Is Lennie James leaving The Walking Dead for good after crossover news?

Last night on Talking Dead it was announced that Lennie James is going to be taking off from The Walking Dead season 8 in order to be a part of Fear the Walking Dead season 4. He’s going to head down to the Austin, Texas area, where production on that upcoming season is set to take place. This announcement was likely made to ensure that further spoilers did not get out when the show films and someone spots James on set (as would inevitably happen).

Here is the good news for those of you worried that James’ participation on Fear the Walking Dead automatically negates him from being able to participate in the main series in the future — it doesn’t. Given the start of Fear the Walking Dead’s production it seems more than reasonable that he will return to The Walking Dead proper at some point in the future. This is something confirmed more by executive producer Scott M. Gimple in a statement:

“Even though Morgan is going to be featured on Fear, he has a lot of story left on The Walking Dead. Morgan’s arc in Season 8 positioned him for the story on Fear. It was also important to see Fear‘s world and characters through new yet familiar eyes.”

Gimple is now an executive producer on Fear the Walking Dead alongside new showrunners Ian B. Goldberg and Andrew Chambless. The three will work in tandem alongside comic creator Robert Kirkman to continue to cultivate that world. Given that this show had its best season ever just a few months ago, getting James to top it off could end up being the icing on the cake — at least in theory. Whether or not that ends up being the case in actuality is something that we’re going to have to find out in due time.

Remember that new episodes of Fear the Walking Dead will likely premiere in either the late spring or the summer — it’s a way to help ease the wait for the show proper in the fall / winter.

What do you think about Lennie James leaving The Walking Dead in order to join Fear the Walking Dead? Be sure to share in the comments below!

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