‘The Long Walk’ Star Garrett Wareing Breaks Down Stebbins’ [SPOILER] Scene: ‘He Begins to See the Boys as Companions, Not Adversaries’

Warning: This story contains spoilers for “The Long Walk,” now in theaters.

Let’s set the scene: A group of 50 young men, all from different states and counties, walk side by side in the daunting summer heat. The boys have no idea where they’re going, their bodies are slowly shutting down, everything they say is being monitored at all times for America to watch. The only objective on their mind is to walk until there’s only one last man standing.

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It’s the totalitarian society that Richard Bachman (aka Stephen King) created as he wrote “The Long Walk,” his first novel, now a feature film. With an intimate look inside masculinity and male friendships, “The Long Walk” has resonated with multiple generations throughout the last 46 years, showcasing the loss of youth in dire circumstances. 

While “The Long Walk” follows the story of Raymond Garranty (Cooper Hoffman) and Peter McVries (David Jonsson) as they forge a friendship throughout the walk, the film also focuses on various walkers who find themselves at odds with the society they have been born in, and who are desperate to make a change with the prize money and wish they are granted if they win.

One of the walkers, Stebbins (Garrett Wareing), sets himself apart from the other walkers, avoiding making close connections with the other contestants in an attempt to win. As Stebbins begins to question the point and authorities behind the walk, he soon realizes he may have more in common with his competition than he may believe. 

Wareing spoke to Variety about originally auditioning for the role of Barkovich, why Stebbins chooses to step out of the competition during the final moments of the film, and why “The Long Walk” has made a lasting impact since its release in 1979.

How did you get attached onto “The Long Walk?”

Initially, I auditioned for “The Long Walk” five years ago when it was a completely different team. I just remember falling in love with this story way back then, and when I saw the film come back around, it just reinvigorated excitement within me. I initially auditioned for the role of Barkovich, and Rich Delia, our casting director, then asked me who I wanted to potentially play in the film. I was given the new script to read, and I found myself drawn towards Stebbins. One thing led to another, and I ended up doing a tape for Stebbins. I got my friends from “Ransom Canyon” to go out into the desert to shoot it with me, and we shot my audition tape walking in the desert.

At the very beginning, Stebbins is who all of the other boys think is either going to win the walk or will get the first ticket out. They have their own opinions and thoughts on him at the beginning of the walk, and they make those feelings very clear. Where is his head space at as he’s overhearing all of the other contestants talk about him so openly?

I don’t think Stebbins comes from a place of wanting to hurt these boys. In his mind, he will win this race, and in order to win, he has to beat everybody else there. I found this space with Francis [Lawrence] by virtue of being withheld and it’s not coming from a place of hatred or anger. It’s coming from a place of self preservation. If he begins to like these boys and begins to know something about them and they end up getting along, it’s only going to hurt him more. In his mind, he will win this walk. He’s holding out on getting to know them because he doesn’t want to hurt himself and hurt them in the process.

In the book, Stebbins is a very polarizing character. Throughout the novel, he makes small talk with the other boys, but he also laughs when they get killed one by one. In this version, we get to see a more subtle version where he’s constantly in fight or flight mode, and is very withdrawn from everyone around him. 

In the book, he is quite brash. Francis was leading from a place of unification and camaraderie where all of these boys, Stebbins included, don’t want to see each other falter and don’t want to see each other die. On set, the cast found a place together to give more heart to these characters, and I really like how we end up finding the truth and the love within Stebbins.

In a scene after Olson [Ben Wang] dies, the remaining walkers learn that he was the only one who had a wife back home. The remaining contestants make this pact that whoever wins is going to support his widow with financial help, and Stebbins immediately is on board to help in any way possible with the rest of the boys. Is that the turning point where he’s slowly starting to realize he is caring about the remaining walkers?

The moment for me came a little bit sooner. It’s the moment when Tressler [Samuel Clark] is holding up this radio and everybody’s chanting ‘Fuck the Long Walk, fuck The Major!’ all around. When we were filming that, everybody was getting so into it. I remember as both Garrett and Stebbins, I just began to smile because there is a bit of camaraderie happening with everyone. In that small moment, Stebbins begins to see these boys as companions and not adversaries. It’s a surprise to him that he finds throughout the film, specifically in that moment.

It’s such a vulnerable moment for him too, because it feels like he’s saying a fuck you to his dad, who is revealed to be The Major at the end of the film. When they’re down to the final three, Stebbins announces that he wanted to use his wish to be invited to his dad’s house for tea. It feels like before he dies, he realizes that he’ll never be his father and he doesn’t want to be like him in any shape or form.

I think that maybe he got into it foolishly, thinking that he’ll get one thing out of it. But then throughout the walk, he learns that maybe it’s something else. Ultimately, we are changed because of what we experience.

At what point towards the end does Stebbins realize that he’s not going to win the walk?

I feel like Stebbins could have kept walking, but I believe he begins to see that he doesn’t have what it takes to be the winner in his soul. He sees what Ray and Pete share and I think that he almost sacrifices himself to let them have those final moments together. I really realized that towards the end of that monologue there at the end of the film, when he’s allowing them to continue forward. Even though he gets sick and it physically wears him down, the love that Stebbins sees between the two boys, he’s able to be at peace and say that he’s glad it’s the two of them at the end. 

“The Long Walk” has resonated with audiences for almost 50 years. Why do you think this book has spoken to teenagers, and continues to have a lasting impact on multiple generations?

There’s something that we can all relate to within the story. Even though it is this brutal walk that we’re seeing these boys go through, it’s also a lesson to appreciate what we have while we have it. Everything is temporary in life, but if we can have beautiful experiences and share them with others during that temporary experience, can that be enough? We see how much these boys get to love one another and get to know one another, and it ends up teaching us a lesson just by being an audience member to appreciate what you have while you have it. We’re on a long walk from the moment we’re born to the exact moment we die. That’s what the lesson here is for me, to treat others with respect and kindness, to honor the wishes of the fallen, and to have this dream of a better future. We’re all in this together. 

This interview has been edited and condensed.