The Walking Dead Showrunner, Fans Remember Scott Wilson On What Would Have Been His 79th Birthday

The Walking Dead fans and showrunner Angela Kang are among those remembering Scott Wilson on March 29, what would have been the Hershel Greene actor's 79th birthday. Wilson died from leukemia in October 2018 at the age of 76, just one day before the Season 9 premiere of The Walking Dead. Season 9, which was dedicated in Wilson's memory, was the first with Kang as showrunner and marked Wilson's return to the zombie drama after his fan-favorite character's death in Season 4. In what would be Wilson's final on-screen role, Hershel appeared as a vision hallucinated by Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) in Lincoln's exit episode of the series.

Before her promotion to showrunner in Season 9, Kang was a veteran writer-producer on The Walking Dead since Season 2 in 2011. That's the same season that would introduce farmer Hershel and his family, including daughters Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and Beth Greene (Emily Kinney).

"Scott will always be remembered as a great actor and we all feel fortunate to have known him as an even better person. The character he embodied on The Walking Dead, Hershel, lived at the emotional core of the show," reads a 2018 statement from network and series producers AMC. "Like Scott in our lives, Hershel was a character whose actions continue to inform our character's choices to this day. Our hearts go out to his wife, his family, friends and to the millions of fans who loved him. Scott will be missed."

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Greg Nicotero, who directed Wilson's final episode of The Walking Dead, later revealed the actor was brought to tears by Hershel's heartfelt exchange with a delirious Rick in Season 9 episode "What Comes After."

"That Scott Wilson moment was one I had a lot of involvement with in terms of getting him there and filming and everything. The only thing I can tell you is Scott did see the scene and I was visiting him recently and I showed him the scene and he was so grateful," Nicotero said in a 2018 interview. "He had tears in his eyes when he watched it and he was so proud."

Like Wilson, his character has not been forgotten on The Walking Dead. Maggie mentions her beloved father in the extended Season 10 premiere, "Home Sweet Home," when she returns home after years away on the road.

Here's how Walking Dead fans are remembering Wilson on his birthday: