The Walking Dead star Norman Reedus admits he was utterly baffled when gaming legend Hideo Kojima first laid out the mind-bending concept for Death Stranding, sparking laughter and awe as he recalls his journey from clueless to captivated by the visionary project. —See Why This Story’s Got Everyone Talking! 👇

Norman Reedus traded walkers for BTs under the direction of Hideo Kojima.

The Walking Dead star Norman Reedus has no idea what he was stepping into the moment he agreed to star in Hideo Kojima’s Death Stranding. Meeting through writer and director Guillermo del Toro who was a mutual friend of Reedus and Kojima, the director phoned Reedus and informed him that he would receive a call about a project and all he had to say was say yes.

The project was meant to be Silent Hills, unfortunately, it was canceled. Norman was still committed and the project shifted as he jumped from one post-apocalyptic world torn apart by the undead to another where tar-like creatures roam rampant. During his work on a motion capture stage, the seasoned actor encountered unexpected challenges when acting around an empty room with markers on his body. In the documentary, “Connecting Worlds,” which is available on Disney+, he recounts the story of how he initially secured the role.

Ride With Norman Reedus to Reconnect America

The Walking Dead’s Norman Reedus returns as Sam Porter Bridges in the upcoming sequel: Death Stranding 2: On the Beach.
The original game had its share of problems, the main one being it was slow-paced which was the original intent of the developers but not necessarily what the fans wanted nor expected from a Hideo Kojima game with the lead being an action star. Despite its flaws, Death Stranding is still a massive success and opinions have changed through the course of the following year during the COVID-19 pandemic which was an eerie coincidence to the premise of the game.

Dubbed as a glorified walking simulator, which it technically was with some occasional action set pieces and a convoluted storyline, Reedus promises fans that the sequel will have something new, perhaps more action as it was hinted in the 9-minute long trailer of trading the rope with a stick.

Hideo wanted to redefine the stealth genre like he once did with his Metal Gear series but heavily leaned on complete avoidance of violence. The intended message was hard to receive if players remained close-minded about accepting what the game was rather than pushing for what they wanted it to be.

Retired Zombie Killer to Glorified Delivery Man

Sam Porter Bridges in the first Death Stranding game.
It was minimal acting required for the TV star because for the most part, his character Sam Porter Bridges, seemed oblivious to the things that are transpiring around him. Fellow co-star Mads Mikkelsen stated he would nod whenever given instructions and hoped that he would satisfy the director.

Trading his crossbow for essentially a baby in a jar and delivering packages from point A to B while reconnecting America via the chiral network and avoiding otherworldly creatures emerging whenever it rains, a significant contrast from his previous role as Daryl Dixon.

Norman trusted the creative process of Hideo and just went with the flow and enjoyed the process of being part of a new world. Death Stranding 2: On the Beach is coming to the PS5 in 2025.