dead men walking

Lauren Cohan on Why She Left Walking Dead, Possible Maggie Spin-Off

Sure, Maggie’s gone from the show—but as Andrew Lincoln can attest, that doesn’t mean she’s necessarily gone from the franchise forever.

By Laura Bradley

February 6, 2019

The Walking Dead has jumped forward in time, built a cool new windmill, and given Judith a sassy voice. Even so, one thing has become very clear in the show’s ninth season: things are just not the same without Lauren Cohan’s Maggie Greene. The post-apocalyptic world’s politics are in shambles, partially because of Maggie’s absence and partially because her replacement leader at Hilltop, Jesus, died in the show’s midseason finale.

There was a lot of speculation when Cohan left the series about her possible reasons for making an exit, especially amid ongoing contract negotiations. But the actress seemed to counter rumors that she moved on from the show because of contentious salary talks: “I don’t think it was bad,” she said of her contract negotiations. As Cohan elaborated to journalists at a Television Critics Association event this week, “It was like, I’ve done the show for a long time. It was a long time to be in any character, and sometimes you just get quiet and listen to your inner guidance and it’s time to multi-task.”

But Walking Dead exits are not always what they seem—especially for characters like Maggie Greene, who did not die but has, according to the show, left the core group to travel with a community builder named Georgie. This leaves an opening for Maggie to return someday, either in the series or even in a spin-off of some sort, as Andrew Lincoln’s Rick Grimes will do in the franchise’s upcoming movie trilogy. When Cohan was asked about a potential Maggie Greene spin-off, she stopped short of ruling out the possibility entirely.

“There may have been some conversations, but everything is so early-days ambiguous . . . We’ll have to see what happens,” Cohan said.

The Walking Dead begins the back half of its ninth season this Sunday—although its midseason premiere has already been made available on AMC Premiere, the network’s streaming hub. The series is still recalibrating from the huge impact of losing both Maggie and Rick in one season. Meanwhile, an ongoing Walking Dead legal battle has reached its next step at last: Frank Darabont, who was fired from the series in Season 2, finally got a trial date for his lawsuit against AMC—as well as a new judge. Deadline reports that the $300 million lawsuit will go to trial on May 11, 2020, with Justice Joel Cohen to replace the now-retired Justice Eileen Bransten on the bench. Given how colorful Darabont’s e-mails, which surfaced as part of his legal battle, turned out to be, this trial should prove entertaining, to say the least.

Correction: This post has been updated to clarify that Cohan’s comments were about her contract negotiation with AMC.