Vincent Ward, Oscar on “The Walking Dead”

Vincent sees Oscar as a character, not unlike himself— a loyal and honest family man and leader. Ward relates to Oscar on a very personal level. He also mentions that just because Oscar went to prison does not make him a bad person. In Vincent’s opinion, “Going to prison doesn’t make anyone bad. It’s a matter of bad choices and mistakes people make, and the important thing is that people learn from them and not repeat them in the future.”

The Walking Dead writers are known for basing the characters off of the actors, but this was not the case for Vincent. He did not meet many of the main writers of the show until his fifth and sixth episodes. Ward believes that to base a character on its actor, the writer and actor need to sit down and have a real conversation. Vincent says, “You’ve got to get to know the person, interview them like you and I are doing right now to know how they are in real life.” In Vincent’s case, he did not meet Robert Kirkman, one of the show’s writers, until his sixth episode.

Season Three is the most entertaining season and the one that takes The Walking Dead to new heights. For Vincent, it has been a pleasure to be a part of Season Three. Regarding his opportunities, Ward mentions, 

“I’ve been at the right place and at the right time, and it all worked out in favor of the show and in favor of me.”

The scene in which Oscar had a staredown with Rick was full of suspense and tense tone. In reality, it was a very professional environment on the set, and Vincent was excited to do the scene. The type of scene was new to his acting career, so he appreciated the experience. Says Vincent, “I’m a professional actor too. I wasn’t intimidated. I’d say I was more hyped than being intimidated as this is all part of the job and work that we do.” In Ward’s opinion, the only person who was intimidated or nervous was Norman Reedus, otherwise known as Daryl on the show. When Reedus had a knife wrapped around Vincent’s neck, he told his fellow actor, “Bro, please don’t move.”

Vincent Ward “The Walking Dead”

At one point in the show, Oscar says, 

“I never begged for my life, and I’m not going to start now.” Vincent shared that more goes into each line than meets the eye, saying, “I just pulled back into my actor training and left my real-life events out of it and dug deep as to how I can pull that emotion. It ain’t just about the lines. It’s about expression, the intensity, and the look on my face. Also, when you have someone like Andrew, you have to come with the thunder. And now that I reflect on it, I can’t even remember the guns being used as props or anything because I was just so engrossed in the scene and the moment and the aura that was present there.”

Vincent earned fame and success during his time on The Walking Dead and earned friends for a lifetime. He mentions that he had great chemistry with Stuntman Scott Dale. He is someone with whom he is still in touch and shares a great bond. “Lou’s my main man. Even before this live show, I had a conversation with him.”