‘The Walking Dead’s Michael Cudlitz Hints at Abraham Ford Return

The Walking Dead star Michael Cudlitz dropped heavy hints at his possible return to the franchise as Sergeant Abraham Ford.

Appearing at Wizard World New Orleans alongside past and present Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead stars Ross Marquand, Tom Payne, Austin Amelio, Cailey Fleming, Mo Collins, Kirk Acevedo, and Jenna Elfman, Cudlitz suggested Abraham could return despite his Season Seven death at the hands of Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan).

"Who knows, maybe there'll be flashbacks?" Cudlitz teased.

"I guess on your guys' show, there were some tapes that were shown and one of the tapes said 'Abe-slash-Doctor,' which would be Abraham Ford and Doctor Eugene Porter according to [creator] Robert Kirkman, so they could certainly go down that road. Not saying they said anything about it or not, but probably not, so I think we'll stop talking about that. Never mind."

Fear the Walking Dead hinted at Abe making an appearance on the spinoff during its Season Four mid-season finale, where it was learned video documentarian Althea (Maggie Grace) was in possession of a tape marked 'Abe / Doctor,' hinting at her having interviewed Eugene (Josh McDermitt) and protector Abraham.

Co-showrunner Ian Goldberg confirmed on aftershow Talking Dead the label wasn't a coincidence, noting "each of those tapes, each of those labels, will tell a story."

"They're all stories that Al has captured at one point or another in her travels," Goldberg said. "And if you look closely, some of those names might ring a bell if you're a fan of the Walking Dead universe, [and] you might get excited about some of the stories that she's captured."

ComicBook.com reported in December a movie project centered around Cudlitz's Abraham and Rubén Blades' Daniel Salazar is in the early stages of development, coming as Salazar is readied for a return to Fear in its now-shooting fifth season.

In August 2017, Cudlitz said he would "strongly consider whatever the show came at me with at any point" when asked about revisiting the character.

"I had a great experience with the show. As long as they keep telling stories the way they're telling them, which I feel is amazing, I'd be open to anything as long as it worked with my schedule, obviously," said Cudlitz, who now headlines ABC sitcom The Kids Are Alright. "I'm on the other side of [the show's current story]."

Cudlitz has since made a voiceover cameo appearance in The Walking Dead 905, "What Comes After," and marked his directorial debut with episode 907, "Stradivarius." The star next hopes to direct future entries in the series as well as episodes of Fear.

The mothership series and its spinoff, once entirely separate, continue to grow further intertwined following The Walking Dead's Morgan (Lennie James) boarding Fear in its fourth season, marking the first-ever crossover between the two shows.

As revealed Thursday, former Savior Dwight (Austin Amelio) is the next Walking Dead fan-favorite to be shipped to the spinoff, continuing the crossover potential allowed by the blossoming Walking Dead Universe that is now developing films, specials, series, and other digital content under the stewardship of chief content officer Scott Gimple.

When announcing Rick Grimes star Andrew Lincoln will be reprising that role in a trilogy of television movies to premiere on AMC, Gimple said there is "much more on the way," including "yet-unseen worlds of The Walking Dead and faces from the show's past, as well as new characters we hope to become favorites, told by TWD veterans and emerging voices."

The Walking Dead Season Nine returns with new episodes Sunday, February 10 on AMC. Fear the Walking Dead Season Five premieres this spring.