If you are fascinated by movies and TV shows revolving around a zombie apocalypse, there is no way that you would have missed out on The Walking Dead. However, it takes a lot of spirit and willpower to watch the entire series, considering the massive list of episodes and seasons it brings to the table. Now, since it has been a while since the show concluded, let’s take a look at some of the memorable The Walking Dead cast members and find out what they are up to now.
1. Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes
Andrew Lincoln, even before appearing in The Walking Dead, was working in the industry. However, his big break came from this show. Andrew Lincoln appears in The Walking Dead as Rick Grimes, a sheriff who went into a coma after being shot by some goons. However, when he woke up, the world was engulfed in a zombie apocalypse and now, he made it his mission to find his wife and son.
After the conclusion of The Walking Dead, Lincoln returned to British television and starred in several shows. More recently, he has returned to the franchise as Rick Grimes in the Spinoff series, The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live.
2. Danai Gurira as Michonne
Dania Gurira’s Michonne might not be an original character from The Walking Dead, but she has grown to become one of the lead characters of the show. She was introduced to us in Season 3 of The Walking Dead and to date remains a part of the franchise.
After departing from The Walking Dead, Dania Gurira might just have had the most exciting careers as she became a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and appeared as Okoye in The Black Panther franchise.
Alongside her role in the MCU, she also reappeared as Michonne in The Walking Dead spinoff series, The Ones Who Live.
3. Jon Bernthal as Shane Walsh
Probably one of the most hated characters in the series, Jon Bernthal appeared in the cast of The Walking Dead as Shane, who used to be Rick Grimes’ best friend and a fellow law enforcer. After the apocalypse hit, Shane saved Lori, Rick’s wife and son; however, he started an affair with Lori and was extremely jealous of Rick when he came back from the coma. This eventually led to Shane’s demise.
Jon Bernthal has had the most successful career after The Walking Dead. He joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe as The Punisher in his standalone series and has been a part of multiple popular movies and shows, such as The Wolf of Wall Street and Snitch.
Most recently, he appeared in Daredevil: Born Again as Punisher and will continue to do so in Daredevil: Born Again Season 2.
4. Sarah Wayne Callies as Lori Grimes
Sarah Wayne Callies appeared in The Walking Dead as Lori Grimes, Rick’s wife. After the apocalypse hit, Lori and her son, Carl, were rescued by Shane, and later, Shane and Lori started an affair. However, Rick Grimes returned after waking up from his coma, and things became severely complicated. Lori died during childbirth in Season 3.
After appearing as Lori Grimes, Sarah continued to work on multiple movies and TV Shows. She appeared as Katie Bowman in Colony and also worked in The Company You Keep, Council of Dads, and Whisper. Following this, she also returned to Prison Break Season 4, where she reprised her role of Sara Tancredi.
5. Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan
Jeffrey Dean Morgan appeared in The Walking Dead as one of the most well-known villains to have ever been on television. In the show, she took up the role of Negan. Weilding a baseball bat wrapped with barbed wire, he was responsible for multiple deaths in the show, and the most infamous among them was the brutal death Glenn faced in Season 7. However, Glenn and Negan got a rematch in 2025 as Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Steven Yeun, both appeared in Invincible Season 3 as Conquest and Invincible, respectively.
After The Walking Dead, Morgan appeared in movies such as The Salvation and Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice. Other than that, Dean Morgan has appeared in multiple TV Shows with recurring appearances, such as Grey’s Anatomy, The Walking Dead: Dead City, and The Boys Season 4. Most recently, he voiced the character of Conquest in Invincible Season 3.
6. Steven Yeun as Glenn Rhee
Steven Yeun is one of those many stars who became popular after being cast in The Walking Dead. The show gave Yeun his breakout role as Glenn Rhee, and he stayed an integral part of the show for seven seasons straight. However, his character was beaten to death by Negan in Season 7.
After appearing in The Walking Dead, Steven Yeun built a rather impressive career for himself. He had appeared in movies such as Mayhem, Sorry to Bother You, Burning, Nope, and most recently appeared in Mickey 17. He has also done a fair share of work with voice acting, and his most notable project is Invincible, where he voiced the lead character of Mark Grayson aka Invincible.
