The Walking Dead season 9 showrunner, Angela Kang, is confident that Andrew Lincoln’s departure from the role of Rick Grimes will not spell doom for AMC’s zombie series.
Lincoln has made the choice to step away from the show, which has generated a lot of discussion points: Lincoln himself has since stressed that Rick doesn’t necessarily need to die, and Norman Reedus (who plays Daryl) has shut down rumours that he will be the new leading man in Lincoln’s absence. Meanwhile, certain fans have argued that Rick leaving the show might actually be a good thing.
And now, Angela Kang has been moved to comment on Rick’s departure, and how it won’t mark the beginning of the end for The Walking Dead. Here’s what Kang said to Entertainment Weekly on this very topic:
“[Our job is to] tell the story of the people going forward, because it’s never been a story just about this one man. It started with him, but it’s always been a story about this group of people that have each other’s backs, that help each other survive, that help each other be more human. And that’s the story that we’ll continue to tell.”
Kang added this, stressing that Lincoln has inspired the other actors to step up and take the show forward without him:
“He has so empowered the other actors to carry on the positive legacy that he’s had on the set all these years. And they really have absolutely stepped up. They have been stepping up all season. So, we have all these wonderful actors that are on our show that are gonna be just as positive, and wonderful, and warm as he was. And that’s really the lasting legacy that Andy leaves us as a human being on our set.”
The Walking Dead season 9 will premiere on October 7th, over in the States, and it should be available for UK viewing around the same time. It will be interesting to see how Rick ends up leaving, and what the show looks like without him.
We’ll keep you posted as more news comes to light.