The Walking Dead star Pollyanna McIntosh has debunked a fan theory suggesting the whole show is a feverish coma dream Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) is having. The opening episode of The Walking Dead features police officer Rick being wounded during a gunfight, which puts him in a coma. He awakens in an abandoned hospital in the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse and has to track down his family while struggling to survive in a harsh new world.

Both The Walking Dead graphic novel and - until very recently - the TV show centered around Rick Grimes and how the end of civilization gradually changes him. Lincoln recently decided to exit the show after nine seasons, but while Rick’s death was heavily teased in the buildup to his final episode, the badly wounded character was instead whisked away by a helicopter after being saved by Jadis (aka Anne). It’s since been confirmed Rick will return for three Walking Dead spinoff movies in the future.

Related: What Happened In Rick's Final Episode (& What's Next)

When Jadis radios the helicopter to pick up Rick, she classifies him as a ‘B’ instead of an ‘A’ using a system that hasn’t yet been explained on the show. Speaking at Walker Stalker Con New Jersey (via ComicBook) Pollyanna McIntosh discussed a theory suggesting A and B actually refer to blood type, and it's really all a fever dream Rick is having.

I’ve heard some great theories. I even had a theory from a fan the other day that it was a blood type, which is a very cool one. They had this idea that Rick’s been having a dream this whole time and that we’re paramedics asking him if he’s an A or a B for his blood type, isn’t that cool?

The idea is Rick is subconsciously integrating the outside world into his dream, and that people like Morgan - the first person he meets upon waking up in the first episode - is actually a first responder. McIntosh rules out that particular twist, however.

And that really it’s just us standing over him and he’s created this whole coma dream. Which of course would be very Dallas, and [The Walking Dead creator Robert] Kirkman has already said that’s not the plan, so I can safely say that without ruining anything.

Robert Kirkman has ruled out the Rick coma dream theory before, and as McIntosh states, it would bear unflattering comparisons to Dallas. Having Rick begin and end his journey on the show in a hospital bed obviously adds some credence to the admittedly fun theory, but if The Walking Dead actually was revealed to be one long, very bad dream, it's doubtful fans would be happy.

Lincoln has also stated that while Rick will return for The Walking Dead solo movies, he will never return to the show, so there’s no chance such a twist would even work now. That said, when the show finally comes to an end, it would be very surprising if Lincoln didn’t return for some kind of cameo appearance.

More: Rick's Death Fake-Out Was Cheap - But It Saved The Walking Dead

The Walking Dead returns February 10th 2019 on AMC.

Source: ComicBook