7. Michael Rooker as Merle Dixon
Michael Rooker appeared in The Walking Dead as Merle Dixon, the elder brother of Daryl Dixon, and was probably the second most hated character to appear in the show. He was a racist, selfish, arrogant, and simply evil human being who scared Daryl into doing whatever he wanted him to do. A character like that got a much-deserved death in Season 3 of The Walking Dead.
After appearing in The Walking Dead, Michael Rooker went over to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and played the character of Yondu Udonta in the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise. Other than that, he also appeared in the Fast & Furious movies F9 and Fast X as Buddy Hubbard.
8. Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon
After Rick Grimes, Daryl is easily the most loved character in The Walking Dead franchise. Played by Norman Reedus, initially, Daryl was somewhat unlikable due to the influence his elder brother, Merle, had on him. Once Merle died and Rick took Daryl under his wing, his character went through a lot a development and gradually, everyone fell in love with the motorcycle riding, crossbow-wielding Daryl Dixon.
After The Walking Dead came to an end, Norman Reedus didn’t appear in a lot of projects, but returned as Daryl Dixon in a spinoff series, The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, and did a documentary series called Ride with Norman Reedus. He had also worked on video games such as Death Stranding and Death Stranding 2: On the Beach. More recently, Norman Reedus will appear in Ballerina, set to release in June 2025.
9. Chandler Riggs as Carl Grimes
Chandler Riggs practically grew up on the set of The Walking Dead. He appeared in the cast of The Walking Dead as Carl Grimes, the son of Rick and Lori. While his arc is one of the most impressive ones we have seen in the show, his untimely death in Season 8 came as a massive shock to the fanbase. While showrunner Scott Gimple had made it clear that Carl’s death was a story-driven decision, fans speculate that Riggs was removed from the show due to the production house’s unwillingness to increase payments.
After moving away from The Walking Dead, Chadler Riggs moved on and launched his own production company called Smooth Blend Films. He also appeared in A Million Little Things, but other than that, he had stayed mostly off-camera.
10. David Morrissey as Philip Blake AKA “The Governor”
If we talk about villains, David Morrissey’s Philip Blake, AKA The Governor, might just be one of the most twisted villains Rick and his people stood against in the show. In The Walking Dead, the Governor was the leader of Woodbury, a town he created with his people to keep them safe during the apocalypse. However, even though he seemed to be noble and well-wishing, there was a massive dark side to him.
After the conclusion of David Morrissey’s role as The Governor, David Morrissey appeared in the season 5 of Thorne, and most recently appeared in the Apple TV+ series titled Prime Target released in January, 2025.
11. Melissa McBride as Carol
Melissa McBride’s Carol is easily one of the best character development arcs one can witness on screen. Carol first appeared in The Walking Dead as a scared and abused woman who used to live her life for her daughter, afraid of her abusive husband, Ed. However, once Ed was killed, she became free, but her life was turned upside down when her daughter, Sophia, was bitten and turned.
After that, Carol had nothing left to live for, and she turned herself into a weapon whose only purpose was to protect her people by any means necessary. She also developed a deep platonic connection with Daryl, which is currently driving her to look for Daryl in the spinoff series, Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon – The Book of Carol.
Melissa McBride didn’t work on a lot of projects after The Walking Dead concluded, but returned as Carol in The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon. Other than that, she also had a guest appearance in Fear the Walking Dead and Ride With Norman Reedus.
12. Lauren Cohan as Maggie Greene
Lauren Cohan appeared in The Walking Dead as Maggie Green, the daughter of Hershel, and gradually, Glenn’s wife. Initially, she and her father were reluctant to leave their farm and move along with Rick and the other, but they eventually had to. Moreover, she had a son with Glenn named after her father, Hershel and Maggie currently appear in the spinoff series The Walking Dead: Dead City.
After The Walking Dead, she appeared in Whiskey Cavalier on ABC, but the show was cancelled after just one season. She has also had recurring roles in shows like Supernatural and The Vampire Diaries.
