The cast of The Walking Dead sees a lot of turnover. In a world inhabited by hordes of zombies, it makes sense not many people last long. We’ve seen a lot of characters die on the show over the years; some have been fan-favorites we hated to see go, while other characters have been gone before we could remember their names.
Along with the long line of death, the show has also featured some great actors. And just because they might have met grim ends on The Walking Dead, doesn’t mean we can’t follow them to their next projects. Check out what some of the fallen Walking Dead cast members are up to now.
Jon Bernthal As Shane
Shane was first introduced as partner and friend to Rick Grimes. But given his relationship with Rick’s wife, Lori, you knew he wasn’t going to last long. By the second season, Shane had become unhinged and cold-blooded. Eventually, he tried to kill Rick, but Rick managed to kill him first.
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Jon Bernthal is one of the most successful actors to come out of The Walking Dead. The role of Shane led to plenty of movies and the titular role in The Punisher series. Though The Punisher is now canceled, Bernthal has several high-profile film projects on the horizon, including the Sopranos prequel film.
Xander Berkeley As Gregory
Gregory was the leader of the Hilltop Colony when Rick and the other survivors showed up. While he seemed fond of his position of power, he is shown to be cowardly and lets Negan do whatever he wants with his people. After Maggie takes over as leader, Gregory tries to have her killed but fails. He is hanged for his troubles.
Xander Berkeley is one of those character actors who pops up everywhere. Since leaving The Walking Dead, he’s worked steadily. He recently appeared in the Johnny Depp film, City of Lies as well as an episode of Supergirl.
Lawrence Gilliard Jr. As Bob
Lawrence Gilliard Jr. was already well-known to television audiences, having starred on two seasons of The Wire. He joined The Walking Dead in season four as Bob Stookey. Bob managed to last until season five when he was bitten, harvested by cannibals, turned into a Walker, and eventually put down.
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These days, Gilliard Jr. can be seen in a much safer television environment. He reunited with The Wire creators for the new series The Deuce. Gilliard has played Detective Chris Alston on two seasons of the HBO show.
Jeffrey DeMunn As Dale
Dale was one of the rare good people in this post-apocalyptic world. He was kind, wise, and something of a father-figure for the group. Needless to say, he wasn’t going to last long. After being bitten by a Walker, Rick was forced to put him out of his misery.
DeMunn in a frequent collaborator of Frank Darabont, which is how he found himself on The Walking Dead. However, after Darabont left the show in the second season, DeMunn followed. He is currently a part of a new cast on Showtime’s Billions which is now in its fourth season.
Chad Coleman As Tyreese
Like Lawrence Gilliard Jr, Chad Coleman is a former cast member of The Wire. He later joined the cast of The Walking Dead in season three as Tyreese, one of the most popular characters from the comic series. Despite the popularity of the character, he would only last until season five when Tyreese was bitten and died of blood loss.
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Nowadays, you might not even recognize Coleman in his new role. He currently plays Klyden, an alien and life partner of Lieutenant Commander Bortus, in Seth MacFarlane’s sci-fi series, The Orville. The show is in its second season on Fox.
Laurie Holden As Andrea
Laurie Holden was part of the original cast of The Walking Dead as the strong and brave Andrea. She managed to make it until season three when she The Governor locks her in a room with a Walker and is fed upon.
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Holden was another of Frank Darabont’s frequent collaborators, having appeared in The Majestic and The Mist. After leaving The Walking Dead, she appeared in several high-profile projects like The Americans and is now in the new series, Proven Innocent. She can also be seen alongside Mel Gibson and Vince Vaughn in the cop drama, Dragged Across Concrete.
Sonequa Martin-Green As Sasha
Joining the show in the third season, Sasha was Tyreese’s sister and a fierce survivor. However, after watching her brother and several close friends die, and then being taken by Negan, Sasha decides to stop fighting. She kills herself so her reanimated corpse can attack Negan and his people.
Sonequa Martin-Green has seen a lot of success since leaving The Walking Dead. She went from having a small role on that show to landing the starring role in Star Trek: Discovery, where she plays Michael Burnham. The CBS All-Access show is currently in its second season.
Michael Rooker As Merle
Merle was a pretty awful racist and violent man who was only made tolerable thanks to Michael Rooker’s performance. He is first seen as a member of the main group of survivors but reappears as part of The Governor's crew. After betraying the Governor, he is killed and turns in to a Walker.
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After The Walking Dead, Rooker found his biggest success to date, playing Yondu in the first two Guardians of the Galaxy films. Expect him to have some kind of role in his pal James Gunn’s Suicide Squad 2, as well.
Steven Yeun As Glenn
Glenn was one of the show’s most popular characters, having been around since the beginning. After many close-calls, Glenn finally meets his end at the hands of Negan. Glenn is beaten to death with a baseball bat in one of the show’s most controversial deaths.
Since The Walking Dead, Steven Yeun has slowly been building a strong resume of stellar film roles. In 2018, he appeared in the critically-acclaimed film Sorry to Bother You. He also received great acclaim for his truly unsettling performance in the South Korean mystery, Burning.
Chandler Riggs As Carl
Carl Grimes started the show as the cute and quiet son of Rick and Lori. But over the course of eight seasons, he grew in both size and personality. Carl became more violent and dark thanks to the world of death around him. Finally, Carl is bitten and decides to kill himself after saying goodbye to his father and Michonne.
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Chandler Riggs basically grew up on The Walking Dead. We first met him as a young boy and saw him leave as an adult. Though his exit from the show is somewhat controversial, he has moved on, recently guest starring on the series A Million Little Things.