Is The Walking Dead about to lose Maggie? That’s what we heard the other week, when it was reported that Lauren Cohan, the actress who plays the character, was fielding offers from other television shows as her contract is done at the end of season 8. At the time, we were told that she wasn’t set on leaving, but she was looking for a pay raise if she decided to stay – which AMC wasn’t too inclined to give her.
Now, however, we’ve got some more positive news, as TV Line is telling us that Cohan’s in “active negotiations” with the network and is looking to extend her contract into season 9 and beyond. With the show not starting production on the new season until May, there’s still tons of time for the two parties to ink a deal and from what we understand, things are looking positive.
This will certainly help ease the fears of fans, who were worried that after losing major players like Abraham, Glenn and soon Carl, they’d have to deal with the loss of Maggie, too. Not to mention that Cohan’s great in the role, with the actress’ part being increased in importance over the past season or so. There’s also the fact many are rooting for Maggie to be the one who finally puts a bullet into Negan, and now, they might get their wish.
Of course, just because Cohan’s in negotiations, that doesn’t mean she’s 100% confirmed to be returning, but AMC knows how important she is to The Walking Dead and after the backlash they’ve seen due to Carl’s exit, we’d be surprised if they let her go. Even if it means giving her a significant pay bump.
With production on season 9 set to get underway this spring, we should know more on the situation soon. In the meantime, though, we can all look forward to the return of the hit zombie drama on February 25th, when it’ll shuffle back onto the small screen with its midseason premiere, which will see Carl Grimes head for the exit door.