'The Walking Dead' Casts Black Heroine Character Michonne

Treme's Danai Gurira is sword-wielding character fans have been waiting for

AMC's hit show The Walking Dead has cast it's legendary heroine Michonne.

Last night, on the zombie drama's Season 2 finale, viewers saw Treme's Danai Gurira in the role, making her the third African-American character to be introduced on the show since Irone Singleton's T-Dog.

Based on Robert Kirkman's comic series, Michonne is a hooded sword-wielder who's set to save lives (and she did so yesterday with Andrea, played by Laurie Holden, who would have died had it not been for Michonne putting down a zombie).

Kirkman told The Hollywood Reporter that Michonne is a "big part" of the series' new transition in which survivors are “faced with more adversaries, danger and different kinds of threats.”

He continued, “Fans of the comic book know all about her and I’m sure are very excited to see her. I like to think about how the audience that just watches the show takes that. I think that that [saving Andrea and carrying a sword] is such a bizarre and jarring image. It really speaks volumes as to what you’re going to be seeing in Season 3.”  

Executive producer Glen Mazzara told THR, “We know that she’s a loner, we know she kicks ass. But we have some other traits about that her that are not in the comic book that we’ll deviate."

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