There is a reason why Abraham is still alive in AMC’s The Walking Dead, but that doesn’t mean he’ll be around for much longer.
Michael Cudlitz, who plays Abraham in the series, recently spoke to PopSugar about what to expect in The Walking Dead Season 7. Fans were surprised to see was still alive by the time Rick’s group had their first encounter with Negan. In the comics, Dwight is the one who kills Abraham with his crossbow.
Turns out fans can thank Robert Kirkman for saving Abraham, in his own way. Cudlitz explained The Walking Dead creator didn’t like the way Abraham died in the comics and the show was an opportunity to give the character a better sendoff, when the time is right.
“Well, [Robert] Kirkman was never happy with the death Abraham had in the graphic novels,” Cudlitz told PopSugar. “He always said it was sort of a last-minute decision and that he regretted how he took him out. I think transferring that specific death of the crossbow arrow through the eye to Denise was sort of an Easter egg for the audience who follow the graphic novels. They know what that death should have been, but there’s also nothing lost on the television audience by not knowing that.”
Cudlitz continued, “It was a little gift just for them. Her death spurs on a whole bunch of other stuff, and then the audience knows that Abraham will continue for a while now. Now we get to see what a world with Negan and Abraham both in it will be like. That’s something we don’t see in the graphic novels. So a lot of cool stuff happens. For me, knowing that his potential death had come and gone, it was a moment to go, ‘Oh cool, they really aren’t going to stick with what the graphic novel does.’ As a fan of both the novel and the show, it was cool.”
Don’t be fooled by Cudlitz’s comments about Negan and Abraham being in the same world. For all we know, Abraham’s storyline ends with Lucille. However, a one-liner battle between Negan and Abraham would be amazing.
The Walking Dead Season 7 premieres Oct. 23 on AMC.
