‘The Walking Dead’ Star Promises Big Things After Rick’s Exit

The Walking Dead stars are making big promises about the series beyond Andrew Lincoln‘s tenure.

Now, Anne (formerly known as Jadis) actress Pollyanna McIntosh is opening up about The Walking Dead‘s life after Rick Grimes. Like Ezekiel actor Khary Payton, McIntosh believes that fans of the AMC show are going be satisfied with its direction beyond its main character’s time.

“All I would say about it is you just never know how good it can get, and I don’t want people to give up on The Walking Dead because of their grief over Andy, I think they’re going to have a lot coming to them,” McIntosh told Digital Spy. “It’s weird and it’s a strange thing. There’s nobody that can replace Andy and that character has been the lynchpin of the series, but we have also lost people that we were incredibly attached to before and the story goes on to new and exciting heights.”

While many fans tend to have brash reactions to their favorite characters leaving The Walking Dead, McIntosh believes they will come around when they see how Lincoln’s departure and the show’s future are carried out.

“I have faith in the team to really surprise the audience and I certainly think the fans won’t be disappointed with what happens after, it’s some pretty cool stuff,” McIntosh said.

In fact, the actress who joined the show in its seventh season likened Rick’s exit to recent events of The Walking Dead‘s sibling series, Fear the Walking Dead, which recently sent Kim Dickens and Frank Dillane packing.

“It’s been difficult for their audience losing some of their great lynchpins as well, but we’ve seen it go forward,” McIntosh said. “Garret Dillahunt is a friend from a long time ago and seeing him and Lennie [James] do their work together has been an absolute joy.”

The Walking Dead‘s strong supporting cast will have a lot of weight on their shoulders moving forward, but might just be up for the challenge. “We have all these wonderful actors that are on our show that are gonna be just as positive, and wonderful, and warm as he was. And that’s really the lasting legacy that Andy leaves us as a human being on our set,” McIntosh said.

Fear the Walking Dead returns for the back half of its fourth season on Sunday, Aug. 12 at 9 p.m. ET on AMC. The Walking Dead returns for its ninth season on Oct. 7, 2018. For more updates and insider info all year long, follow @BrandonDavisBD on Twitter!