Will we ever find out what happened to Heath on The Walking Dead?

Heath has been MIA for most of The Walking Dead Season 7, appearing only briefly in “Swear” with Tara. Is it possible that he could be gone for good?

Everyone who signs on to work on The Walking Dead knows the clock is ticking as soon as soon as they appear on-screen. Whether they get one episode or 100 episodes eventually their time will be up. Usually that means an on-screen death. But Heath didn’t die, he just disappeared.

Given Heath’s state of mind in the early scenes of “Swear” it makes sense that he took off and left Tara. They got into trouble with a large group of walkers on the bridge. Tara was pinned down. And Heath ran instead of trying to help her.

Heath’s speech in the RV about everyone being out for themselves was poignant. And it indicated he was not feeling that Team Family spirit anymore.

Which is understandable. Heath was an outsider to Team Family. Heath spent most of the time since the outbreak behind Alexandria’s walls. He was not prepared for what it takes to survive outside those walls.

He joined in the slaughter at the Saviors outpost. But he only did that because he believed Rick. Rick was convinced  that it was the only way for them to survive.

After it was done he had some serious second thoughts about it. It’s entirely possible that Heath took off on his own, decided not to go to back to Alexandria, and is still out there somewhere.

It’s also possible that he made it off the bridge but died anyway later on trying to survive on his own. At this point, no one knows what happened to Heath.

24: Legacy

Corey Hawkins, who plays Heath, is starring in the 24 spinoff 24: Legacy. That doesn’t necessarily mean that Heath won’t be back on The Walking Dead.

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Sonequa Martin-Green was cast as the lead in Star Trek: Discovery but will continue playing Sasha. Many of the cast members work on other shows and projects when The Walking Dead isn’t filming.

Corey has said publicly that he and showrunner Scott Gimple have had several conversations about Heath returning to the show.

But, he also said that his priority is his role on 24: Legacy. Since Heath isn’t a major character on The Walking Dead it might be the case that Heath just drifts out of the story.

It’s understandable that Corey would prefer to focus on a leading role in a new show rather than a secondary role on The Walking Dead. However, if Heath is going to exit the show permanently it would be nice if the show could give him a proper sendoff instead of just writing him out.

Next: Will Corey Hawkins balance 24: Legacy and TWD?

Hopefully Heath will appear in future episodes of The Walking Dead. If not, the writers should at least work Heath’s permanent exit into the story somehow to give the fans closure.