[This story contains major spoilers for The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live finale.]
And those who lived lived fortunately ever after. The top.
For now.
The six-episode restricted sequence The Strolling Lifeless: The Ones Who Stay has reached its conclusion, bringing the story of Andrew Lincoln’s Rick Grimes and Danai Gurira’s Michonne to an in depth, if solely in the interim. Heading into the reunion sequence, there was little doubt Rick and Michonne would be a part of collectively once more and kick staggering quantities of butt alongside the best way. Would they survive stated butt-kickings? One other query totally. However the Ones Who Stay finale answered that concern with a convincing victory from Rick and Michonne, who not solely cease the villainous CRM from waging warfare in opposition to an harmless metropolis, however managed to do all of it with time to get again to their household in Alexandria.
“I believe it was very clear we wanted [to survive] the epic journey,” Gurira tells The Hollywood Reporter concerning the season’s completely happy ending. “It couldn’t be straightforward, however that was all the time the place they wanted to land.”
Many components of The Ones Who Stay modified alongside the best way, together with its transformation from movie trilogy to restricted TV sequence.
In line with govt producer and franchise mastermind Scott Gimple, nevertheless, the completed product could be very completely different from what was initially imagined for the unproduced Rick Grimes films. However the completely happy ending for Rick, Michonne and the Grimes household was by no means unsure.
“I don’t suppose that was ever on the desk,” Gimple says about any conversations about killing Rick and Michonne. “I believe we knew our finish level. It was the journey on find out how to get to that finish level and actually how they save one another even after they discover one another, and the way they flip one another round from sure locations they’ve gone of their identities, which in some methods is a fantastic love story. When individuals do this for one another, they could have discovered one another bodily, however they should discover one another even inside one another.”
“We wouldn’t do this,” provides Lincoln. “That will be merciless. Moreover, it’s going to take greater than six episodes to kill me.”
Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes
AMC
Massive phrases from the so-called “Courageous Man,” as Rick got here to be identified all through Alexandria after his presumed “dying” in season 9. Within the remaining minutes, the Courageous Man returns dwelling, and reunites together with his youngsters, Judith and RJ, with actors Cailey Fleming and Antony Azor reprising their roles from the unique sequence.
“We wished it to really feel like a dream come true,” says Gurira. “You possibly can’t say there’s simply by no means going to be completely happy moments on this world. There might be, and that is certainly one of them. The characters have gone via hell and excessive water attending to that second.”
“It was pretty,” Lincoln says, remembering the day of taking pictures, during which he labored together with his onscreen children for the very first time. “It was this good afternoon of reunions, and discovering a really intimate, easy, direct scene, hopefully emotional. And it was amazingly emotional.”
Whereas Rick and Michonne are alive and properly for now, there’s cause to surprise in the event that they’ll keep that approach. Whereas all three of Lincoln, Gurira and Gimple stopped in need of confirming plans for future collaborations, the ending of The Ones Who Stay leaves that chance huge open.
In any case, what’s going to occur when Rick finds out Daryl and Negan are on the market within the universe?
“That’s very astute, and one thing we spoke at size about,” says Lincoln. “There are a number of surviving personalities nonetheless within the universe, and it could be extraordinary to have all of them breathe the identical air sooner or later. It could possibly be a fully super, traumatic reunion of kinds.”
Danai Gurira’s Michonne
AMC
Rick and Michonne apart, Gimple believes there are nonetheless many story alternatives within the Strolling Lifeless universe. The Ones Who Stay resolved giant features of the CRM storyline that first took root all the best way again within the flagship sequence’ seventh season. Are there some other equally planted seeds followers needs to be searching for now?
“What I’ll say is, I prepare dinner up my very own desires and fan fiction and we see whether or not it occurs,” says Gimple. “However now we have a observe report of desires turning into realities. This present was a dream. I consider the Willy Wonka line: ‘That is the place my desires grow to be realities and a few of my realities grow to be desires.’ I don’t suppose it’s a loopy factor if that occurred and we actually are gratified with the response to the present.”
Regardless of the future holds, whether or not it includes Rick and Michonne, all events concerned agree their subsequent steps inside the Strolling Lifeless universe all revolve across the identical central want: compelling character-driven storytelling.
“There’s one thing actually so satisfying about this character and what I’ve been capable of do together with her through the years,” says Gurira. “I do know it’s not on a regular basis that you simply get these form of characters and the best way the writing has allowed her to evolve as an individual and are available to a complete completely different place than the place she was after we met her in season three. And so that’s one thing I’m actually deeply grateful for. And actually, genuinely on the finish of this, I used to be completely happy for her. I used to be simply actually completely happy for my character. She’s been via it and her dangers and her gumption and her braveness have paid off and I really like that for her as a personality. What’s sooner or later? I can’t converse to that. However I’m very grateful for the journey that she’s had to date.”
Head right here for a refresher on Rick and Michonne’s story.