It's official: Season 9 will be Andrew Lincoln's last season on The Walking Dead.
Lincoln, who plays Rick Grimes on The Walking Dead, confirmed at Comic-Con Friday that he will be leaving the series after more than eight years as the show's lead.
“This will be my last season playing the part of Rick Grimes," Lincoln said at Friday's Walking Deadpanel at Comic-Con. "I love this show. It means everything to me. I love the people who made this show. I promise not to cry. I’ve done enough crying onscreen."
SEE ALSO:'The Walking Dead' Season 9 trailer just dropped and it's intense afRumors began swirling about Lincoln's departure back in May when Collider reported that Lincoln would only be around for six episodes of Season 9, which is set to premiere in October. The news of Lincoln's departure comes not long after series mainstay Carl Grimes (Chandler Riggs) left the series during Season 8 in February.
After Lincoln leaves The Walking Dead, the show will have lost its two main characters that the show has revolved around since the first episode. Lincoln's character has been central to almost everything, and losing Rick will surely have a huge impact on the series.
Despite his imminent departure, Lincoln expressed his love for the fans and how much he has appreciated them throughout the show's run.
"I’m particularly fond of the people who watch the show, you people," he said. "This has been the most extraordinary amazing beautiful experience of my career, made largely because of you guys and the relationship we have with you, in this room and in rooms across America. So I just want to thank you. I don’t want to turn this into an Oscar acceptance speech or an obituary. We’re deeply proud of the work we’ve done this season."
Lincoln noted that just because he won't be playing Rick on the show anymore doesn't mean that Rick will be leaving his heart.
"My relationship with Rick Grimes is far from over," he said. "A large part of me will always be a machete wielding Stetson wearing zombie slaying sheriffs deputy from London, England.”
As for what Lincoln is doing post-Walking Dead, he said he's going to spend some time with his family.
"These guys here and everybody back in Atlanta are the greatest surrogate family I could have wished for but I do have a real family and it’s time for me to go home," he said.
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TopicsComic-ConThe Walking Dead
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