‘The Walking Dead’: Emily Kinney On Beth Shock, Daryl & Dinner With Scott Wilson

“The Walking Dead” lost its songbird on Sunday night, with the sad exit of Emily Kinney’s Beth Greene.

Plenty of tears were shed by the characters (Rick! Daryl!) and fans as the trade at Grady Memorial went sour when Dawn (Christine Woods) demanded Noah (Tyler James Williams) relinquish his newly-found freedom, and stay at her facility. It was Beth who stepped up for post-apocalypse justice in the moment, stabbing Dawn. But, her action prompted the officer to react on instinct, and she shot and killed Beth.

In a new interview with Access Hollywood, Emily revealed that following her “Talking Dead” appearance, she spent time with a good friend – Scott Wilson, who previously played her dad, Hershel Greene, and who coincidentally was killed off in the mid-season finale a year before. In our chat with the actress and singer/songwriter, she shared her views on Beth and Daryl, whether she’d like to see Daryl find love, and the “TWD” alum she’d love to see in a flashback (other than Beth, of course).

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AccessHollywood.com: Did Scott Wilson (Hershel Greene) call you yet? Have you guys talked?
Emily Kinney:
We have talked. Actually, we even had dinner together. I was in LA a couple days ago for ‘Talking Dead,’ on Sunday night, and after ‘Talking Dead,’ we went and got some dinner together.

Access: Best thing ever.
Emily:
Yeah. He’s awesome. He’s kind of like a real dad, I feel like. I’ve introduced boyfriends to him (laughs)! I feel like I have to get his approval! And also, he’s got that sort of vibe where you just feel very taken care of when you’re around him, so I really like him.

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Access: Did he give you any sort of fatherly advice on how to deal with the next few months of finally being able to talk about being off the show?
Emily:
I don’t know that he really gave me a ton of advice, but more just kind of comfort and confidence sort of boosting, like, ‘This is just sort of the beginning of your career,’ and, ‘This is just the end of one chapter… there’s so much more out there,’ and definitely he’s given me very much like an open door sort of vibe… that kind of thing. So I would say more than specific advice, it’s more of like he’s given me a lot of comfort.

Access: Who was harder for you to watch crying – Rick or Daryl – when you watched the episode? Or did you watch the episode? I know sometimes people don’t watch episode that they die in.
Emily:
Yeah, I didn’t watch the episode. I didn’t avoid [it]. It was just on during certain things, or people will send scenes to me on Twitter or something like that, but I have not sat down and watched it from beginning to end because I just don’t really have a huge desire to. I feel like I kind of experienced it in my own way.

Access: I have to be honest with you, I expected Norman (as Daryl) to cry, but Andy (as Rick) and those big blue eyes [welling up – it was heartbreaking].
Emily:
Oh yeah, they’re both – they’re the coolest guys. I just love them and whenever they cry, we all start crying. It’s just like a domino effect when we’re on set. And also, when Lauren [Cohan, who plays Maggie] – I feel like when me and Lauren are together, we just cry. Even in happy moments. It’s like we have that sort of thing where it’s just contagious.

Access: What do you think would have happened between Beth and Daryl had she not…
Emily:
I have no idea.

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Access: There was that moment [they had last season in Episode 413, ‘Alone’]. That was such a weird moment and to me it felt like there was potentially a romantic undertone there.
Emily:
To me too, but I have no idea. I mean, I think it was so early on. It’s like first they were just learning to kind of deal with each other, and then they became friends and a team, kind of like a little fighting team for a moment, and then it just was just the beginning of like, ‘Huh? What is this exactly? Is this…’ I think that they didn’t even know. … That’s one of the things that would’ve been exciting to see, but yeah, I have no idea.

Access: Do you want to see Daryl have a relationship at some point on the show just as a fan?
Emily:
I don’t know. I think there’s something cool about the mystery of it, and also, like how does that even happen in the world? I feel like love and, I think we all are starving for it, so as a fan, I do kind of want to see it because that’s what is fun about life — falling in love and art and music. I think that’s one reason why I love playing Beth is because you get to have moments of sort of art and music and all the things that make life worth living. The show is so much about just surviving, and it’s like, ‘Why exactly are we surviving? What’s the point of life?’ and I feel like love and movies and music — I think those things make life worth living and make life fun, and so I think that’s why the audience keeps trying to figure this stuff out, because they’re like starved for it. They’re like, ‘Okay, they’re trying to stay alive, but why?’

Access: Before that moment with Beth and Daryl, a lot of people really liked Carol/Daryl — like in Season 3, when she called him ‘Pookie,’ people went crazy. What are your thoughts on Carol/Daryl?
Emily:
Well, I like any idea of there being love. I feel like I would love to see that. As a fan of the show, I want anything like that to happen. Any chance there can be kind of some scenes about love and falling in love, to me, sounds a little more fun than like the scenes where they’re slitting someone’s throat, and getting ready to eat them, [I mean], personally.

Access: They brought Scott back. If they came to you and asked you to do some sort of flashback, or dream sequence, do you feel like you’re done, or would you be happy to say yes, provided you aren’t busy touring [with your music]?
Emily:
Yeah, it would just depend on my schedule, but of course I would. I mean, I love being on set, I love working. Of course I would. I love working.

Access: Are there any characters who’ve left the show who you personally would like to see make a cameo or appear in a dream sequence?
Emily:
I did really like Andrea’s character. When I first watched the show [in] Season 1 and her sister got killed – that was so long ago now, but I really just – I loved Andrea. I don’t know how she would come back in a dream sequence though, but I did really like her character.

Access: It’s funny you say that because Andrea and Beth had a few parallels. Andrea tried to kill herself in Season 1 [by trying to stay at the CDC as it self-destructed, until Dale convinced her otherwise], and Beth tried to as well, and they were both characters that turned into really strong women by the time they exited the show.
Emily:
Yeah, and one of my all-time favorite lines from the show is when she says, ‘The pain doesn’t go away, you just make room for it.’ It’s Andrea who says that. I love that line. I feel like that’s kind of true in real life too.

Access: Have you talked to Laurie Holden [who played Andrea] since all this happened?
Emily:
No, I just got an email from her [on Monday] and she was like, ‘I have to call you,’ so we’re trying to get in touch. She’s a very busy person and I was travelling and doing all these interviews, but yeah, she’s cool. She’s really cool.

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Access: I guess the last thing I want to ask you – it’s totally unrelated to your storyline, but is anyone around when Lennie James (Morgan) is on set?
Emily:
Not me! I know what you mean though ’cause it’s like we have all these little individual storylines, and then you end up being like, ‘I’ve hardly even seen this person.’ Especially with the new characters. And this season, I’ve been so isolated, so some of the new characters, I feel like we’re on the same amazing show, but [I haven’t seen them].

“The Walking Dead” returns February 8, 2015 on AMC.

Jolie Lash

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