The Walking Dead franchise isn’t afraid to kill off a few characters to make a statement. As the saying goes: Death is inevitable. But it’s a little more inevitable in a world overrun by the undead. And you needn’t look any further than the TWD Universe for proof of that, because the AMC TV saga has been killing off main characters since it first burst onto TV screens back in 2010.
Remember Carl’s infamous death in the original series? What about Glenn and Abraham’s violent deaths at the hands of Negan? And, even more recently, the second season of spinoff The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, which killed off all of the important characters introduced in the first season. Yep, even now, the world of The Walking Dead is still brutal.
The most recent example of that is the other ongoing spinoff, The Walking Dead: Dead City, which just wrapped a third season full of character deaths – and major ones, too. As four major series regulars – two former and two current – bowed out. Heck, if you include the ambiguous fate of season character Benjamin Pierce (who was seemingly killed in the explosion in the premiere and never talked about again), then we can probably chock it up to five.
Dead City season 3 kills off four major Walking Dead characters
The third season was a turning point for Dead City as both fans and critics largely responded to it extremely well. The Walking Dead spinoff, which spotlights Maggie Rhee and Negan – as well as their longstanding, complex history, received criticism by re-treading over their feud when the original series essentially put an end to it. With new showrunner Seth Hoffman at the helm, however, season 3 moved on from that, putting the two on the same page and even allowing them to find a way towards friendship. It’s unorthodox – and completely unrealistic – but, for the purpose of TV, it worked.
While that reboot did bring something of a more light-hearted tone, it did not prevent the show from killing off some major franchise regulars. With the show choosing to leave its past behind, that placed some of the characters from that past in jeopardy. The church explosion eradicated the stutus quo of the first two seasons, seemingly taking out Benjamin Pierce and the New Babylon Federation in the process. But that would only be the beginning of Dead City‘s bloody third season.
The first major demise came in the form of The Croat. The show’s first Big Bad, he oversaw The Burazi in New York City and just so happened to be an old friend of Negan’s. However, when it all fell apart for him in season 2, it seemed like he might find his way to a character arc similar to that of Negan’s, seeking some redemption for his actions. But it wasn’t to be; the creative reboot saw the character killed off in the season 3 premiere, suffering a walker bite in the melee caused by the explosion and ultimately dying in Negan’s arms. He did, however, manage a touch of redemption, leading Maggie and Negan to the methane that would power New York City’s future.
The Croat actually answered to The Dama throughout the first two seasons of Dead City. She too was set up to be the sole Big Bad of season 3, seeking out Hershel in a bid to get back at Maggie for ruining her plans. But the rewrite turned her into a would-be threat that never materializes. Instead, she is captured in the second episode and is ultimately killed by Negan despite showing the beginnings of a potential change. And just like that, the Dead City that was had been completely dismantled to make way for a new vision.
But the surprise deaths wouldn’t end there, as two regular characters of the third season also met their demise before the credits rolled on the finale. The biggest shocker was that of Renata, who had become a fixture of the series throughout season 3, serving as an ally of Maggie’s and a vocal critic of Negan’s. Although it seemed like Negan might be the one to shockingly kill off Renata, he knew that her heart was in the right place. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for Dillard, who shockingly killed her with a gunshot to the stomach when she wouldn’t kill Negan like he wanted her to.
Renata’s death was undoubtedly the most shocking part of the third season as it came out of absolutely nowhere. Killing off a main character who had quickly grown into one of the most important on the show before the finale was crazy to say the least, but it also highlighted just how unhinged Dillard had become (or always was?), setting the stage for him to become the season’s main villain ahead of the finale.
That brings us to Dillard, who became the season’s last major death. The villain of the season who had been hiding in plain sight all along, he attempted to enact a master plan that would kill Negan, but he didn’t mind taking Maggie and Hershel out too. In the end, he couldn’t do it because he wanted Negan to be his friend, which allowed Maggie and Negan to ultimately see to his downfall.
16 years in and The Walking Dead Universe is proving that it is more ruthless than ever. Now, we look ahead to Daryl Dixon season 4 while hoping that Dead City secures that season 4 renewal too. Regardless of where the story goes next, the legendary AMC franchise continues to prove that it isn’t afraid to surprise audiences.
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