In what could effectively be a major spoiler, one of the leads on AMC’s “The Walking Dead” is close to nearing a starring role on another television show.
THR reports that Jon Bernthal, who plays Shane on the breakout zombie series, is finalizing a deal to star in TNT’s “LA Noir,” which comes from former “Dead” showrunner Frank Darabont.
Bernthal would play Joe Teague, the LAPD police officer leading the effort against mobster Mickey Cohen.
Given that “The Walking Dead” is in no jeopardy of cancellation and Bernthal’s role on the show is almost as big as one could possibly get, it seems unlikely that he would join another series as a “hedge” against his current situation. As a result, speculation is running wild that the Shane character will be written out at some point in the ongoing second season.
Very interesting about the situation is the existence of a November 2011 “blind item” from TVLine, which said that a cast member loyal to Darabont asked to be released from his “Walking Dead” contract after the showrunner was ousted. While the report said that the actor ultimately had a “change of heart” and asked to stay, it was possible plans to drop the character from the show had already been executed.
By no means has anyone confirmed this story relates to Bernthal (or is even true whatsoever), but given Bernthal’s likely new project with Darabont, it makes for a fun bit of intrigue.
