Andrew Lincoln’s Rick Grimes To Leave The Walking Dead

Andrew Lincoln Set To Leave The Walking Dead At the End of The Upcoming Season

Despite the plethora of characters and side characters, The Walking Dead TV series has largely been the story of one man. Namely, Rick Grimes. The character, played by Andrew Lincoln has without a doubt been the central role of the story so far. Despite his role somewhat diminishing in the comic book series, he is still, essentially, the main character there as well.

It is, therefore, something of a shock to the series that Andrew Lincoln is reported in the Hollywood Reporter to be leaving the role at the end of the upcoming TV series.

This does, of course, spark a lot of speculation. In brief, what the terms of his exit will be and more so if his character will be killed off.

It’s not canon, but it doesn’t have to be!

Despite Rick Grimes being alive and well in the comics, similar to Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead has already taken some deviancy from the source material. As such, in terms of being canon to the comic, that is no longer a major issue. In addition, with Andrew Lincoln having played the role for nearly 10 years now, it’s not surprising that the man himself may be tiring with the workload.

The report does suggest that his leaving is going to give Norman Reedus a more central role. Something that fans would probably like. With Lauren Cohen, who plays Maggie, also set to be phased out this season, it does suggest that the show is going to be a little mixed up in the coming season.

The main question though remains. Will Rick Grimes simply leave or will he die? There’s potential for both options the way the plot is currently set out. If you were to ask my opinion, I suspect the former. Killing him off is too final a conclusion for such a main character. A season or two break could potentially allow him to come back or his role reprised by someone else. The timespan would also allow fans to adjust to this while also being pleased to see the character return.

The Walking Dead is, however, beginning to show cracks as a TV series. Let’s face it, they’ve spent the first 3 seasons repeatedly fighting off zombies and every season since repeatedly fighting off other groups. As such, this could mark the potential end of the format of the current show as we know it. At this point though, we’re just going to have to wait and see.

What do you think? – Let us know in the comments!