Andrew Lincoln’s Perspective on ‘The Walking Dead’s Big Death is the Silver Lining We Needed to Hear
*This post contains spoilers from The Walking Dead season 8. If you have not caught up on the series, read at your own risk!*
It’s been just about a month since The Walking Dead’s gut-wrenching midseason finale, and while a lot of fans are still not over the writer’s decision to kill off Carl Grimes, Andrew Lincoln is beginning to find the silver lining that will hopefully encourage people to tune in and see the next chapter of this eight-year-long story.
“As soon as it happened, all bets were off. Because there had been a certain sense, I think, over the last couple of years, that people would go, ‘Oh, we are much more associated with the comic book,’ the actor told EW.
I think that the general thrust of the story was always going to be based upon that with a couple of deviations or inversions or twists or replacements in one character taking that story and this one taking that. But this is unchartered waters for the show. I think it made, certainly for me, a much more challenging and more dangerous back eight [episodes]. I think what they’re having to do is shake it up, in a profoundly new way.”
The Walking Dead was once cable’s most popular television show, consistently drawing in record-breaking ratings and being a huge topic of conversation on Monday mornings. However, over the years things have certainly dropped off a bit. While the show still brings in solid numbers, it’s not nearly where it used to be. So, after eight years it seems like an opportune time to do something drastic and hit a refresh button.
“I think, well, why not? We’re eight years, into a big story and I think if there is a future game — which I know that there is — they’re going to have to take some big swings and change things up. Loosening and untethering us from a lot of the story in the comic is one really interesting way of moving the story forward, and perhaps we can look at a bigger story outside of the one that we’ve been focusing on for eight years — which could be incredibly satisfying for Rick’s journey, and the characters that are around Rick, but also for the audience.”
Carl Grimes was always meant to be the future of The Walking Dead, and it’s extremely unfortunate that his death had to be the catalyst that ignites this big change, but Lincoln makes a fair point in that the decision will open a lot more doors and opportunities for other characters and storylines. Sometimes, some of the best stories to happen in the series thus far were the result of changing something from the comic books – Carol for example.
We’re sure that there is still a lot left to come out about what to expect in the back half of the season, but if Lincoln is correct we can expect to see a lot more big changes coming our way! Be sure to turn in to episode 9 on Feb. 25th on AMC.
Source: EW.
Related:
Chandler Riggs Discusses His Last ‘Walking Dead’ Episode
‘The Walking Dead’: Chandler Riggs Shares his Reaction When Cast as Carl
Looking Back at ‘The Walking Dead’ Scene That Led to the Midseason Finale Reveal
‘The Walking Dead’: 10 New Photos Preview a Heartbreaking Midseason Premiere
Having studied Media & Writing at James Madison University, I always knew that I wanted to do some type of creative writing, but being able to write about zombies, Starks, and superheroes on a daily basis for Fan Fest is my actual dream. While I probably shouldn’t be as proud as I am to be so similar to Nick Miller, I do hope to one day write my own “Pepperwood Chronicles’.
