By Brian Tucker

Cullen Moss landed a great role on a show watched by 15 million-plus viewers.

The local actor has played a police officer before (Safe Haven and The Odd Life of Timothy Green) but nothing like Officer Gorman on tonight’s episode “Slabtown” (season 5, episode 4) of the popular AMC television series The Walking Dead. You can view the clip here.

The episode was a breakaway from a typical show’s episode in which most of the cast is outside surviving the zombie apocalypse. Tonight’s episode took place almost entirely in an Atlanta hospital where the character Beth, who has been missing the whole season, wakes up in an ominous, fascist environment where inhabitants are indentured servants.

Moss plays one of the police officers lording over the inhabitants, drunk on power and saying lines in a calm but sinister delivery. His scenes allow him to shine as someone taunting Beth. In one Gorman confronts Beth alone in a hospital room and torments her with a green lollipop. The moment recalls Cape Fear when Robert De Niro puts his thumb in Juliette Lewis’ mouth.

Moss got to play something very different, a role that will likely be remembered well on the show. He nailed it as the despicable Gorman. But he received a nice compliment from actress Emily Kinney, who plays Beth.

Discussing the lollipop moment with Talking Dead after-show host Chris Hardwicke tonight following the episode’s premiere, she said of Moss, “That actor is super, super nice.”

Tonight’s episode of The Walking Dead will air again tonight a few more times and again next Sunday at 8 p.m. before the new episode.