The Walking Dead Star You Totally Forgot Was on Supernatural
Two of the longest ever TV shows were bound to cross paths at some point.
Fans of The Walking Dead may have noticed Maggie Greene, played by Lauren Cohen, looks familiar. If so, you are certainly not alone – here's why!
It's a common occurrence for our favorite actors to have built up an impressive range of works prior to their breakout role. However, some look familiar enough to raise the question, "Where have I seen them before?" Lauren Cohen is no exception, with her first major role being on season 6 of Supernatural.
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A Half-hearted Attempt
Taking on the role of Bela Talbot, Lauren's character was originally intended to be nothing more than a recurring antagonist. But after calls for a second regular female cast member, the producers of the show made the decision to give Bela a more notable role throughout season 3 of Supernatural. Instead of following Hollywood cliches and making Bela a love interest for Sam and Dan, the writers opted for an alternative approach; to ease her into the show and solidify her place as a welcome addition to the cast.
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This effort was proven unsuccessful as Bela received negative fan reception for being, to put it straightforwardly, an utter jerk. Much like Gargamel to the Smurfs, Bela Talbot made it her mission to wreak havoc on the lives of the Winchesters with every opportunity she had. Furthermore, there was not much care for developing her into a more likable anti-hero, such as Crowley in later seasons. It seems the intent of the writers was to appease the requests for a female lead while causing as little of a disturbance to the plot as possible.
A Life Cut Short
In addition to the negative fan reception and lack of dedication to Bela's character development, a myriad of factors contributed to her incredibly short-lived run. The most prominent issue was that the writers were running out of scenarios to explain why Bela would keep running into the Winchester brothers. This circular script is a common occurrence found in similarly written static characters. After appearing in a mere 6 of season 3's 16 episodes, and becoming evidently more neglected by the production staff, the early death of Bela Talbot was inevitable, even without the element of the writer's strike that cut season 3 short.
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What one can take away from Lauren Cohen's time on Supernatural is that when faced with the task of creating a more diverse cast, proper attention should be given to ensure a new addition will enrich the show, rather than simply tick off an HR box.