“From 10 Minutes of Fame to Undying Infamy: How Matthew Lillard Almost Became Negan!”
Added on March 31, 2026 inFree Entertainment News, Free Movie News
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In a world where iconic characters are immortalized on screen, Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s portrayal of Negan in The Walking Dead reignited our love for villainy. But what if the grim, barbed-wire-wielding bad guy had a lighter, wittier edge? Enter Matthew Lillard, known for his memorable roles in the Scream franchise, who once had his shot at donning Negan’s leather jacket! In a twist of fate reminiscent of retro astrological drama, Lillard auditioned thrice for the character, only to learn later that he nearly snagged the role—if only for a fleeting moment. So, could we have seen a Negan with more mischief and less muscle? Buckle up as we dive into Lillard’s near-miss and what that would have meant for the Walking Dead universe. It’s a captivating tale of what might have been—just a cosmic wink away from reality! LEARN MORE.
Jeffrey Dean Morgan was iconic as the maniacal Negan in The Walking Dead, but the role could have gone in a very different direction with Scream favourite Matthew Lillard.
While speaking on The Big Thing podcast last year, Lillard explained that he had auditioned for the role of Negan. It went great, and they brought him back three times to read before it was finally announced that Morgan would be playing the role. That was that, or so Lillard thought.
Several years later, Lillard was at San Diego Comic-Con when he was approached by The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman, who told him he had actually gotten the role… until Morgan’s agents finally responded to say he would take the part after all.
“The creator of the show comes over, and he said, ‘You have no idea. You had the part for like 10 minutes,’” Lillard said. “At that point, I would’ve had another 10 years of work.“
He continued, “That part goes on. He becomes a legend. Every [convention] you go there’s 10 Negans walking around.“
You know… at that point, I don’t think I’d want to know how close I came to getting the job, let alone finding out I actually had it for all of ten minutes.
Lillard added that his take on the character would have been very different from Morgan’s. “He’s super masculine, and I just would’ve been more wicked and funny,” he said. “He was super badass and masculine. We would have had just very different takes.“
Even without Negan, Lillard has been one busy dude. He returned as Stuart “Stu” Macher in Scream 7 (which is now available on Digital) and is going up against Wilson Fisk/Kingpin in the second season of Daredevil: Born Again.
He’s also part of the main cast of Mike Flanagan’s Carrie TV series, an adaptation of the Stephen King novel of the same name. Last year, he teased that the series is “brilliant” and more of a “pure adaptation of the book than the original movie was.” The series is expected to debut on Prime Video in October.
Could you have seen Matthew Lillard as Negan on The Walking Dead?
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