The Walking Dead creator wanted the show to kill Rick off early – but we're so glad it didn't

gamesradar.com:

The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman has revealed that he pushed for the TV series to kill Rick Grimes off in an early season but, thankfully in our opinion, the writers insisted the character be kept on the show. 

During a panel at San Diego Comic-Con recently, Kirkman recalled how he'd regularly burst into the AMC hit's writers' room and pitch the lead's death, claiming that it'd be an amusing way to "freak out" viewers. "With Walking Dead, I was much younger and much more reckless," Kirkman said (via Entertainment Weekly). "I was an absolute lunatic. I would be like, 'Kill Rick Grimes today! I don't care! It'll be funny!'"

"The writers are like, 'Robert, you're crazy. We can't do that,'" he laughed. "But any time there were big changes in The Walking Dead, that's what excited me."

For the most part, The Walking Dead was pretty faithful to its source material across its 11 seasons. It never shied away from offing main characters – RIP Hershel, Beth, Glenn, Abraham, Carl, and more – and was all the better for it, as it highlighted the dangers of the post-apocalyptic society these folks have found themselves in. That said, it would've been a real shame to have missed out on Andrew Lincoln's staggering performance as the former Deputy Sheriff – and his perfect American accent. (Seriously, how many Brits over-pronounce their Ts or elongate their As while trying their best to play someone from the Midwest?)

The Love Actually actor never picked up any Primetime Emmy nods for the role, which is wild, but us fans appreciate everything he gave to the horror-drama over the years. If you think back to 'Days Gone Bye', The Walking Dead's very first episode, we were introduced to... the new world through Rick's bleary eyes,