'The Walking Dead's Chandler Riggs Says Carl's Long Hair Was His Choice

The Walking Dead's Carl Grimes grew his long hair thanks to a choice made by Chandler Riggs.Riggs [...]

The Walking Dead's Carl Grimes grew his long hair thanks to a choice made by Chandler Riggs.

Riggs played Carl Grimes on the AMC zombie show from its earliest episode, growing a considerable amount of hair over the course of eight seasons. Quickly after it was revealed his character would perish in the Mid-Season Eight finale, Riggs chopped his hair off and went back to a shorter look. Speaking to a crowd at Walker Stalker Con in Nashville, Tennessee over the Mother's Day weekend, the young actor revealed the hairstyle was always his choice.

"It wasn't in like a contract or anything," Riggs said. "If I cut my hair, they would've just put a wig on me. I had it long before the show, actually. They made me cut it for Season One. I threw a bunch of fits in Season One and Season Two and they made me cut it. I liked having my hair long."

Surprised as he may have been, Riggs has no hard feelings regarding his exit from The Walking Dead.

"I joke about it, but I'm not really bitter about it," Riggs told ComicBook.com, in reference to his character surviving so many years in the zombie apocalypse to trip, fall, and get bitten in Episode 8x06. "It's more like an innocent way to go out. That's kind of what Carl is really embodying in these last two episodes and really just kind of sums up Carl as a whole and proves that he knows that there is something after the war, it's not just killing and killing and killing and killing. There's got to be some sort of hope for Judith and for Maggie's baby and everyone."

Riggs, who has been active on social media since his exit, is grateful for the support fans have offered since learning a character they have also spent years with would no longer be joining them on Sunday nights.

"When it first aired, the amount of messages that I got on Reddit and the amount of comments that I got on Instagram and then Twitter and everything," Riggs said. "It was really just overwhelming with the amount of support coming from fans that were super sad to see my character go. The majority of them were just really, really excited to see where I go next and that's how the attitude that I had towards it and I'm really happy that a lot of my fans have the same attitude towards it as well and are excited to see what I do next."

Walker Stalker Con's next event is slated for August in Orlando, Florida, with several events remaning in 2018.

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

1comments