'Walking Dead': Listen to an early clip from 'Road to Woodbury'

‘Walking Dead’: Listen to an early clip from ‘Road to Woodbury’

Oct. 04, 2012 | 12:39 p.m.

David Morrisey plays the Governor in “The Walking Dead.” (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

A considerable part of the action of the third season of “The Walking Dead” takes place in the fictional town of Woodbury, the seemingly idyllic Southern locale under the control of the fearsome law-and-order man known as the Governor. The character might be new to some fans of AMC’s hit zombie series, which is poised to return Oct. 14, but he’s infamous among readers of Robert Kirkman’s comic book, a towering figure of evil who’s responsible for countless deaths and who ultimately suffers a pretty ugly fate himself.

English actor David Morrissey, best known for his stellar work in the BBC miniseries “State of Play,” landed the role of the Governor, and both he and “Walking Dead” showrunner Glen Mazzara, speaking on the show’s Georgia’s set earlier this year, promised that the character won’t be quite the mustache-twirling baddie who appeared in the comic book. But there’s a third incarnation of the Governor, also available to readers — the one who exists in a series of novels Kirkman is writing that explores how he arrived at his post-apocalyptic seat of power.

Last year, Kirkman published a novel titled “The Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor,” an origin story of sorts and the first installment in a planned trilogy. A sequel, “The Road to Woodbury,” written with Jay Bonansinga, is set for release on Oct. 16, but Hero Complex readers can check out an early audio clip from the novel here.

The evocative scene, read by Fred Berman, is filled with vivid language as survivor Lilly Caul struggles to save the young, helpless Bingham girls from a band of hungry walkers that invades a camp. The use of the present tense makes the prose seem that much more immediate and real.

Check back for more on “The Walking Dead” — including more interviews from the set — in the days leading up to the premiere of the show’s third season.

– Gina McIntyre

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