It’s almost here, folks. Tomorrow night will bring with it the final episode of The Walking Dead to feature Rick Grimes. Following last weekend’s shock cliffhanger in which Andrew Lincoln’s fearless leader was impaled, season 9, episode 5 – titled “What Comes After” – will see the actor bowing out of the role that he’s played for almost a decade.
Clearly, this is the end of an era for The Walking Dead then, and understandably, fans are wondering if the series can keep on going without ol’ Grimey. That remains to be seen, of course, but showrunner Angela Kang certainly feels like they’ve done justice to Rick’s story, revealing that Lincoln even had some input on his character’s exit.
“You know, we start with the writers’ room and try to figure out the story, thinking about the themes, but of course we had so many great conversations with Andrew,” Kang told ET.
“He’s been amazing this season, as he has been this entire journey on the show. I can say that I think that the send-off is incredibly emotional. It’s filled with twists and turns, it’s epic and so I’m really excited to share that with the fans even though we will miss Andrew and Rick. I hope that we’ve done service to that story.”
Of course, all good things must come to an end, as the old saying goes, and though AMC’s hit series has been struggling a bit in terms of ratings in recent seasons, falling back on recycled ideas and trite drama, this most recent run has been a marked improvement in quality so far (even if the viewing figures aren’t reflecting that). With that in mind, we’re hopeful that Kang’s right and that the writers truly have given Rick a fitting sendoff.
“What Comes After” is scheduled to premiere via AMC this Sunday, November 4th. As we said above, it’ll surely mark a major sea change for The Walking Dead as everyone begins to adjust to life without Rick Grimes, and as such, you won’t want to miss it.
