Last year website Nuke The Fridge claimed that ‘Vikings’ star Kevin Durand has been asked to take on the role of comic book villain Negan on ‘The Walking Dead.’
However, in his recent Reddit AMA, the Canadian actor clarified that the antagonist role has not been offered to him.
"A lot of people seem to think I've been offered the role, and that's not true," Durand stated. "But 'The Walking Dead' fans have been approaching me asking about Negan for quite a while. I think he's an incredible character, what an awesome ride that would be."
He also offered details about his busy schedule as he continues to film for the historical drama series ‘Vikings’ as well as the horror drama program ‘The Strain,’ based on Guillermo del Toro’s book trilogy of the same title.
"At this point in time, shooting 'The Strain' and 'Vikings' takes up most of my year," Durand explained. "[But] if they didn't bring Negan in for like another three years then I would be honored [to play him], I'm a huge 'Walking Dead' fan.
While the 41-year-old actor says he is honored that fans of AMC’s zombie drama series prefer him to take on the role of Negan, he is currently kept busy fighting off vampires as Vasiliy Fet on ‘The Strain.’
Although there have been no announcements as to when exactly Negan will be brought to the show, ‘Walking Dead’ executive producer Robert Kirkman told MTV News in April last year that introducing the villainous character to the TV series is a definite part of their future plans.
"I wouldn't expect Negan too terribly soon, although he is definitely in the plan," Kirkman said. "It's a 99 percent lock that he's going to be in the show eventually, so be on the lookout for that."
Kirkman also dropped hints during an interview with The Hollywood Reporter in October 2014 that Negan's storyline is an important one.
"While Negan's introduction isn't something that we have [already] planned, that moment would be something that we would build up to in possibly substantial way," the comic book writer said.
Bringing the villain to the TV adaptation also calls for the need to incorporate his own character’s story to the main plot, hence the need for careful planning.
"It wouldn't just be an aside or a wink and nudge. That would be a pretty monumental event that would possibly be something [that] we would shape an entire season around. So, I wouldn't expect that to just be kind of slipped in casually,” Kirkman said.
Meanwhile, ‘The Walking Dead’ returns for its sixth season on Oct11, 2015.