EDGE Interview: 'Fear the Walking Dead' Star Isha Blaaker May Never Do Another Same-Sex Kiss

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."