The Walking Dead's Rick Grimes movie owes a great debt to Walking Dead: World Beyond. When Andrew Lincoln made his final (for now) The Walking Dead appearance in 2018, the door was left wide open for future misadventures. Sure enough, AMC quickly announced Lincoln's grizzled protagonist would return in a Walking Dead movie, revealing what happened following Rick Grimes' mysterious helicopter disappearance.
Even among The Walking Dead's most faithful zombie-heads, excitement surrounding AMC's Rick Grimes movie is muted - and that's largely due to a distinct lack of movement since Rick's cinematic comeback was announced. As 2022 kicks off, precious little about The Walking Dead's film debut is known, with visible signs of progress negligible even before COVID reared its head. Aside from a brief teaser, a few in-show reminders, and constant interview assurances that Rick's movie is still happening, The Walking Dead's big screen project is suspiciously light on news, announcements, or hype. Combined with dropping TV figures as the main show comes to an end, any excitement The Walking Dead's Rick movie might've built in 2018 has slumped harder than a zombie hit by a Daryl Dixon crossbow bolt.
Andrew Lincoln's zombie apocalypse continuation has now received a much-needed jolt of energy thanks to Walking Dead spinoff series, Walking Dead: World Beyond. The group who rescued/kidnapped a dying Rick Grimes in The Walking Dead season 9 has been identified as the CRM (Civic Republic Military), and it's safe to assume they'll play a major role in Lincoln's movie return. These villains remain wholly enigmatic in the main show (and Fear The Walking Dead, to a lesser extent), but World Beyond successfully establishes the CRM as the biggest threat AMC's live-action Walking Dead universe has ever seen. Gas weapons, mass murders, scary-loyal soldiers that make the Commonwealth's guard look like amateurs... the ending of Walking Dead: World Beyond gives a foreboding glimpse of Rick's potential enemy in The Walking Dead's movie, and promises what could be the franchise's best villain yet - the elusive Major General Beale.
Walking Dead: World Beyond Post Credits And Rick Grimes Movie Connection Explained
Walking Dead: World Beyond's finale post-credits do even more to conjure enthusiasm for Rick's movie. The closing scene reveals how the zombie virus originated in France and was a man-made contagion released during some kind of incident. Those responsible tried to fix their mess but only succeeded in creating a "variant" zombie that's faster (and seemingly smarter too) than the typical version found on American soil. There's no guarantee these teases will be picked up by the Rick Grimes movie, but that's certainly the most likely option, given what we know of Rick's fate, and the other projects AMC has in the pipeline. Notably, Walking Dead: World Beyond's post-credits also suggests a group of these guilty-looking scientists were in the U.S. when the world fell to ruin.
There's a long road ahead before The Walking Dead's Rick Grimes movie can claim to carry any kind of momentum or buzz. However, Walking Dead: World Beyond has at least tickled the taste buds of intrigue, first by revealing the group who captured Rick in Walking Dead season 9 are a deadly, amoral military force with a mysterious unseen leader, and then by opening up the franchise's mythology to include shady science experiments, fast zombies, and hope for a cure. Without World Beyond's input, Rick Grimes' The Walking Dead movie would barely register on most viewers' radars. Tossing the CRM and fast zombies into the mix made the Walking Dead's fandom sit up and take notice - even those who passed on World Beyond. Combined with the events in Walking Dead season 11, now there's at least some curiosity surrounding Rick Grimes' cinematic return, and conversation over what gory delights The Walking Dead's movie may bring. Whether that piqued interest will sustain until the film finally premieres depends entirely on how long the wait lasts.
How Will The Walking Dead Season 11 Part 3 Fit With A Rick Grimes Movie?
The Walking Dead season 11, part 3 could not only see the return of Rick Grimes to the main series, but it could also provide more clues about the plot of the Rick Grimes movies. In the finale of Walking Dead season 11, part 2, Lance goes off the rails and invades settlements in the name of the Commonwealth, even leaving the fate of Oceanside's people to a coin flip. These aggressive acts are unlikely to go unnoticed by the CRM, which could open the door for Rick's return to the main Walking Dead series.
There is even evidence to suggest that this could all set up how Rick Grimes will die in the movies. Walking Dead season 11 is an adaptation of issues #175 to #193 of the comics, in which Rick Grimes deposes Pamela Milton but ends up killed. In issue #191, Rick delivers a speech to prevent bloodshed between Commonwealth soldiers and rebels, and Mercer publicly arrests Pam Milton, who Rick lets go later. In revenge, Sebastian Milton shoots Rick, who is forever remembered as a Commonwealth hero. Both the final eight episodes and the Rick Grimes movies could adapt key parts of Rick's final comic book arc.
The Walking Dead season 11, part 3 does not yet have a release date, although it will likely stream around September or October 2022 – just in time to generate some hype for the upcoming Rick Grimes movie and The Walking Dead pilot's 12th anniversary. Considering how Rick could very well be behind the teased CRM rebellion in Walking Dead: World Beyond, the CRM getting involved with the Commonwealth's affairs could finally reunite Rick with the other survivors from Alexandria. Rick's return in Walking Dead season 11, part 3 is yet to be confirmed, but it makes sense for the series' first protagonist to finally reappear in the eleventh and final season. As The Walking Dead's final eight episodes seem to be leading to a revolution within the Commonwealth, so there are plenty of opportunities for Rick to get involved. This would undoubtedly reveal more about the Rick Grimes movies and what has happened since Rick was taken by the CRM.