Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s unpleasant experience on ‘Star Trek: Enterprise’ nearly led him to abandon his acting career. Before gaining fame with roles on ‘Supernatural’ and ‘Grey’s Anatomy,’ Morgan played the Xindi alien, Damron, on the sci-fi series. This role involved extensive prosthetics that caused him significant discomfort.
During an interview on Josh Horowitz’s ‘Happy Sad Confused’ podcast, Morgan expressed his dissatisfaction. ‘I hated it so much,’ he stated, recalling the feelings of claustrophobia. ‘That’s it. I’ve got to do something else.’
He described the long hours in prosthetics, sometimes lasting 14 hours a day, which also made eating challenging. ‘I was so claustrophobic,’ Morgan said. ‘It just was an experience that I want to forget, and I still wake up sweating about it.’
This struggle came at a difficult time in Morgan’s career. By his mid-30s, he had been moving between guest roles, pilots, and smaller films, often taking side jobs to cover his expenses. ‘I was always, always side hustling,’ he noted, mentioning jobs like building fences, which ‘usually involved hammers.’
Considering leaving the industry posed its own dilemma. ‘I was like, done, but at the same time I was like, ‘What am I going to do?” Morgan pondered. Lacking a formal education or alternative career path, he began to believe acting might not be feasible. The situation worsened when his manager dropped him with the remark, ‘You’ve aged out, bro.’
However, Morgan’s career took a positive turn around age 38. He secured roles in ‘Supernatural,’ ‘Grey’s Anatomy,’ and ‘Weeds’ in quick succession, marking the breakthrough he needed after years of effort in the entertainment industry.
Currently, Morgan stars as Negan alongside Lauren Cohan’s Maggie in AMC’s ‘The Walking Dead: Dead City.’ This series, which premiered on July 26, has Morgan also serving as an executive producer, demonstrating his ongoing success in the field.
Christina Dugan Ramirez brings over 15 years of experience as an entertainment journalist, including a decade at PEOPLE. She has covered major Hollywood events and interviewed top industry figures. Now, she contributes her expertise to Fox News Digital in 2024.