13. Scott Wilson as Hershel Greene
Scott Wilson appeared as Hershel Greene in The Walking Dead. In the show, he was a doctor who lived on a farm with his family. Rick and his people came in contact with Hershel when one of Hershel’s people accidentally shot Rick’s son Carl. However, while Hershel treated Carl, Rick, and the others bonded with Hershel’s family, and they gradually joined forces. Hershel was killed at the hands of the Governor in season 4.
After working on The Walking Dead, Scott Wilson continued working as an actor and appeared in multiple movies and shows such as Damien, The OA, Bosch. Sadly, he passed away in 2018 and the first episode of The Walking Dead Season 9 was dedicated to the actor.
14. Josh McDermitt as Eugene Porter
Josh McDermitt came as a ray of hope for multiple characters in the show. This was because he had told Abraham and Rosita that he was a microbiologist who could create a cure for the apocalypse. However, as it turns out, he had been lying to them just so he could stay safe from the Walkers. After this was revealed, Eugene suffered at the hands of his friends for lying, but gradually, he earned back their trust.
After he completed his run as Eugene in The Walking Dead, he appeared in some television shows such as Mad Men, TV Land’s Retired at 35, and Showtime’s The Loudest Voice. Most recently, Josh McDermitt took up the role of Stuart Lane in Suits LA, released in 2025.
15. Michael Cudlitz as Abraham Ford
One of the people escorting Eugene, Michael Cudlitz, appeared as Abraham Ford in the cast of The Walking Dead. The one word to define his character would be “Badass” since he was trigger-happy, brave, and built like a tank. However, his character was killed off by Negan in Season 7, which is often regarded as one of the saddest deaths in The Walking Dead franchise.
Michael Cudlitz continued to work on screen after he departed from The Walking Dead. He appeared in multiple shows and movies such as Unspoken, Clarice, and The Kids Are Alright. Cudlitz also gave his voice to the Invincible, where he voiced Red Rush. His most notable role came as Lex Luthor in Superman and Lois.
16. Christian Serratos as Rosita Espinosa
Christian Serratos appeared in The Walking Dead as Rosita Espinosa, one of the people who were escorting Eugene, but later joined forces with Rick and the others. After Abraham died, she and Eugene stuck around with Rick and his people, and she became one of the longest surviving cast members in the show before her death in Season 11 of The Walking Dead.
After she was done with The Walking Dead, Christian Serratos became popular for appearing as Selena Quintanilla in Netflix’s Selena: The Series. She had also lent her voice to another Netflix animated series titled Love, Death & Robots.
17. Seth Gilliam as Gabriel Stokes
Seth Gilliam joined the cast of The Walking Dead in Season 5 as a priest named Gabriel Stokes. Initially, he had unshakable faith in God and refrained from using weapons or killing the Walkers, but eventually, he turned himself from the vessel of God’s word to God’s wrath. Assisted by Rick and the others, he became one of the longest surviving members of the Walking Dead franchise and is still alive and well, living in Alexandria as a priest.
After The Walking Dead, Gilliam generally stayed off-camera but continued to thrive as a stage actor. He worked on plays such as “Othello” and “Richard III” and has openly admitted that working on plays is more fun for him than working on movies and shows. However, he had reprised his role of Gabriel in the spinoff series, The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live.
18. Khary Payton as Ezekiel
Khary Payton appeared as one of the most charming characters in the cast of The Walking Dead franchise. Previously a zoo caretaker, Ezekiel survived the apocalypse with the help of a tiger named Shiva, whom he had kept as a pet, and ruled over a settlement called The Kingdom as King Ezekiel. However, he later joined forces with Rick and the other and even got married to Carol. However, his character died in Season 10 of The Walking Dead.
After working on The Walking Dead, Khary Payton went back to voice acting and voiced Cyborg in Teen Titans Go! and Young Justice. He also voiced multiple characters in video games such as Injustice: Gods Among Us and Injustice 2. Other than that, he had recurring voice acting roles in the animated Justice League show.
