Jon Bernthal Sort Of Auditioned For Rick Grimes On The Walking Dead – Looper

The network drama Bernthal passed on was reportedly “NCIS: Los Angeles.” As Bernthal told it on The Howard Stern Show, he passed on the gig because he felt so strongly about the script for “The Walking Dead,” stating, “In my heart, I knew it was something special, and I really wanted to do it. I wanted to be Shane.” Turns out the role of Shane Walsh was not the only one Bernthal read for when series creator Frank Darabont was casting “The Walking Dead.” Yes, at one point he even read for Rick Grimes.

As Bernthal detailed during his “Stern Show” appearance, auditioning for Rick was mostly a formality as he was part of a crew of guys Darabont brought in to read for both the roles of Shane Walsh and Rick Grimes. “Everybody had to audition for Rick first,” Bernthal notes, later adding, “The way Darabont did it, he brought in 10 guys, and everybody had to read for both roles.” That no doubt included Andrew Lincoln, who was eventually cast as Rick opposite Bernthal’s Shane.

If you’ve ever seen those two at work on “The Walking Dead,” you know the roles really could not have been better cast. For his part, Bernthal remains sincerely appreciative of the life-changing gig, too, telling Stern, “It opened up so many doors. I was so grateful.” More than a decade after leaving “The Walking Dead” behind, Bernthal has ensured those doors remain open by becoming one of the best-loved, if low-key, movie stars in Hollywood.