New key art from The Walking Dead‘s ninth season puts Rick’s iconic sheriff hat back on his head.
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Of course, this is a sad sign for the former Atlanta police officer. He once gave the hat to his son Carl Grimes but Carl ultimately died after being bitten by a walker in Season Eight. Carl would pass it to Judith but apparently Rick might not want Shane’s daughter wearing his hat. The new photo promoting the upcoming Season Nine plants the hat firmly back on Rick’s head.
Check it the new The Walking Dead Season Nine key art below.
Don’t count on seeing Rick wear his Sheriff’s hat which made its debut in Season One during episodes in Season Nine, though. The hat is merely being added to the promotional art for effect and nostalgia, it seems.
“Last season brought the culmination of ‘All Out War,’ which pitted Rick Grimes and his group of survivors against the Saviors and their cunning leader, Negan,” the Season Nine synopsis reads. “With Negan’s life in his hands, Rick had a character-defining choice in front of him. By making the unilateral decision to spare Negan, Rick upheld the values his late son, Carl, championed in order to build for the future, but created conflict within his group.
“Now, we see our survivors a year and a half after the end of the war, rebuilding civilization under Rick’s steadfast leadership. It is a time of relative peace among the communities as they work together, looking to the past to forge the future, but the world they knew is rapidly changing as man-made structures continue to degrade, and nature takes over, changing the landscape and creating new challenges for our survivors.
“As time passes, the communities confront unexpected obstacles, danger, and of course, walkers, but nothing quite prepares them for the formidable force they are about to encounter, which threatens the very idea of civilization that our survivors have worked so hard to build.”
Fear the Walking Dead airs Sundays 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!