'Walking Dead': Character's Shocking Exit Explained | THR News - video Dailymotion

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AMC's 'The Walking Dead' just delivered the biggest shocker in its 100-episode-plus history when, during Sunday's season eight midseason finale, the zombie drama set the stage for the unimaginable death of one of its most untouchable characters.

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00:00AMC's The Walking Dead just delivered the biggest shocker in over 100 episodes during

00:08Sunday's season 8 mid-season finale. The stage is now set for the unthinkable, the death of one

00:13of the zombie drama's most beloved characters. Big, huge, massive spoiler alert for Sunday's

00:19mid-season finale of The Walking Dead. Okay, ready? We're serious about that spoiler alert.

00:25Okay guys, it's tragic, but true that Rick's teenage son, Carl Grimes, played by Chandler Riggs,

00:30is on death's door after suffering a zombie bite a few episodes earlier. Riggs confirms the

00:36devastating news in an exclusive interview with The Hollywood Reporter's Leslie Goldberg saying,

00:40"...yes, Carl is going to die. There is no way he can get back from that. His story is definitely

00:46coming to an end." Riggs and Andrew Lincoln, aka Rick, are the only original series regulars who

00:51have been with The Walking Dead since the pilot. Carl was widely seen as the future of the

00:56post-apocalyptic world as Rick, a former sheriff, has been grooming him to take over as leader of

01:00the survivors. Outside of killing off leading man Lincoln, this is the biggest departure the

01:05show could make from the comic book's source material. Riggs still has one episode left,

01:10which will air February 25. His death will send shockwaves through his on-screen family and

01:14off-screen fans alike. The decision for Riggs to leave the hit AMC show was not his own, the actor tells THR,

01:20and showrunner Scott M. Gimple's decision to kill Carl was completely unexpected.

01:25"...I was planning on going to college until I found out," he says.

01:28"...I found out when I was doing rehearsals for episode 6 back in June. It was quite the shocker

01:33for me, Andy and everyone, because I don't think anyone saw it coming. Scott wanted to meet in

01:38person because it was such a big deal. We had just finished rehearsing for a scene in episode 6,

01:43and he wanted to meet with me and my mom and dad and talk about what's going to happen."

01:47Meanwhile, Riggs' father has been vocal about his son's exit, taking to Facebook to criticize the

01:52way it was handled.

01:54"...watching Gimple fire my son two weeks before his 18th birthday after telling him they wanted

01:58him for the next three years was disappointing," Riggs' father posted.

02:02"...I never trusted Gimple or AMC, but Chandler did. I know how much it hurt him. But we do absolutely

02:08know how lucky we have been to be a part of it all and appreciate all the love from fans all these years."

02:14Despite his own disappointment, however, the actor himself is taking it all in stride, saying,

02:19"...it was devastating for me and my family because the show has been such a huge part of my life

02:23for so long. For a few days, we didn't know what to do. It ended up being a great thing because now I

02:28get to do all kinds of other stuff that I haven't been able to do in the last eight years."

02:33Riggs' on-screen father, Andrew Lincoln, who plays Rick, also weighs in on the huge departure in his own

02:38THR interview, saying, "...it was very difficult because it's such a departure from the comics and

02:42such a shock for all of us. Everybody was reeling. I never saw it coming. But that's the point."

02:48Meanwhile, Riggs does feel his character's death ultimately serves a good purpose in the story.

02:53There's still a little more left in Carl's story, in episode 9, and that impacts Rick, Michonne and

02:57everyone, he says. Although Carl's story is coming to an end, it's not over yet. Riggs reveals that

03:03Carl's dying moments will be poignant as well as heartbreaking. Episode 809 is really Carl trying

03:09to teach Rick as much as he can about what he's learned and trying to convince Rick not to kill

03:13every single savior because there are still good people out there, he says. There are some

03:17humanitarian aspects that Carl is going to try and teach Rick in his final moments.

03:22To read Leslie Goldberg's full exclusive interview with Chandler Riggs ahead of his shocking exit from

03:26The Walking Dead, plus full coverage from Sunday's episode including Lincoln's full interview

03:31and a chat with showrunner Scott N. Gimple, head to THR.com slash walking dead.

03:36And tell us, has news of Carl's death left you speechless? And what do you think of this huge

03:41change from the comics? Let us know in the comments. For The Hollywood Reporter News, I'm Lyndsey Rodrigues.

'Walking Dead': Character's Shocking Exit Explained | THR News

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