Is Andrew Lincoln leaving The Walking Dead? Actor teases Rick Grimes' possible fate in the show

The premiere episode of The Walking Dead season 8 will also be the 100<sup>th episode of the AMC zombie series. While plenty of twist and actions are expected from the special episode, Andrew Lincoln, who plays the lead Rick Grimes in the show, has teased the ultimate fate of his character.

During an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the British actor said that the plot of the AMC thriller would eventually shift towards Rick's son Carl. However, instead of teasing the same directly, he hinted that much has been said about the Alexandrian Safe Zone leader in the last seven seasons.

"There's only so many ways you can bend and stretch this and that. I'm not saying that the show would ever finish, but I certainly think that there's an opportunity for the show to change at some point, and I think it should," he told the website.

The show began with Rick waking up from a coma to a world that has been battered by a zombie apocalypse leaving a handful of survivors scattered across the world. Until season 7, Rick remained a leader, who would go to any extent to safeguard his team from the walkers and the ruthless humans who would kill to get the leftover supplies.

However, the actor believes, the time has come for the story to shift to the next generation. "It's beautifully set up for that — for the camera to be certainly his story, and then it just shifts off. If ever there was a landscape or an environment to do that, it's our show. But whether or not that's this season... well, you have to find out, don't you?" he added.

Fans went berserk after the trailer of the popular show reveals Old Man Rick waking up from a peaceful sleep. And now Lincoln's tease about Carl taking over his father's legacy has triggered rumours that Rick may die in the upcoming season. But the 44-year-old actor thinks fans need not worry as of now."I don't think we have to worry about that anytime soon," Andrew said.

The eighth season of the zombie thriller will return on 22 October on AMC.