‘The Walking Dead’: Who Is Judith Grimes And How Will She Affect The Season 9 Storylines?


Episode 5 of AMC’s The Walking Dead Season 9 closed with a time jump. In it, viewers got to see a much older Judith Grimes taking control of the situation. So, who is this new Judith and how will this character affect the remainder of Season 9?

SPOILER ALERT: This article discusses Episode 5 (titled “What Comes After”) of AMC’s The Walking Dead Season 9. Please proceed with caution if you have not yet viewed this episode and wish to avoid spoilers.

For many fans, Episode 5 of The Walking Dead Season 9 was always going to be about Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) leaving the cult TV series. However, AMC managed to shake things up a little. Not only did Rick get rescued by Anne’s (Pollyanna McIntosh) mysterious group, but a time jump revealed a much older Judith Grimes (Cailey Fleming).

Many fans were concerned about the direction The Walking Dead would take, with Rick now at another location and his son, Carl Grimes (Chandler Riggs), dead. Considering the show originally started out as Rick’s journey to find his family, it didn’t seem like there was any of that family left. Many fans wondered who would become the main character as a result of the missing Grimes family.

However, one member of the family still remained: Judith.

However, Judith is likely not even Rick’s daughter, thanks to a tryst between his wife, Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies), and his friend, Shane (Jon Bernthal), when they both believed Rick was dead. Regardless of her parentage, though, Rick has always raised Judith as his own daughter and now it is her time to shine.

As the Hollywood Reporter points out, Judith is a character from the comics. However, in the comics, Judith died back at the prison when the Governor invaded. So, her storyline is pretty much a clean slate that AMC can play around with. From the trailers for Episode 6 of The Walking Dead Season 9, it seems Judith is already stepping into part of the role Carl plays in the comics. One of the Episode 6 trailers shows Judith talking to Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan). This is something Carl has been known to do in the comics.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgFkOSwqsbw&t=17s

In addition to finding out more about Judith’s personality, it is possible that she will take over Carl’s role in the upcoming Whisperers storyline that AMC has previously confirmed is happening in Season 9 of The Walking Dead.

THR states that Judith is “a fierce and independent warrior,” something fans noticed in the final scene of Episode 5. In addition, a trailer released on Talking Dead after the episode aired also confirmed this when Judith stood up and took responsibility for the new group she had brought back to Alexandria, rather than letting other adults take the blame.

So, it seems likely the remainder of Season 9 of The Walking Dead will be a very interesting journey now that the youngest Grimes is at the helm.

Season 9 of The Walking Dead returns to AMC with Episode 6 (titled “Who Are You Now”) on Sunday, November 11. AMC has released the following synopsis for this episode.

“The Survivors encounter unfamiliar faces outside the safety of their community’s walls and must decide whether or not this new group can be trusted.”

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