what happened to victor salazar on fear the walking dead

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[Warning: This story contains spoilers from Sunday'southward episode of Fear the Walking Dead,  "VIP."]

At that place'due south good news and bad news for Fearfulness the Walking Dead fans. The adept news: Daniel Salazar (Ruben Blades) is alive. The bad news? He's a monster.

At least, he was a monster, for much of the runtime of the AMC zombie serial' latest episode. Salazar is very much alive, every bit was revealed at the end of season three's third installment — and, really, as confirmed by showrunner Dave Erickson shortly afterwards the character supposedly died in a peppery explosion midway through season two. The fourth episode of the season pulled the curtain back on exactly how Salazar survived and what happened next, and true to the nature of the apocalypse, it wasn't very pretty.

After burning down the compound in the midseason two finale, Salazar somehow fought his mode out of the rubble and managed to crawl his way toward Tijuana. There, he is rescued by Efrain (Jesse Borrego), a kind and resourceful man who lives off the street and knows exactly where and when to find water every week. He's also helped by an equally kind and resourceful woman named Lola (Lisandra Tena), who works for the nearby Gonzalez Dam, endemic and operated past Dante Esquival (Jason Manuel Olazabal), the cold-blooded criminal and one-time associate of Victor Strand (Colman Domingo).

Afterwards a series of violent events, Esquival recruits Salazar into his fold, recognizing him as a lethal Sombra Negra operative from his days during the civil war in Republic of el salvador. Salazar, who has already killed at least 96 people in his life by his count, is now being tasked with killing a few more than.

For a time, Salazar complies with Esquival'south orders, again condign an instrument of war after and then many years away from the battlefield. But in one case the ruthless kingpin's sights go gear up on Efrain and Lola, Salazar takes matters into his own hands. He kills Esquival and the homo's tiptop lieutenants, then surrenders his firearm to Lola, begging, "Forgive me." It appears that he's asking for her to put an end to his misery once and for all. Instead of firing the weapon, however, she extends a hand. It looks similar a new status quo for the Gonzalez Dam, with Salazar even so very much in the mix.

What's side by side for Daniel? Will he always find his daughterOfelia (Mercedes Mason)? Volition he find some sort of peace with Strand? Can he e'er find peace inside himself? Here's what Blades told The Hollywood Reporter about all of that and more — including why he had to be stopped from eating all of the SPAM in the cafeteria scene.

How much did you know about what was in shop for Salazar later on the midseason two finale, based on Dave Erickson saying at that place were still plans in place for the grapheme?

Really, nosotros didn't have any [conversations]. I just assumed information technology was best to let the story follow its course. I really had no idea what was going to happen. I think it was a good for you matter to practise, considering ultimately, you never know what'due south going to happen with this series. We all sign a contract, and the contract doesn't say I tin can't dice. Yous never know which management things are going to go. Something as elementary as a lack of fan interest can determine a graphic symbol'southward demise. I wasn't sure. I kind of knew that fans liked Salazar and plant him interesting, so I felt like I was coming back, but information technology never felt like a sure affair.

When did you find out that you were coming back, and the mode you were coming back?

I must have found out very soon before we started shooting. I don't call up getting a special call that I was coming back and that I would be doing this or that. I got a phone call from my agent saying that I was coming back and I need to report on such and such date. I wasn't having big conversations with Dave. I trust Dave. He'southward the 1 who brought me onto the show, so I felt confident that he would know what to practice. It was, "You're coming back, and this is what you're going to do."

And what was your reaction to finding out what you were going to do, what Daniel had been through to get to the Dam?

I was actually surprised at the fact that it's pretty much a Salazar episode. What surprised me the nigh is that I don't know if it's e'er happened before, and in my experience, I don't call back it: to have a U.S. tv outlet transmit in primetime an episode all in Spanish, with subtitles, that really got my attention. I don't really remember that always happening. I thought information technology was very bold of them and very courageous of them and also very timely. It was quite the surprise, I have to say. With Salazar, I've always loved that this character is then opposed to me. I've been denouncing dictatorships for 50 years. All of the sudden I'm playing someone who actually ended upwardly working — or was forced to work — in support of i, or as a part of organizations of intelligence and military machine. It was e'er interesting to me to find a character who is totally opposed to what I am and what I remember. I think those characters are unremarkably the virtually interesting. At the same fourth dimension, they forcefulness you to look at things and evaluate things, and they provide you with a more complete perspective of a homo character.

Daniel goes through a real journey in this episode. He's helped past Efrain, and then finds himself in a position where he has to injure Efrain. He's someone who has been away from the war for so long, and now he's once once more serving as a soldier. Was it hard to play Daniel in this space?

Information technology was hard to show, even though it'southward scripted… in that location's a part of our hearts and minds for those of us who have non been subjected in existent life to the rigors and horrors of such an emergency to inflict pain on someone who has helped u.s.a.. I don't find information technology easy to do any kind of scene where I'm causing pain to someone. Information technology was very hard for me to do that torture scene of the soldier [in flavour one], and it was very difficult for me to striking Efrain in this episode. Very, very hard for me. If information technology hadn't been for Efrain, Salazar would not take survived in the state he was in. It was also interesting in this episode that you lot find Salazar becoming more than human. He becomes more spiritual. He realizes he'due south been spared for some reason, after several opportunities he could take died. It was a difficult thing to adjust to. At the same time, the fact that I understood how this situation effected then many people in El salvador… in those days I was very aware of what was going on and I knew where to get to understand the motivation for Salazar to accept washed what he did.

