The Walking Dead Former Star Chandler Riggs Had a Surprising Cameo in the Series Finale

11 seasons of zombies came to an end on Sunday night, as the final episode of The Walking Dead aired on AMC. The series finale had quite a few nods to former characters who departed over the years, many in the form of voiceovers or flashback montages. One former Walking Dead star, however, actually appeared on-screen in a background cameo role. Chandler Riggs, who starred in several seasons as Carl Grimes, made a short comeback for The Walking Dead‘s final episode.

Riggs appeared in the background of one of the final seasons at Hilltop, dressed as a farmer and working the land. During Maggie, Daryl, and Carol’s last exchange in the episode, Riggs can be seen hanging around the set, though you probably missed it if you weren’t looking for him.

According to the creative team behind The Walking Dead, Riggs was in town during the filming of the finale and just came to set to see some of his former cast mates. 

“Chandler Riggs was in town and he just asked to visit to say hi to friends,” showrunner Angela Kang told EW. “I had such a good time hanging with him on set, and it was just really nice to see him. And then they were doing these scenes and needed some extras, and Greg was like, ‘Well, you want to go for it? Get in there! Go get in the back.’”

“That was our last day of shooting and Chandler wanted to come visit,” said finale director and series executive producer Greg Nicotero. “And I looked at him and I went, ‘Hey, you. Take that, go stand in the back of that shot.’ It wasn’t planned. I don’t even think we put wardrobe on him. I think he was just wearing whatever he wore when he came to set. We’re just like, ‘Throw him in the background.’ I think we gave him a hat to disguise him a little bit.”

Riggs played Carl, son of Rick Grimes, on The Walking Dead from the very first episode. The character died halfway through the eighth season of the series, causing Riggs to exit the role.

Did you catch Chandler Riggs in the background of The Walking Dead finale? What did you think of the episode? Let us know in the comments!