'The Walking Dead' Star Eleanor Matsuura Talks Yumiko's Big Decision in Latest Episode (Exclusive)

By Brian Jones

Episode 20 of the final season of The Walking Dead aired on AMC Sunday night, and Yumiko (Eleanor Matsuura) made a big decision that could impact the entire group. Yumiko announced in a meeting with the Commonwealth community that she will defend Eugue (Josh McDermitt) who is accused of being responsible for the death of Sebastian Milton (Teo Rapp-Olsson). Sebastian is the son of Commonwealth governor Pamela Milton (Laila Robins) who order Yumiko to be the prosecutor in Eugene's trial. In an exclusive interview with PopCulture.com, Matsuura said it was great for her character to stand up to Pamela after taking her orders for a long time. 

"I think Yumiko really felt like her back was against the wall this entire episode," Matsuura exclusively told PopCulture. "She's like, Pamela's not hiding, at least with Yumiko not hiding who she is and what her real intentions are. There's no question that she's blackmailing her. All her friends have disappeared. She doesn't know where they are, she doesn't know if they're hurt, if they're okay, and she threatens them and she threatens her brother. It's like, this is a kind of impossible situation. I honestly don't think that Yumiko knew what to do or how to get out of it until she walks up to that podium. I think the idea of flipping it and making it me defending Eugene, rather than prosecuting Eugene, only occurs to Yumiko in that moment when she realizes that there's safety in being seen in public."

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(Photo:

Eleanor Matsuura as Yumiko – The Walking Dead _ Season 11, Episode 20 – Photo Credit: Jace Downs/AMC

- Jace Downs/AMC)

Matsuura continued: "Pamela can't come out and be like, no, I asked you to prosecute Eugene. I know that I've backed her in a corner. So it's a good retaliation. I think so much of the episode, I felt with that my back was against the wall." Yumiko's decision could be costly as her friends are missing. Pamela ordered the group to be removed from the community after Sebastian died. Some of the people have not been caught yet as they have been hiding. But Yumiko is the only person not in danger since she's working as Pamela's attorney.

Because of this, Yumiko is dealing with a lot of challenges. "I feel like it's really hard being in the position that she's in," Matsuura said. "She's the only one that's sort of got this access to this side of Pamela. I'm on the other side of the fence, I'm in the upper classes. We've never dealt with class on The Walking Dead before. It's a different kind of division, and I'm the only one that's really got this access to the other side."

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