Why did Maggie (Lauren Cohan) leave The Walking Dead?

Maggie Rhee (née Greene) was introduced in season 2 of The Walking Dead and, over time, has transformed from the farmer’s daughter to a badass survivor. She falls in love with Glenn (Steven Yeun) and, while pregnant with his child, is forced to watch his brutal murder by Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan). Throughout the series and into her spinoff, The Walking Dead: Dead City, Maggie has carried this with her. In season 9, Maggie would leave her position as leader of Hilltop, but why did she leave?

At some point, after Rick Grimes’ (Andrew Lincoln) “death,” Maggie would take her son Hershel and join Georgie’s group. She would assist them in setting up new communities according to Georgie’s (Jayne Atkinson) Key to the Future, a handwritten document with plans to rebuild communities in the apocalypse. During her absence, she would correspond with the communities via letters left at a drop-off point.

This was Maggie’s reason for leaving, but Cohan pulled away from The Walking Dead to star in a new comedy-drama, Whiskey Cavalier. This series would run for one season and also starred Walking Dead actor Tyler James Williams (Noah).

The Walking Dead – Maggie (Lauren Cohan)

In season 10, Carol (Melissa McBride) shared with Daryl (Norman Reedus) that there had been no word from Maggie for quite some time. Later, after learning of the Whisperer War and Jesus’ (Tom Payne) death, Maggie returns with Hershel (Kien Michael Spiller), now eight years old, to rejoin Hilltop. She would learn the disheartening news that Hilltop had been burned during the Whisperer War.

She declined to talk much about what has transpired with her since leaving but did confide in Daryl that she had to leave to get Negan out of her head and didn’t want her son to face theevild man who killed his father.

Bits and pieces of her time away would be shared during season 11, and her group, The Wardens, had been terrorized by a group known as The Reapers. This group would eventually be exterminated.

Maggie didn’t have an easy time while away and would quickly acclimate to being with her found family. She would aid the survivors in overthrowing the Commonwealth and come to a certain peace regarding Negan.

The Walking Dead: Dead City would reintroduce Maggie a few years after the events of the final episode of The Walking Dead. She had become hardened due to losing Hilltop and her all-consuming goal of exacting revenge on Negan.

Dead City concluded its second season with Maggie vowing to end things with Negan to allow herself to focus on her son. What that means is anyone’s guess and will be addressed in season 2 of Dead City. 

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