In what is perhaps the show’s biggest story deviation yet, Chandler Riggs and The Walking Dead are going their separate ways.
AMC dropped the bombshell during season 8’s mid-season finale, “How It’s Gotta Be,” when it was revealed that Carl Grimes had suffered a fatal bite while exploring the outer perimeter with Siddiq – much to the dismay of Rick, who will spend the remainder of The Walking Dead season 8 enduring the five stages of grief.
Of course, as any TWD fan will tell you, Carl Grimes is still alive and kicking in Robert Kirkman’s source material, which made AMC’s story twist all the more heartbreaking early last month. On a lighter note, the outgoing Chandler Riggs is fully confident that Carl’s legacy will be strongly felt on The Walking Dead for months – if not years – to come.
He’s definitely leaving behind a really long-lasting legacy, which was the coolest part about playing those final moments — knowing that Carl was going to have such a lasting impact on the story.
That’s all well and good, but what about those survivors who have been left to pick up the pieces? Rick Grimes is one such protagonist who will be put through the wringer – physically, if not emotionally – when The Walking Dead returns next month, and here, Andrew Lincoln teases the uphill struggle ahead.
The back half [of the season] is him trying to live through the unbelievable pain, in the middle of a war, and trying to reconcile this loss with what he’s fighting for. This is his worst nightmare being realized.
The Walking Dead season 8 returns from hiatus on February 25th, and when it does, it’ll signal the end of Carl’s saga once and for all. Meanwhile, Lennie James (Morgan) will also bid adieu to AMC’s flagship in favor of hit companion series, Fear The Walking Dead.
