Walking Dead: The Actor Who Almost Played Rick Grimes – Screen Rant

Playing Rick Grimes on The Walking Dead made Andrew Lincoln a household name, but Frank Darabont initially wanted a different actor in the lead.

Playing Rick Grimes on The Walking Dead made Andrew Lincoln a household name, but Frank Darabont initially wanted a different actor in the lead. Currently heading into its 10th season finale, with season 11 already in the works, it sometimes feels like The Walking Dead has been around forever. It's been one of the biggest success stories in cable TV history, and while it might not boast the audience levels it once did, it's fair to say that The Walking Dead has had a profound influence on the TV landscape as a whole.

The Walking Dead's pop culture cache is most evidenced by how many acting careers it's either launched into the stratosphere or rejuvenated from a slump. Before Walking Dead, most knew Andrew Lincoln for his role in Love Actually, a far cry from badass action lead Rick Grimes. Most had no clue who Jon Bernthal was before he played Shane Walsh, and now he's seemingly always in demand, most notably starring as Marvel's Punisher on Netflix. Then there's Danai "Michonne" Gurira, who's now Okoye in the MCU, and will soon appear in Godzilla vs. Kong.

Related: Why The Walking Dead Cast Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon

It turns out that back at the beginning, Darabont, The Walking Dead's original showrunner, wanted his prior collaborator Thomas Jane to star as Rick. Jane is certainly a recognizable face, and would've changed Rick's physicality and speaking style in a major way. Here's why he didn't play the role.

Considering Frank Darabont's penchant for working with actors he likes over and over again, it's no real surprise that he wanted Thomas Jane to play Rick on The Walking Dead, not long after collaborating with him on the Stephen King adaptation The Mist. In fact, The Walking Dead and The Mist share multiple cast members as it is, including Melissa "Carol" McBride and Laurie "Andrea" Holden. Surprisingly enough, the party responsible for Darabont not getting his way and casting Jane in The Walking Dead is HBO.

Many fans might not be aware of this, but Darabont initially pitched The Walking Dead to HBO, before it ultimately landed at AMC. At that point, Jane was firmly attached to play Rick, but HBO ended up not moving forward with the project. By the time Darabont was able to reach a deal with AMC to produce The Walking Dead season 1, Jane was no longer available, having committed to starring in the HBO dramedy series Hung, which ran for three seasons from 2009 to 2011. As good as Andrew Lincoln ended up being as Rick though, things likely turned out for the best.

More: The Walking Dead: Why Maggie Left In Season 9 (& Returns In Season 10)

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Michael Kennedy is an avid movie and TV fan that's been working for Screen Rant in various capacities since 2014. In that time, Michael has written over 2000 articles for the site, first working solely as a news writer, then later as a senior writer and associate news editor. Most recently, Michael helped launch Screen Rant's new horror section, and is now the lead staff writer when it comes to all things frightening. A FL native, Michael is passionate about pop culture, and earned an AS degree in film production in 2012. He also loves both Marvel and DC movies, and wishes every superhero fan could just get along. When not writing, Michael enjoys going to concerts, taking in live professional wrestling, and debating pop culture. A long-term member of the Screen Rant family, Michael looks forward to continuing on creating new content for the site for many more years to come.

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Walking Dead: The Actor Who Almost Played Rick Grimes - Screen Rant