Fear The Walking Dead Confirms Strand Is TWD’s New Negan

Fear The Walking Dead makes Strand the new Negan, directly comparing The Tower’s pompous chief to Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s iconic character from the main show. Though the Governor makes a strong claim, many The Walking Dead fans would agree Negan is the story’s defining villain. The brutal, arrogant leader of the Saviors made an immediate impact by killing Glenn (and Abraham in the TV show), then terrorized Rick Grimes’ Alexandria by demanding subservience and supplies. Negan’s evil was somewhat tempered by a sense of humor, undeniable charisma, and a (very) well-hidden merciful streak.

In Fear The Walking Dead season 7, main antagonist duties fall to Colman Domingo’s long-standing character, Victor Strand. Flirting with villainy ever since his season 1 debut, Fear The Walking Dead‘s nuclear setting has finally allowed Strand to go full-on dictator, but despite treating his people like second-class citizens and killing off Alicia’s boyfriend, Strand hadn’t yet hit the evil heights of The Walking Dead‘s big villains. That all changes in Fear The Walking Dead season 7’s “Till Death.”

Reintroducing Dwight and Sherry for the first time since Fear The Walking Dead went nuclear, the husband and wife duo capture Strand’s attention by becoming vigilantes. As reward for a job, Strand offers Dwight and Sherry residency at The Tower, but they turn him down, with Sherry firing, “We lived in a place like this before, and that didn’t turn out so hot.” Obviously referring to the Sanctuary, Sherry is directly comparing Victor Strand’s leadership style to Negan’s in The Walking Dead – a review so damning, Strand will be glad Trustpilot isn’t still active. She goes even further, pointing out how Strand arrogantly calling his community a “sanctuary” is a massive red flag for her and Dwight after everything that happened with Negan.

A little later when traveling alone with Mickey, Dwight’s wife draws an even more transparent parallel between Victor Strand and Negan. Asked why she doesn’t accept Strand’s deal, Sherry responds, “We made a bargain with a guy like Strand before.” Whereas before she was merely comparing the Tower to the Sanctuary, here Sherry actually claims Strand is akin to Negan, cementing his status as a truly despicable villain in Fear The Walking Dead season 7.

Sealing the deal, “Till Death” contains Strand’s most evil moment of the season so far. Dwight discovers how Strand bribed someone to murder the innocent Larson family in cold blood – including their young daughter, Briga. Strand has committed one shady act after another across past seasons, but ordering the deaths of a mother, father and child solely in the name of “protecting” his community is a very Negan-esque thing to do, completely justifying every comparison Sherry makes.

Fear The Walking Dead‘s Victor Strand and The Walking Dead‘s Negan certainly share a few common traits. Both exploit their positions for personal gain – whether that’s Strand living like a king while his people toil, or Negan taking on multiple “wives” from among the Sanctuary’s female contingent. Both have an uncannily charismatic way with words, unable to resist a verbal sparring session, and each man also became more villainous after losing a romantic partner (Lucille for Negan, Thomas for Strand). All Strand needed to complete the transformation was his own people to boss around…

There is, however, one key difference between Victor Strand and Negan. Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s Walking Dead villain never shied away from getting his hands dirty, and even without any Savior backup, was still a man not to be crossed. On the other Strand, Fear The Walking Dead‘s villain is famously prone to cowardice. Without his Tower soldiers, Strand doesn’t carry any real personal threat, whereas the baseball bat-wielding Negan was only ever one ill-advised comment away from committing murder.

About The Author

Craig Elvy
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Craig first began contributing to Screen Rant in 2016, several years after graduating college, and has been ranting ever since, mostly to himself in a darkened room. Having previously written for various sports and music outlets, Craig’s interest soon turned to TV and film, where a steady upbringing of science fiction and comic books finally came into its own.
Craig has previously been published on sites such as Den of Geek, and after many coffee-drenched hours hunched over a laptop, part-time evening work eventually turned into a full-time career covering everything from the zombie apocalypse to the Starship Enterprise via the TARDIS.

Since joining the Screen Rant fold, Craig has been involved in breaking news stories and mildly controversial ranking lists, but now works predominantly as a features writer.
Jim Carrey is Craig’s top acting pick and favorite topics include superheroes, anime and the unrecognized genius of the High School Musical trilogy.

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