Mar 10
EDGE Interview: 'Fear the Walking Dead' Star Isha Blaaker May Never Do Another Same-Sex Kiss
Timothy Rawles READ TIME: 6 MIN.
In November 2023, Isha Blaaker closed out the season, and subsequently the entire horror series "Fear the Walking Dead," ending its eight-year run. He starred in the final four episodes as Frank, a gay man married to fan favorite Victor Strand, portrayed by Colman Domingo. Blaaker can also be seen in Ava DuVernay's existential drama "Origin," which premiered at the Venice International Film Festival in 2023 just about the same time "Fear the Walking Dead" took its final bow.
In one of the "Walking Dead" episodes, Blaaker had to kiss his co-star Domingo, which he says wasn't easy; it was his first with another man and the first time he played a gay character – although his role as Davi in "Tyler Perry's A Medea Homecoming" came close, until a dramatic plot twist.
This led some fans to speculate that he is part of the LGBTQ+ community in real life. He answers that question later in the interview, but he shares a little about his life before show business first.
Prior to acting, the handsome 36-year-old was a model, and he remains one today. Even though he is strikingly good looking and has a body any designer would love to wrap their clothes around, his pretty boy privilege didn't grant him access to the front of the line.
"Neither as a model nor as an actor was I initially scouted," Blaaker said in a telephone interview with EDGE. "I just kept banging on doors until they let me in."
Born in Suriname, South America, Blaaker has four siblings. His family moved to Rotterdam, in the Netherlands, when he was almost two. His parents separated when he was eight. He opened up about the rest regarding his youth.
"As far as childhood, I was always into martial arts and I did really well in that – that was my passion," he says. "I was national champion a couple times, and that was my dream. And then at some point I kinda let that go because of injuries, and then modeling came into play, and there were some changes at the school that I trained at. So, all that just kind of trickled out. I did full-contact karate for, like, 13 years. I did MMA for, like, six months."
In college, Blaaker pursued a master's degree in business, which he received, but rather than spending the rest of his life in a claustrophobic cubicle he wanted to see the world. After graduating, he persisted in his modeling career, which isn't an easy business. For every person who makes it there are several who don't, and it can be difficult to pay the bills if there is nothing to fall back on.
"I gave myself a year to reach the top," he says. "And by the end of the year, I got scouted to work in New York, and that is a top market. But I gave myself a year, or I would return to corporate. By the time I started acting classes, the corporate thing wasn't really a thing anymore. And the modeling funded all my training, and I still live off of my modeling. All my acting money, I try to re-funnel into my career."
Blaaker's mother was a big part of his motivation. Throughout his social media posts and other interviews, he says she sacrificed her life to raise her family and for that he is grateful. "I think my mom was the push and my dad probably the pull."
Sometimes boys with single mothers dream of wealth and fame and what they will buy them if they reach it. When asked if there was anything that he wanted to buy his mother once he became successful, his practical side came out.
"It's a strange question, because as a kid you dream of that. But sometimes when you hit a different age, it's not necessary anymore. If I were to get her a car now it might just be giving her a certain luxury, and back in the day it would have been a necessity."
He has kept his love life private on purpose, which has left some people to speculate about his sexual orientation. His gay character in "Fear the Walking Dead," only furthers that curiosity. The gay community loves a great role model, and when a good-looking actor takes on a gay part, that curiosity triples.
"I am straight, if that's what you're asking," Blaaker says, seeing through my roundabout questions regarding why he keeps his relationships private. I apologize, thinking that I may have overstepped my bounds.
"No, don't worry about it," he says. "I have no qualms about that. But the other question: Why I kind of keep quiet about relationship status or not – I just feel like there's a life before all of this, there's a life next to this industry, and there will be a life afterward, and I think some things are better kept to yourself.
"And if it makes it out because I'm out with my partner and all that, that's me, that's great," he continues. "But I probably won't make an effort to flaunt that. I'd rather keep it to myself and enjoy that, and keep it personal and beautiful."
Although he is happy with his kissing scene with the out (and Oscar-nominated) Domingo, Blaaker says it was a personal struggle.
"Yeah, that was not easy for me," he says. "I was kind of like, you know, in my head about it quite a bit. I just wanted to make sure that the whole thing went well and that it wouldn't be an issue. I try to really do my best to make sure, you know, it went that way."
The scene remained on his mind long after it wrapped "because it is a really weird experience for a straight man to do that.
"I don't know if I would ever do it again," he adds. "But later on, when I saw the project, I was like, 'I'm so happy that we were able to sell two characters that were in love, two husbands.' That actually meant way more to me than any of the difficulties going into it."
Many straight actors playing gay characters in Hollywood are often confronted with opinions and reasons why they shouldn't. This wasn't something Blaaker knew before going into the role.
"Quite a few of my gay friends who are actors don't wanna get pigeonholed in playing characters like that, or typecast," he concedes. "And then, with the straight actors, you get this thing of, like, either you also get typecast afterward, or, you know, you have to go through the physicality of kissing another man. And so I would imagine that for casting it's not easy to book gay characters if you're famous. Then there's also the other thing of people knowing your sexuality, or thinking to know, and then they make assumptions about that."
His next move doesn't involve a camera. He says he would love to perform on stage, and recently he auditioned for a show.
"I'd love to be on Broadway; that almost happened. That was great," he said with a little disappointment in his low, resonant voice. He says it's something he wants to solidify along with other things that utilize his creativity. "I write, you know, and hopefully something beautiful comes out of that."
As for his everyday life, Blaaker continues his journey to the top by "auditioning, hustling, grinding, and networking." He admits his online presence needs improvement: "I could get better on my social media if anybody has any advice." But that's not nearly as important as acting, he says. "I like to keep it around the craft so I'm growing and studying."
