Richonne Love Coming To 'The Walking Dead' Season 9

The Walking Dead will put Rick and Michonne's relationship on display in Season Nine.

While it's unclear how many episodes Andrew Lincoln will film for the upcoming season, his Rick Grimes character will get some good loving time in with Danai Gurira's katana-wielding Michonne. The two characters have been together since Season Six and, according to Skybound's Johnny O'Dell in his weekly The Walking Dead Mailbag, the two characters will be spennding some quality time together when the show returns.

"We didn't ignore you – we just can't get to every question every week," O'Dell wrote. "But yes, we can confirm you will see more Richonne scenes in the first half of the season."

Does this mean Rick is going to die in the first half of Season Nine? While it's likely, given the number of episodes Lincoln is expected to appear in being less than eight, it's more of an assumption than a fact. The Walking Dead is currently gearing up to begin production on its sixth episode for Season Nine, so any details beyond what has already been shot might be under lock and key.

When asked by ComicBook.com if Rick is still ready to repopulate the world with Michonne despite losing his son Carl in Season Eight, Lincoln laughed, "I think that's all they've been doing during the hiatus."

Michonne, however, is among the characters expected to earn some development in Season Nine, if new The Walking Dead showrunner Angela Kang's recent tease is any indication.

"We're going to see some really great stories with the women on our show, particularly," Kang said. "And I think for people who are really invested in say Michonne, Maggie, Carol, there's such great material for them as well as, of course, Rick and Daryl, and those other characters that we love, but for people who are looking for that specifically they will really see some incredible work from our women."

Rick and Michonne's relationship, of course, is a wild card for the TV series. The two characters never connected romantically in Robert Kirkman's The Walking Dead comics, so the fact that Rick never has another kid in the source material (so far) does not necessarily mean it can't happen on the TV series.

The Walking Dead will return for its ninth season in the fall. Fear the Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9 pm ET on AMC, returning for the second half of its fourth season on August 12. For complete coverage and insider info all year long, follow @BrandonDavisBD on Twitter.