What is causing Judith Grimes’ tears in The Walking Dead 10 trailers?

The Walking Dead 10B trailers show a very distraught Judith Grimes. What could possibly make her so upset? We have some ideas.

Judith Grimes has already gone through much sorrow in her young life, and it seems like in the back half of The Walking Dead season 10 the mini-fighter has more bad times to come. In multiple trailers for the 10b episodes we can see a sad looking Judith snuggling with her Uncle Daryl, and in another scene looking horrified and clutching her hands to her face. What obstacles and miseries face the last Grimes on the show?

It’s well-publicised that Danai Gurira is moving on from the show, and will likely leave (hopefully not feet first!) in an episode in the next few weeks. While the audience will be reeling from such a major loss to the show, so too – presumably – will the characters, and no one will grieve as much as Michonne’s on-screen children RJ and Judith.

It is a fair assumption that Michonne won’t die, as AMC would want to keep their options open for a Rick and Michonne reunion in the much fabled Rick movies. So, assuming Michonne leaves alive, what will her offspring in Alexandria know of her departure?

Given she is currently someplace off-shore with Virgil, will she manage to make it back to land to say goodbye to Judith and RJ, or will they be left swinging in the wind? Will they believe that, like their father, Michonne is dead with her body not recovered?

It’s believable that what the trailers show is a distraught Judith being informed of her mother’s death. It would be a hugely tragic turn for Judith to believe she has lost both parents forever, and heartbreaking for the audience to know that she hasn’t lost them forever but to not be able to tell her that.

We know that Cailey Fleming is an amazing young actress and will knock out of the park any emotional scene she’d given to perform. More so than ever, with the departure of Michonne, Judith represents the heart and history of the show. Seeing a child in pain is never great fun, and it’s only compounded when she carries the weight of so much hope for the future on her shoulders.

It’s possible that Michonne somehow manages to get in contact with her family to let them know she’ll be gone some time, presumably hot on the trail of Rick’s helicopter fumes. Such news would be equal parts elating and heartbreaking for Judith. To know that after all this time her father is still alive, but only to lose her mother for whoever knows how long, in the pursuit of returning him to their side.

Whether or not she believes her mother is dead, it’s clear her mom has gone – willingly or not – leaving Judith and RJ abandoned – and to all intents and purposes, orphaned. How will Judith cope and who will she turn to?

From the trailer it’s clear Uncle Daryl is going to be her main source of comfort, but with a war to fight and Daryl de facto leader, will he always be able to be there for her? Who else can she turn to when everyone in Alexandria is battling their own grief and demons?

With a fight raging between our communities and Alpha and the Whisperers, will Judith’s needs be overlooked for the more pressing danger around them?

It’s possible we could see Judith take after both her parents and bury her own feelings of loss in a need to be part of the fight. She is an independent and strong soul, who knows she’s a fighter skilled way beyond her years. It wouldn’t be out of character for her to push her way into battle – orphaned or not – in order to defend her home and protect her little brother.

It’s also possible that if she finds out her dad Rick is alive, and Michonne has gone to find him and bring him home,  she will believe that her place is with her mother.

Let’s just hope that however upset she is, and however much she thinks she should be by Michonne’s side, she hasn’t learned habits from her big brother, and she stays in the house.