Chandler Riggs, 18, was “hurt” by The Walking Dead‘s decision to kill Carl, according to his dad, William Riggs, on Facebook. “Watching [Scott M.] Gimple fire my son 2 weeks before his 18th birthday after telling him they wanted him for the next 3 years was disappointing,” William wrote on Facebook in response to a fan’s comment asking how he felt about Carl’s looming departure. “I never trusted Gimple or AMC but Chandler did. I know how much it hurt him. But we do absolutely know how lucky we have been to be a part of it all an appreciate all of the love from fans all these years!” HollywoodLife has reached out to AMC for a statement to clarify William’s claims, but we have yet to receive a response.
Chandler did, in fact, confirm that Carl’s fate was not a decision he made on his own, according to his interview with The Hollywood Reporter. “Leaving ‘Walking Dead’ wasn’t my decision,” Chandler told the outlet in his first interview after the shocking reveal that he had been bit by a walker on the show’s mid-season eight finale. “I was planning on going to college until I found out. I found out when I was doing rehearsals for episode six back in June. It was quite the shocker for me, Andy and everyone because I don’t think anyone saw it coming.” Despite the fact that Chandler wasn’t planning to leave the show, he remained positive while talking about his plans for the future. “It’s definitely not a bad thing because it has been awesome being on the show but now I get to go and do a lot of other stuff that I haven’t gotten to do before.” Just days before the big reveal on TWD, Chandler dropped an EDM single, prompting speculation he’ll be working on music in the future.
UPDATE: The above Facebook post and comment has since been deleted off of Facebook.
This isn’t the first time Chandler’s dad has made headlines. When Chandler wrapped filming season seven, William posted a photo on Instagram with a caption that sent fans into a massive tizzy as they speculated that Chandler was leaving the show. “Completed 7 years on TWD! #freedom #thewalkingdead,” William captioned the photo, posted in November 2016. William had also written on Facebook that Chandler had just “completed” a 7-year contract with the show, which left fans wondering if he would even be back for season eight.
Tell us, HollywoodLifers — Do YOU think that Chandler was fired? Do YOU agree with his dad, William, or are you okay with how The Walking Dead is saying goodbye to Carl? Comment below, let us know.