Norman Reedus explains explosive ‘Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon’ finale ending

This article contains spoilers about the season 3 finale of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, “Solaz del Mar.”

Everything was working out just great. Good people were saved. Bad people were killed or imprisoned. Hot dogs were being prepared. And then, it all went bad as the third season of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon ended in explosive fashion — literally — in the worst way possible for our titular hero.

The “Solaz del Mar” season 3 finale began with the return of a familiar face in the form of Romain Levi’s Codron — a season 1 antagonist turned season 2 wary ally — who showed up in Spain and spotted Laurent’s Rubik’s Cube. But the main action involved Norman Reedus’ Daryl sneaking into El Alcazar and killing pretty much everyone there of any villainous importance, while also freeing Roberto’s girlfriend Justina (Candela Saitta).

Meanwhile, Carol (Melissa McBride) saved her new boyfriend Antonio (Eduardo Noriega) only to be recaptured and then saved again once Justina announced that town leader Fede (Óscar Jaenada) had lied about the arrangement to send girls for guns and other supplies.

But with the group finally all assembled by the shore and getting ready to set sail for America, Fede showed up with a gun in his hand and revenge on his mind. Carol tackled Fede before he could shoot Daryl, but the errant shots struck the boat, which caught fire and then exploded, once again stranding our dynamic duo far from home.

Reedus spoke with Entertainment Weekly about the latest setback for his character and what it means heading into the next and final season. We also got into the importance of those season-long flashbacks, and Daryl’s desire to break the seemingly never-ending cycle of “running and fighting.”

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Last season, we saw Carol having all these flashbacks as she dealt with her trauma over the loss of Sophia, and this season we saw snippets of Daryl hearing brother Merle’s voice from childhood. What was the significance of those flashbacks in terms of where the story is now?

NORMAN REEDUS:  That’s part of season 4 as well. There’s a past life trauma that Daryl has, which was introduced in the original series back in America, of how he lost his mother. She burned in a house fire. We never got into that story. So this is not a retelling, because we never really told it, but it’s the answers to some of those questions. And I think at this point in his life, after all he’s been through and his time alone, he’s starting to remember things in ways that are really f—ed up.

You tell that story about when you were a kid throughout your life, and you sort of just tell the abbreviated version of it forever. And then that becomes fact, but you never really get in into the minuscule parts of those stories because there is no time, or because you don’t want people to really know who you are, or it’s none of their business.

But Daryl’s being stripped away of all these things. And as he’s growing and going through all these experiences, things are starting to become clearer. And that becomes a big part of season 4 as well.

He has that big moment with Carol before the boat blows up where he’s talking about all the running and fighting he’s done, and how he’s nervous that when he gets home that he’s just going to hear that voice again. What does the alternative to that look like for him?

I don’t know. Finding a piece of land, or finding a partner, or finding a different purpose. It’s exhausting to run and fight and run and fight, and what are you running for and what are you running from? Why can’t Daryl sit still? And can never sit still.

Even back in the old show, it was referenced so many times: “I gotta keep moving, gotta keep moving, gotta keep moving.” And now we’ve sort of taken that theme and we’re dissecting it. Why does he got to keep moving? Why he can’t have relationships with people, why he doesn’t talk about his feelings, and why he doesn’t open up to anyone?

His biggest expression forever has been fighting or mouthing off. Like… he’s a little brat sometimes. [Laughs] And I love playing a brat. I love it. I’m a brat in real life. But you want to know what he’s hiding, and what he’s afraid to talk about. And we jump in that swimming pool and we hope to get to the edge.

Let’s look ahead. What’s Daryl’s psyche like after that boat blows up, and how is that going to play out in season 4?

I think where his head is at is, “God, I was so f—ing close, man. I was so close to getting on the water and getting moving again.” And I think part of that goes back to the last question, like, he’s got to f—ing sit still again, and he’s got to try again. But he goes from first gear to fourth gear all the time, and everything in between is like is a putt… putt… putt. So he’s trying to figure this out again.

But I think his hopes were really high. I felt like he got to the point where he convinced everybody — “This is it!” And he finished here and he did what he had to do, but now it’s blown up again. It’s just another giant slap in the face combined with that continuation of that conversation and these flashbacks. It’s a U-turn.

Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter.

I have to tell you, I was watching this season and at one point thought to myself, “I wonder if they’d ever bring back that dude Codron. He was so good, and I feel like his story’s not over yet.” But then I was like, “Nah, it’s a different country. That’s the old story. This is the new story.” And then the finale starts, and there he is!

That actor, Romain Levi, is great. He texts me all the time, like, “Oh my God, thank you so much! This is great!” He’s really enthusiastic and really appreciative. They were going to kill him off and I was like, “Come on, we got to keep him!” He’s got a really meaningful storyline coming up and he’s just a cool guy.

And it’s crazy because I was friends with his sister a million years ago through [former wife Helena Christensen]. She ended up texting me and telling me, “Hey, my brother is up for a part in your show.” And I’m like, “Who’s your brother?” And he had already gotten the part and I’m like, “He’s in!” Everything kind of synced up really well with him. He’s a great guy.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.