At the terminate of the episode, Daniel protects the people who protected him. He stands on the right side. Before, he says he believes he's killed 96 people. He adds a few more to the list when he kills Esquival and his allies. Then Salazar drops to his knees and hands Lola his firearm, and says, "Forgive me." It appears that she does forgive him. Can Salazar forgive himself?

I retrieve he felt he was on a road where the possibility of redemption truly existed. He trusted her. He doesn't trust his own considerations of whether or not he's deserving of forgiveness for all that he's washed. He put the gun in her hand and I think he could have been the hundredth. He could accept been the one at the finish. Just like when he kneeled after attacking that huge homo, the infected… he dropped to his knees and said, "I'yard done. I'm washed." And much to his surprise, this strange episode occurs where the walker is hit past lightning…

Which was fantastic, past the fashion.

It really was! (Laughs.) I've seen episodes of The Walking Expressionless and I have all of the comic books. I've been following information technology. I don't recollect e'er existence so surprised, other than Glenn going under that dumpster. I thought he was gone. And I can't call back anything like [the walker getting struck by lightning]. It was such a surprising moment. When Salazar gives the gun to Lola, he says, "I'm washed. Do whatever you recollect." And she spares him. I retrieve it simply creates an argument for the possibility of his being forgiven and his redemption.

Hopefully some of that redemption involves reuniting with his daughter, Ofelia. He has a conversation well-nigh her with Strand — a scene that is in English — and Strand tells this one-half-baked lie that Ofelia is back at the hotel. Daniel sees straight through it. Just where exercise y'all think Daniel is at the end of the episode? Does he think Ofelia'southward dead, or does he call back she might yet be out there?

He thinks she's dead, but he hopes she'south alive. What happened with Strand is if you follow the conversation and Daniel'southward reactions, when Strand says "We all thought y'all were dead," Daniel knows that that's probably the instance. He himself probably thought he would exist dead. And yet, Strand overplays his paw and says, "She's waiting for you." That's when Daniel looks at him and goes, "You lot piece of shit. You lying dog. Y'all're going to rot here." Just in the dorsum of his mind, he sees him. He's never trusted Strand. He's seen men like this earlier. Equally he's going abroad and he's upset and angry that this man is lying, he still in the back of his caput, non having heard Strand say, "No, she's dead." He sees hope that she's still alive.

Is there whatever adventure of reconciliation between Daniel and Strand, or is that trust irreversibly broken at this point?

Await, Salazar is no saint. He'south done his share of evil and wrong things. He's a practical person. This is the 2nd apocalypse for Salazar. He already went through one. He understands the need to brand commitments to people you would otherwise find detestable. He knows the demand to forge alliances with enemies or people he personally would similar to put nether. I'm certain he has that in the dorsum of his caput. Plus, equally he goes abroad, he knows Strand has been somewhere where he has some of the stuff he'due south told him about Madison and the hotel… it's but as well pointed to all be a lie. He knows Strand knows something. He'due south just going to make him sweat before he gets to the bottom of it.

How much SPAM did you have to swallow in this episode?

Actually, they had to tell me not to eat information technology, considering I like it. We were going to run out of spam. (Laughs.) I fifty-fifty accept a T-shirt that says "SPAM" that my married woman got for me once. I can't eat it all anymore around the firm. The only fourth dimension I tin eat it is when she's not around.

Yous're about to become the unofficial spokesperson.

You know what, I recall when I was a kid growing up… we were a big family. Sometimes there's but not enough to buy real meat. I'm not unfamiliar with SPAM. It's true, because I in one case tried my dog's nutrient, that it smells a little fleck like it. (Laughs.) But I like information technology! I was only having a kick, because when I would eat information technology, I would go to my married woman and breathe on her, and she wouldn't like it.

The Gonzales Dam is in good easily right at present. All the bad people in charge of information technology are gone by the end of the episode. What can nosotros expect from this location as the flavour progresses, at present that the h2o is in the right hands?

It'south crucial. Crucial. Water… it's very interesting how many parallels one can depict between what'southward fiction and what it really represents in the future of humanity. We need to be serious nearly preserving our environment. We need to exist serious near climate change. Therefore we need to develop policies involving water that includes recycling and decontamination and more responsible use of water. I do believe the dam at this point is the ane thing that will act as a magnet. I become a kick out of people who consider money important, things like gold. Golden is just another piece of yellow rock. I approximate we're yet early on [in the apocalypse] that people consider it a show of status. Yous can't drink dollars and you can't drink aureate or diamonds. I exercise believe h2o is essential. I do think in that scenario, it's going to be a abiding fight to try to keep it away, because people want it. They desire information technology. That'southward the new currency.

What did you remember of the big Salazar episode? Permit united states of america know in the comments below.

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Source: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/fear-walking-dead-daniels-return-explained-1014159/

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