One of the many reasons that television shows come to an end is the increasing cost to keep the main cast together. This bodes well for a series like “The Walking Dead”, since it’s structure allows for the filmmakers to kill off anyone they want without any notice. Some tough decisions may be looming over the heads of AMC and the “Walking Dead” producers.
While Carl Grimes’ storyline continues to go strong in Robert Kirkman’s comic, the actor who portrays him on AMC’s “The Walking Dead” adaptation – Chandler Riggs – is about to hold the show’s success over their heads.
Here’s what we just learned, thanks to William Riggs, Chandler’s father (via a Facebook post that has since been removed):
“7 year contract completed! Grateful to AMC, Cast & Crew, TWD fan base, and especially Chandler for always being 100% dedicated. Whether is was getting up at 4 AM, working in the freezing cold past 2 AM, leaving his friends and carefree kiddom behind, scrambling to make up missed schoolwork, he has done it without complaint and always made me proud & amazed to be his dad!”
There are a few ways to take this news, with some outlets spinning it as the father’s goodbye to the cast and crew spoiling Carl’s ultimate demise at the end of the ongoing seventh season. I think that’s far from the truth, but I wouldn’t be surprised if this season’s cliffhanger leaves fans wondering if Carl is dead…
You see, the father did only one thing here that’s clear to this writer: he leveraged his son’s position on the show, and got fans all heated as if they may lose their favorite underdog. You see, if he gets the fans screaming on social media, it gives William and Chandler huge leverage over AMC to sign a massive contract to continue on for the next several years. The off season pressure is going to be immense, and costly, and now that’s it’s out in the open there’s going to be a lot of panic. I love the chaos this simple Facebook post is going to cause, but it’s also a reminder of how difficult it is to keep a show on the air. What does this mean for the other actors, such as Andrew Lincoln? What happens when their contracts are up? Are their contracts up too? Will AMC have to make some tough decisions come the end of this season?
AMC has already announced an eighth season, and showrunner Scott Gimple is already talking movies, so they’re going to have to lock in their dream team for the next decade to avoid everything falling apart in the next few years.
This should be interesting…
