Summary
WhenThe Walking Deadended in 2022, fans were eager to follow along with the careers of the cast, and that includes Jeffrey Dean Morgan. The actor known forplaying the villain Negan Smith and the leader of the saviorsstarred in a funslasher movie calledBloody Axe Woundin 2024, and he also reprised his popular Negan role in the spinoffThe Walking Dead: Dead City.
Although Morgan has many TV credits includingGrey’s Anatomy, The Good Wife,Robot Chicken, andSupernatural, he has also starred in a long list of compelling, fun, and entertaining movies. One of them is asci-fi monster movie that was released in 2018, which will be an enjoyable watch for fans of Morgan’s time onThe Walking Dead.
Jeffrey Dean Morganstarred in the 2018 sci-fi movieRampageas agent Harvey Russell.The character is part of the “Other Government Agency,” as the movie calls it. Hestars alongside Dwayne Johnson, Marley Shelton, Joe Manganiello, Naomie Harris, and Malin Akerman.Rampageis also anadaptation of the video gameof the same name. WhileJohnson is best known for movies likeBlack Adamwhich were panned by critics and audiences, he has also starred in some fast-paced, action-packed films that could be called “popcorn movies.“Rampageis one of them.
While Davis Okoye (Johnson) is the main character inRampage, Morgan’s character Russell also stands out. Davis is a primatologist whose connection to a gorilla named George becomes terrifying when George becomes a huge killing machine. Like his villain, Negan onThe Walking Dead, Morgan’sRampagecharacter Russell is a strong, powerful, and intimidating characterwho does what he wants and takes matters into his own hands. While some might sayRampageis a forgettable and silly action movie that doesn’t measure up to some others in the genre, the talented cast makes it more intriguing than it might otherwise be.
There’s no doubt thatRampageis acorny movie about characters hunting a monster, and many might preferrewatching theGodzillafranchise. However, Morgan’s performance makesRampagea lot of fun to watch. Morgan is just as entertaining as he was when he portrayed Negan onThe Walking Deadand it’s interesting watching his character try to figure out how to survive against this creature. Morgan has had an exciting career sinceThe Walking Deadended that includesstarring inThe Boysseason 4, and anyone who hasn’t seen his 2018 sci-fi monster movie should check it out.
For the next 29 days,Rampageis available to stream on Amazon Prime Video. It was alsoa box office success. According to Box Office Mojo, the movie had a worldwide gross of $428,128,233 against a $120 million budget. WhileRampageonly has a51% rating on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer, it has a 71% rating on the Popcornmeter, which is slightly better. Fans ofthe various monsters inGodzillawill enjoy the guilty pleasure nature ofRampage. Fans can also rentRampageon Apple TV or Amazon Video.
What Did Jeffrey Dean Morgan Say About Starring In Rampage?
In a 2018 interview withEntertainment Weekly, Jeffrey Dean Morgan shared that he washappy to star in a movie about a scary creature. He said:
“I grew up watching likeGodzillaandKing Kong, so one of the reasons I became an actor was so I could do a monster movie.”
Morgan continued that he knows that audiences expect him to play a villain since he portrayedthe evil Negan who often carries a scary batonThe Walking Deadfor so long. He said hewanted to “do something different"but added that he realized that Negan and hisRampagecharacter had some physical similarities. Since actors are often typecast and fans love watching them as their favorite and beloved characters, it’s interesting to hear an actor’s perspective on this. While actors want to have variety in their careers and branch out, they know that people have connected with them as one particular character. Morgan said:
“When I was watching the movie the other night, I saw a couple body movements that look kind of familiar, a little lean here and there. I was like, ‘Oh man, there could have been a little slop over there between Negan and Russell.’”
Morgan also toldThe Calgary Heraldthataudiencesfound Agent Russell to be mysterious and intriguingand hoped to learn more. He said that was positive feedback for an actor to get. Morgan’s great work as Russell definitely makesRampageworth it.
