Norman Reedus And Andrew Lincoln Had A Pact To Leave 'The Walking Dead' Together

Earlier in The Walking Dead's tenure, Andrew Lincoln and Norman Reedus made a pact to walk away from the AMC show together. Years later, the pact is being broken as Lincoln makes an exit while Reedus stays behind.

"We made a pact," Reedus told EW. "I think it was like season 3 or 4. We're like, 'If you leave, I leave. Right?' And that was the thing."

Sitting beside Reedus during the interview, Lincoln was alarmed to what mentioning this might mean. "Are you leaving?" Lincoln chimed in. "Is this an announcement? Is this breaking news?"

"Oh, hell no," Reedus responds. Heading into Season Nine, Reedus and his Daryl Dixon character are actually primed for some major growth. Still, he will miss having his best friend and leader on the AMC show's set each day. "He was the first person I saw in the morning," Reedus said. "As soon as we wrapped, he immediately called me in the car. We speak all the time. We spent every lunch break in my trailer. We shared a trailer for forever."

Like former Walking Dead star Austin Nichols, Reedus has a deep admiration for Lincoln's leadership. "He set a precedent for us on this show," Reedus said. "He set the bar very high right from the beginning, and we're always trying to keep it real. And he's always in our heads while we're trying to do that. He's made me a better actor, a friend, a father, all the way down the line. He's a very, very important person to me."

Ultimately, in breaking their leave-together pact, Reedus understands why Lincoln must put the zombie drama in his rear view mirror.

"When he told me he was thinking about doing this, I get it," Reedus said. "I have a son in New York, and I'm constantly bouncing back and forth all these nine years to go see him. And I get it. He's got two beautiful children, a beautiful wife. His whole family's awesome, and you can't be mad at him for going. It's very understandable, but I'm going to miss the hell out of him."

Lincoln will remain in the loop on the happenings behind-the-scenes, including the show's narrative in his absence. "I still sneak him scripts," Reedus said.

"I ask him what I should do in every scene," Reedus said. "And it'll stay that way. He helps me all the time."

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