Chandler Riggs’ Father Reveals Shocking Details On Son’s Exit From ‘The Walking Dead’

Fans of AMC’s The Walking Dead were shocked when news broke that longtime cast member, Chandler Riggs, who portrayed Carl Grimes, was going to be leaving the show. When the announcement broke it was clear that it wasn’t a good split between the actor and AMC; to add fuel to the fire Riggs’ father took to Facebook to express his anger for the way his son was treated. The previous Facebook comment was deleted at the request of AMC; this comment read:

“Just to clarify once and for all: Chandler didn’t want to leave the show,”

Now, Riggs’ father, William, has again taken to Facebook and this time with a lengthy post on what occurred during his son’s exit from The Walking Dead.

After a call from then show-runner Scott Gimble, who personally called Chandler to tell him that the AMC series required his services for 2-3 more years Chandler wanted to ensure his continued availability to the show. Not only did he purchase a house near the AMC set, but also enrolled in the University of Georgia to ensure he could continue his commitment to the show. Then abruptly, despite the previous commitment and efforts put forward by Chandler, Gimble called Chandler and his parents in for a meeting to let them know Carl would be gone within weeks. Riggs’ father describes what occurred during the exit:

“It was the middle of June, his 18th birthday was coming up in a couple of weeks, 5 episodes were filmed, and they asked for my wife and I to both be at a meeting with Chandler – which was a little odd,” William wrote. “It made me nervous but he and his manager assured me it was to plan for filming schedule, etc. Scott Gimple was the only one there and he told us that Carl would be gone in a few episodes. Chandler was absolutely devastated. I was disappointed Scott had been dishonest with a 17-year-old making life decisions and waited to tell us.”

Despite the assumed mistreatment by the AMC studio and show-runner Scott Gimble, Riggs’ father did note that as a family they are extremely grateful for Chandler’s 8 year run in the series. With that being said, it’s also clear that Riggs’ father is disappointed with how the relationship was ending, the abruptness with which it ended, and that (rightfully so) the 17-year-old Chandler was devastated when they received the news he would be departing the show.

You can see the full post below.

Last season brought the culmination of “All Out War,” which pitted Rick Grimes and his group of survivors against the Saviors and their cunning leader, Negan. With Negan’s life in his hands, Rick had a character-defining choice in front of him. By making the unilateral decision to spare Negan, Rick upheld the values his late son, Carl, championed in order to build for the future, but created conflict within his group.

Now, we see our survivors a year and a half after the end of the war, rebuilding civilization under Rick’s steadfast leadership. It is a time of relative peace among the communities as they work together, looking to the past to forge the future, but the world they knew is rapidly changing as man-made structures continue to degrade, and nature takes over, changing the landscape and creating new challenges for our survivors.

As time passes, the communities confront unexpected obstacles, danger, and of course, walkers, but nothing quite prepares them for the formidable force they are about to encounter, which threatens the very idea of civilization that our survivors have worked so hard to build.

The Walking Dead stars Norman Reedus, Danai Gurira, Melissa McBride, Alanna Masterson, Josh McDermitt, Christian Serratos, Seth Gilliam, Ross Marquand, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Austin Amelio, Khary Payton, Katelyn Nacon, Pollyanna McIntosh, Callan McAuliffe, Avi Nash, and Samantha Morton as Alpha

Source: Facebook