Why is Chandler Riggs leaving The Walking Dead? What you need to know entering tonight

Tonight’s new episode of The Walking Dead is more than just the midseason premiere — it is also the final episode for Chandler Riggs as the character of Carl Grimes. This is a pivotal episode that will allow viewers an opportunity to say goodbye — while also setting the stage for whatever the future will be. It’s going to be emotional and based on most-show quotes we’ve heard, this could be the best overall episode of Riggs’ career.

Yet, why is Chandler Riggs leaving? Did it have to be this way? Not in the slightest; unfortunately, Chandler himself did not exactly have a whole lot of say in what happened. His departure is the product of a decision showrunner Scott M. Gimple made during season 8 to further along the story, and he disclosed it to Riggs and his parents a couple of episodes before Carl was bit by a walker. Here is how Chandler explained getting the news to Entertainment Tonight:

“When Scott kind of explained it all to me, it really made sense for the story and for everyone’s characters … It made sense for it to drive the story forward and take it to where it’s supposed to be going.

“It really sucks to be off the show. I had such a great time and it was really, really awesome to have eight years [on The Walking Dead]. It’s definitely an experience that I don’t regret.”

We do think Riggs would have remained with the show however long that producers would’ve had him, but they made this decision and they have to deal now with some of the blowback — which could be vast depending on what happens tonight. There is also a demographic of viewers out there who probably don’t read television news at all and could be secretly hoping that Carl finds his way through this in one piece … unfortunately, many of those people are probably going to be angry by what they check out tonight. The real impact of Carl’s death is going to be seen courtesy of the ratings for subsequent episodes; we’re going to have a very good chance to see just how the majority of the Walking Dead fandom feels about the death of Carl in terms of their viewing commitments.

Related – See how Andrew Lincoln said goodbye to Riggs on-set

What do you want to see in regards to The Walking Dead and Chandler Riggs’ departure? Be sure to share right now in the attached comments!

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