Only two characters from The Walking Dead's pilot episode are still currently among the living. While the works of late, great iconic horror director George A. Romero will probably forever be the poster children for the zombie sub-genre, AMC hit The Walking Dead has been carrying the zombie flag proudly since 2010. The Walking Dead definitely has its detractors but remains one of the most-watched shows on cable even during its final season, and at one point was the #1 scripted program in all of TV. Based on the nature of the series itself, it's no surprise that The Walking Dead survivors are few and far between.
The Walking Dead's pilot episode featured Rick's family (Lori and Carl), as well as his friend Shane and Morgan Jones. All of these characters made it through season 1, but The Walking Dead survivors started to be picked off in season 2. As much as some love to insult it now, The Walking Dead spent quite a while earning way more acclaim than it did criticism, with many feeling it was the best thing to happen to zombies since Romero's classic Living Dead movies. The Walking Dead made zombies so popular that the flesh-eating ghouls are arguably overexposed now, whereas before the adventures of Rick Grimes and company, high-profile zombie movies and TV shows had become fairly rare sights.
To its credit, The Walking Dead pilot even managed to blow away audiences, which aired near Halloween in 2010 and was a perfect holiday treat. The series reached such popularity that it spawned two spinoffs, effectively muddying the show's timeline. Most TV pilots do little more than setting up the characters, main plot, and general universe of the show to follow, but The Walking Dead pilot was feature-length and was held up by some as one of the best zombie movies in years, despite not actually being a movie. 11 years is a long time though, and today. Here's every The Walking Dead survivor remaining from the series' pilot episode.
Of all the characters featured in The Walking Dead pilot, entitled "Days Gone Bye," only Rick Grimes and Morgan Jones remain alive.
Morgan Jones
While both Rick and Morgan have left the original Walking Dead show behind, Rick will appear in upcoming movies, and Morgan jumped over to Fear the Walking Dead. Rick's former police partner Shane Walsh, his wife Lori, son Carl, and future friends Dale and Glenn have all met unfortunate demises at the hands of either zombies or other humans, as has Andrea's sister Amy.
The Walking Dead survivor Morgan Jones decided to leave the group after the final battle with the Saviors in which Rick defeats Negan. He decides to stay alone in the Heaps, claiming that he "can't be around people anymore". Morgan appeared on Fear the Walking Dead season 4 and has only faced trouble ever since. Many believed him to be dead after Fear season 6, but The Walking Dead survivor was saved and is still one of the main characters in Fear season 7. He could appear for TWD's final season, though this is yet to be seen.
Rick Grimes
Audiences are more than happy that The Walking Dead pilot episode's star Rick Grimes remains alive, despite the myriad of near-death experiences he's encountered. The Walking Dead survivor left the show in season 9 after being picked up by a helicopter and hasn't reappeared since. AMC has divulged that Rick will return in The Walking Dead movie. However, rumors started flying that he could be back sooner when pictures surfaced of Andrew Lincoln dining with Norman Reedus in Atlanta while TWD was filming its final episodes.
In an odd circumstance, though, the only TWD season 1 characters to still be part of the current cast are Daryl Dixon and Carol Peletier. Granted, neither are eligible to qualify here, as neither appeared in the pilot. Carol began life as a background player, and Daryl as more of an antagonist alongside his brother Merle, and both were absent from The Walking Dead pilot "Days Gone Bye." What makes Morgan's continued survival more remarkable is that he vanished after the pilot and failed to appear again until the middle of season 3. Hopefully, The Walking Dead survivor will be around long enough to once again encounter his old friend Rick.