4 ways Rick Grimes could make his exit on The Walking Dead

Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes, Lauren Cohan as Maggie Greene – The Walking Dead _ Season 8, Episode 1 – Photo Credit: Gene Page/AMC

Rick is exiled or killed by those closest to him

In the final moments of “Wrath”, we saw Maggie wasn’t too happy with Rick’s decision to offer Negan mercy. Though a sharp cut across the neck doesn’t seem that merciful, Negan will live on in a jail cell. Maggie shared her frustration with two other Rick loyalists, Daryl and Jesus — a huge surprise to fans. Despite Maggie being upset over Rick’s decision to spare Negan, the man who killed her husband Glenn, she remained loyal to him in the comics.

It’s apparent now in season 9 that Maggie will not follow Rick’s rules. In the first episode alone, she executed Gregory outright for attempting to kill her, a punishment she feels should have come down on Negan as well. In “Warning Signs,” Maggie and Daryl turned their backs on the execution of a Savior, Arat, by the Oceansiders. They plan to go after Negan next, with Maggie making it crystal clear that they tried to do things Rick’s way, and it isn’t going to work anymore.

With Daryl, it may be hard to believe he’d go against his best friend, his “brother” as they’ve said to each other in the past. Daryl was captured and tortured by Negan though, and he’s made it very clear to Rick that he does not think connecting all the groups is going to work. Despite the love these two have for each other as friends, too much may have happened for Daryl to see Rick’s way as the right way anymore.

Ultimately, it won’t be difficult for Maggie and Daryl to recruit others to follow them. The Widow’s grief was overwhelming in the season 8 finale — and a ton of people saw her screaming for Rick to just kill Negan versus offer him mercy. Many others across the communities feel this grief and anger, having lost loved ones themselves to Negan and the Saviors.

Rick’s leadership could be threatened or completely overruled, but a much worse fate could be his being exiled or outright killed because he won’t follow Maggie and Daryl. While the thought of Maggie or Daryl killing Rick may seem impossible, it isn’t as if friends haven’t killed friends before on The Walking Dead.