In the Seiren universe of The Walking Dead, Jeffrey Dean Morgan wows as Negan. 20 years ago, he almost ended his career prematurely. And Star Trek is to blame.
Many fans know Jeffrey Dean Morgan primarily as cult villain Negan from the zombie series The Walking Dead. In the spin-off Dead City, soon to be launched in Germany, he will once again be seen as a reformed ex-Savior. But 20 years earlier, he was already part of another huge franchise. In the science fiction series Star Trek: Enterprise, Jeffrey Dean Morgan took on a guest role that nearly ended his career.
Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s Star Trek appearance 20 years ago was one big pain
Long before Jeffrey Dean Morgan became The Walking Dead star, wowed in series like Supernatural and Grey’s Anatomy, and appeared in blockbusters like Watchmen and Batman v Superman, his acting career took off in the early 2000s with a few series guest roles.
In 2003, he made a guest appearance on the Star Trek series Enterprise as the reptilian Xindi villain Damron in a season three episode. Hardly anyone will have recognized him, however. That’s because Jeffrey Dean Morgan was hidden under masses of latex as an alien creature.
Jeffrey Dean Morgan is barely recognizable in Enterprise
On the YouTube talk show Hot Ones Jeffrey Dean Morgan recounted the traumatic experience that made him doubt his career choices:
“It turns out I have claustrophobia. The makeup process was really hard for me, and I had straws up my nose. I’ve never been on a set where I went home at night and thought, ‘What am I doing here?’ I made the worst decision of my life. I never want to be an actor again.” I was sure I was doing the wrong thing and I almost gave up. It was awful. “
Luckily, Jeffrey Dean Morgan didn’t hang up his career after the Star Trek disaster. Just two years later, he landed the popular Supernatural role John Winchester. A year later followed his engagement as Denny Duquette in the hospital series Grey’s Anatomy. However, he was not seen in another Star Trek project again until today.
What’s next for Jeffrey Dean Morgen on The Walking Dead?
After the end of The Walking Dead, the story of Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s character Negan is far from over. In the spin-off The Walking Dead: Dead City he is drawn to the post-apocalyptic New York City at his arch-nemesis. The first season will be released in Germany on October 13, 2023 on Magenta TV and consists of six episodes. A second season has already been ordered.
