Norman Reedus Says Michael Jordan Inspired One of His Favorite 'The Walking Dead' Kills

'The Walking Dead' actor Norman Reedus explains how Michael Jordan played a role in one of his favorite zombie kills.

June 8, 2016

Not Available Lead — Image via Complex Original

Norman Reedus, a.k.a. The Walking Dead's resident punk rocker Daryl Dixon, has killed a large number of zombies in his time. Given the sheer scope of violence and damn-near unbelievable body count on AMC's flagship series, the star of the forthcoming Ride With Norman Reedus would be forgiven for not having the most accurate memory of his history of shredding zombies. But that, compellingly enough, couldn't be further from the truth.

"I kinda remember almost all of them," Reedus told a delighted Stephen Colbert on Tuesday's Late Show. Floored by Reedus' "manly" grasp of memory, Colbert then asked him to break down a few of his favorite zombie offings, and a fate would have it, the one and only Michael Jordan served as an inspiration for one of Reedus' favorite kills.

"For that one, Michael Satrazemis—our head DP—was like 'I got an idea for this, I want you to jump off this one and come down like Michael Jordan,'" Reedus recalled. "And I was like, 'Yeah!' and that turned out to be one of my favorites."

Another cherished memory? The so-called "hatchback kill" from Season 3. "I like the hatchback squish," Reedus said. "His head kinda went like a grape. That was fun."

Reedus is currently running the late-night circuit in promotion of his new, zombie-free AMC series Ride With Norman Reedus. The series, premiering June 12, follows the noted motorcycle enthusiast as he cruises around the nation and takes a deep dive into the unique cultures of various cities. In a perfect world, Reedus' AMC-funded road trip would gloriously collide with Shia LaBeouf's cross-country #TAKEMEANYWHERE journey for some complementary adventures. Fingers firmly crossed.