Chandler Riggs confirms The Walking Dead season 8 departure — what’s next
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Chandler Riggs confirmed that Carl is going to be dying soon after being bit by a walker tonight — as a result of that, he is leaving the show that he has been a part of since the beginning. The choice to kill Carl off came from executive producer / showrunner Scott M. Gimple as opposed to anything that the actor wanted — it’s a big transition for him personally in addition to it being a big change for the show itself.
Riggs tells the publication that when the show returns, Carl is going to do what he can as some of his last work to ensure that Rick learns something from him before he goes:
Episode 809 is really Carl trying to teach Rick as much as he can about what he’s learned and trying to convince Rick to not kill every single Savior because there’s still good people out there. The Alexandrians, the Hilltop and the Kingdom — all those people probably see him as a villain like the Saviors. There’s some humanitarian aspects that Carl is going to try and teach Rick in his final moments.
Ultimately, we’re always going to wonder if Carl would have lived had Rick kept his focus on something other than Negan and the Saviors. For example, what would’ve happened if he and the group had just moved far away from Negan once they learned about him? Wouldn’t that have been a better solution for them? Was this all-out war really necessary? Rick is someone who does like to be the hero for everyone, but we do wonder if his desire to be this liberator and conqueror of the Saviors caused him to lose sight on what matters most. He may still have Judith, but with Carl gone his mental state could change dramatically.
Consider this one of many interesting things about what’s coming the rest of the way on The Walking Dead this season.
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