Development Rick_Grimes

Casting

Lincoln alluded to several television shows and cinematic works in portraying Rick Grimes, including Gary Cooper's character in the American western film High Noon (1952).

Rick Grimes is portrayed by Andrew Lincoln, who was cast as part of the television adaptation in April 2010.[73] Prior to attaining the role, Lincoln had no prior knowledge of the comic book series. "I didn't even get a script the first time —I got sides, because it was so top-secret," he stated. "I was really intrigued and put myself on tape. They got back very quickly from Hollywood and gave me the script." Lincoln approached a bookstore (Mega City Comics) in the London Borough of Camden, where the owner introduced him to the comics. "That's when I went to a comic-book store in Camden, and said 'Have you heard of this comic book?'. The owner showed me this shrine they had to the comic, and said 'This is our most popular and successful comic, and in my opinion, one of the greatest graphic novels of the last ten years'. That's when I got into it."[74]

In preparation for the role, Lincoln sought inspiration from the American drama series Breaking Bad, as well as western film High Noon (1952).[74] Since he felt that The Walking Dead emulated western cinematic works, Lincoln found High Noon to be very useful in projecting a country-like character for Rick Grimes. The performance of Gary Cooper and the moral structure of his character was also cited as an influence; "He's a divided man, between his responsibilities and his marriage. He's not like the Clint Eastwood figure, the loner. It's more complicated than that. He's got a softer heart, so that was definitely an inspiration for me as well."[74] Lincoln avouched that it was difficult to perfect a southern American accent. "I worked really hard on the accent," he stated. "I suppose if you're asked by one of the great channels in America to lead their show, you want to start off getting that right. I worked hard on not just the accent, but also on being American and getting into the feel of that."[74] He traveled to Atlanta three weeks before production of the first season began, and worked with a dialect coach while there.[75] Although weapon training was required, Lincoln had previous experience with weaponry training in the British six-part television series Strike Back (2010).[74]

Executive producer Gale Anne Hurd initially didn't expect Lincoln to portray Grimes. Upon hearing the announcement, Writer Robert Kirkman felt that Lincoln was an "amazing find" and added that he accurately embodied the characteristics of Rick Grimes. "Writing Rick Grimes month after month in the comic series, I had no idea he was an actual living, breathing human being, and yet, here he is. I couldn't be more thrilled with how this show is coming together."[76] Although he was initially shocked upon hearing of the concept of The Walking Dead,[77] Lincoln thought that the script for "Days Gone Bye" was well written. He stated: "I read it and thought it was well written, and I put myself on tape just for one scene. I didn't know who was involved at this point."[78] The following day, Lincoln's agent called him about the development of the pilot, to which Lincoln called it "kind of like a dream list".[78]

Lincoln announced his plan to leave the show in mid-2018; he cited that due to spending at least half a year for filming in America while his family was in England, he felt it was time to end his role to spend more time with his children. Lincoln is slated to portray Grimes for six episodes of the ninth season prior to his departure.[79] Lincoln said he had been talking as early as the show's fourth season about leaving the show with showrunner Scott Gimple, and had initially made plans to leave after season 8's conclusion. However, during the 2017 San Diego Comic Con event, taking place during the middle of season 8's production, Lincoln realized he could not leave his fellow cast members at that point, and decided to wait and leave the next season, giving the showrunners enough screentime to set up Rick Grimes' departure from the show appropriately.[80] While Lincoln has left acting, he has expressed an interest in directing a future episode of the series, and plans to shadow a director during the ninth season to learn the ropes.[81]

Characterization

Rick is a much more realistic police officer. I always kind of pictured that Rick Grimes was not a police officer that had used his gun very often. He was just one of those guys that basically just walks by the local malt shop and made sure the kids were getting home on time.

—Robert Kirkman[82]

Rick Grimes has been described as a man that emphasizes moral standards. Lincoln summated: "His intentions are good, though his decisions may be bad many times. He's complicated and flawed, which I find fascinating because it makes him human. He sort of erodes over time because of the world he lives in, and there's nothing more satisfying than playing a character that changes irrevocably, so I embrace all of that."[74] Lincoln added that Rick was a somewhat inflexible leader, which he opined could potentially put Grimes' group in danger. Despite these assertions, he affirmed that the complexities have molded him into a decisive and peculiar character.[83] "I also think Rick's inflexibility is both a part of his character and a reaction to what's happening around him. This situation [...] has brought qualities out in people that are both good and horrible. And certainly, as I was playing him, I felt Rick [consistently] needed to have a mission, otherwise he was just stagnating. You see this in several characters. They have to keep moving. Without a horizon, they flounder. And it was a big call for Rick to go to the CDC [...] in the fifth episode, but he was looking long-term. I find that admirable, because he's looking to the future for his family, for a cure, and for sanctity."[83]

