'The Walking Dead' season 9: What the stars revealed at Comic-Con

The stars of The Walking Dead were out in force at the San Diego Comic-Con last week. Andrew Lincoln confirmed that season 9 will be his last season. Jeffrey Dean Morgan teased some changes to Negan. Lauren Cohan hinted at conflict between Maggie and Rick. And Norman Reedus played down rumours of his character Daryl taking over as the leader from Rick. Here’s what the stars had to say about The Walking Dead season 9 at the Comic-Con panel:

Andrew Lincoln (Rick)

Andrew Lincoln finally confirmed what we all knew already. He is leaving the show this season.

“This will be my last season playing the part of Rick Grimes. I love this show, it means everything to me. I love the people that make this show. I am particularly fond of the people that watch this show. This has been the most extraordinary, amazing and beautiful experience of my career, made possibly largely by you guys”.

Lincoln thanked the fans and continued with a strange addition: “What I wanted to say is my relationship with Mr. Grimes is far from over”. What exactly that means is unclear. Could Rick return in the future?

Lincoln also added that the show will be like “cowboys vs zombies this year”, so there’s always that to look forward to!

Jeffrey Dean Morgan (Negan)

Jeffrey Dean Morgan assured fans that we wouldn’t be seeing the same old Negan now that he’s Rick’s prisoner.

Morgan said “We’re going to see a new side of Negan quickly… A lot of him trying not to go crazy being in the situation he’s in. I think there’s redemption for Negan.”

Lauren Cohan (Maggie)

Although Lauren Cohan is also leaving the show this season, it looks like she’s going to be leaving the show on a high. With regards to Maggie’s relationship with Rick, Cohan promises that “You’re definitely going to see us in disagreement”. Maggie hasn’t let the murder of her child’s father go, and Cohan insists that this is “what this season is about.” Is there a civil war brewing?

Danai Gurira (Michonne)

Black Panther star Danai Gurira gushed about working with Andrew Linclon: “I truly believe this is the best leading man in television… His discipline, character, kindness has taught us how to carry on without him. He has so equipped us, I couldn’t be thankful enough to learn from him. It’s been a true joy.”

While she didn’t speak directly about her character Michonne, she did hint at the conflict within the group. She says “When folks are not on the same page, there’s going to be some serious conflict…..Navigating through that has been fun, but you know not everybody always wants to be civil.”

Norman Reedus (Daryl)

Finally, although there have been rumours of Norman Reedus being offered ridiculous money to take over as the lead of the show, Reedus played down the idea. He said: “This is a very female-driven season. It’s less bravado [and] a lot more depth… But you can’t take Rick’s place.”

Also, as confirmed in the trailer, expect to see Daryl getting into a lot more scraps in season 9. Reedus added: “He’s always had this fight or flight attitude, with his back against the wall. This season he grows his voice and a lot has to do with Rick and Daryl’s relationship evolving. It feels like a freaking Western this year, it’s great.”

Are you excited for The Walking Dead season 9?