he would have appreciated if if I had said, ‘Hey, can I take a picture of the back of your head?'”
The takeaway …
“On the surfing thing, my takeaway is: Trust yourself. And if you look like an idiot, who cares? If someone takes a goofy picture of you on their phone, who gives a (crap)? If I had gotten on the plane and wussed out and not even tried to stand up, it would have bothered me for weeks (laughs). It would have eaten me alive.
“Everyone’s taking pictures anyway, so who cares?”