In both media, Rick adopts a more dark and assertive nature as the story progresses. In the comic, he is faced with dealing against a murderous sociopath that claims the life of two group members, as well as an attempted suicide indirectly provoked by his close and trusted friend. Perhaps the most significant moment, he is eventually put under physical and mental torture by The Governor as a result of vulnerability and mistaken trust, ultimately causing him to become crippled and causing the death of many within the group, including his wife and newborn child. The first hand witnessing of the savageness around him leads him to gradually adapt a more primal mindset, becoming less affected by violence and death (at times brutally murdering/mutilating people). Similarly, his perspective becomes increasingly deluded, as his decreased trust in people and decreased tolerance level leads him to take no issue in risking the life of an innocent. This is specifically shown as Rick struggles when eventually being given the chance to return to normalcy. He is however shown to be very protective of those who have suffered alongside him and most protective of his son, Carl, which leads to him being caring and considerate to them one moment and cold and detached the next. Later in the series, after his wife's death and his son suffering from amnesia after being shot, his long friend Andrea helps him see a brighter future for the community they reside in called Alexandria and Rick begins to embrace his leadership position, as well as start a relationship with her. He then begins a trading network with other communities, which is threatened by the tyrannical Negan who is eventually subdued and imprisoned. He continues to grow and expand his community, and create safety perimeters around Washington, DC to travel to other communities.

In the second season of The Walking Dead progresses. Kirkman discerned that the second season revolved around Grimes' ability to emerge as a credible leader, proving to the group that he can adequately protect everyone in the group.[84] He continued: "This is one more thing emerging where you see that this is a guy who can gun down people when they're a threat and can definitely handle himself when it comes to walkers but also cares about people. He's going to retain some of that humanity, and that's very important for these characters. It makes Rick stand head and shoulders above other people, like Shane, in this world."[84] The gradual change is largely attributed to the death of Sophia Peletier, whom he shot after she had turned into a walker in "Pretty Much Dead Already". These characteristics become more prominent in "Nebraska", and again in "18 Miles Out". Robert Kirkman felt that "Nebraska" demonstrated that Rick Grimes was not delirious, as Shane accused him of being.

The end of this episode proves to Rick that that's not the case. This entire season has been leading up to the moment where he shot those two men. Shane has been beating it into his head that he isn't fit for this world and needs to be a harder man and be able to make the hard decisions. Over the last two episodes, we've seen Rick be the one that has to step up and shoot Sophia when no one else can. We've seen him in the blink of an eye take out two guys who are a clear threat to him and everyone else that's with him. This is really the beginning of Rick emerging as a clear leader and answering that thing that Shane's been saying all this time.[85]

After the death of his wife in the television series, Rick faces a downward spiral to the point of relinquishing his leadership position in the prison community by the end of the third season. At the beginning of the fourth season, Lincoln described Rick as a man "repressing his brutality for the sake of his son". However, at the end of the fourth season after losing the prison and suffering more losses, he described Rick as "a man accepting brutality for the sake of his son", following closely to the comic in which he bites the throat of a marauder who threatens to assassinate him and assault his son. He further assessed that "Rick is a man who has made peace with the brutality within him that's inherent in him along with the moral sense that is just as valid a part of him. Rick is psychologically the strongest he's ever been. Because he's realized that the only way to stay alive – to keep his son alive in this new world – is by actively embracing all sides of his personality including darkness, fury and rage."[86]

In the fifth season, Lincoln asserted that "Rick is [...] at the most complete place he’s been ever since the apocalypse started. He’s a man who doesn’t doubt himself anymore, and he’s accepted his brutality as much as his humanity. So I think he’s in an incredibly powerful and dangerous place." He also described him as being a leader once again, who is much more uncompromising as he "[drags] a lot of [the group] into a place that is darker, more brutal." Entertainment Weekly assessed that "This is the Rick viewers most assuredly need after watching him mope around on-and-off for two seasons after having very bad thing in the world happen to him. And it’s the Rick that the rest of the survivors need as well if they are going to continue to keep on keeping on."[87]

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