By this point, we should be pretty used to The Walking Dead killing off fan favorite characters, especially those who we don’t expect to die. But tonight’s death still hit viewers hard, and understandably so.
Yes, if you’ve seen the mid-season finale, you’ll know that sadly, Jesus is no longer with us. Tom Payne’s character met his end in “Evolution” thanks to those super creepy Whisperers and though it was probably an unexpected death for most people, it turns out that Payne was actually alright with it.
Speaking to CinemaBlend earlier, the actor said:
“I kind of felt like Jesus for the last couple of years was just kind of holed up at the hilltop and not really getting to do anything effective. Like I had that great fight with Lenny, but being a comic book reader as well, I was like, ‘Well, when’s the fight with Negan? And when’s the catching the grenade and throwing it back, and when’s all this cool stuff?’ And none of the cool stuff actually happened. So, I was like, ‘Oh, okay.’ I mean, I had some cool stuff, but nothing that cool.”
He does make a few good points there, but the fanbase certainly isn’t taking this one easy, with people hopping on Twitter after the episode and reacting as follows:
R.I.P. Jesus! 😭😭😭 #TheWalkingDead #twd #TWDFamily pic.twitter.com/OjIDDhu2hM
— MimiPRGameFreak 🎮🇵🇷 (@MimiPRGameFreak) November 26, 2018
#TheWalkingDead pic.twitter.com/iTIqmwqm8t
— Bookwhore75 (@Bookwhore751) November 26, 2018
https://twitter.com/Briizzy_Bri/status/1066892150737174528
too many deaths these past few seasons this show is KILLING ME like it just killed jesus #TheWalkingDead #TWD pic.twitter.com/yRUEeXEfUb
— natalie (@natalieerin_s) November 26, 2018
Why oh why Jesus!!!? #TheWalkingDead #demdeadz #twd pic.twitter.com/qLFrfnanoA
— jetteski🇯🇲🇬🇭 (@jetteski) November 26, 2018
Why you gotta kill Jesus like that #TheWalkingDead pic.twitter.com/xuCcZSCcqP
— Kaitlyn (@kaitlynv21) November 26, 2018
I just took a breath. I wasn't ready for Jesus. I'm legit hurt. #TheWalkingDead pic.twitter.com/0yboejAGGj
— Donice is Here⛅ (@Hi_Im_Donice) November 26, 2018
Jesus, thank you for introducing us to the larger world.#TheWalkingDead pic.twitter.com/uD02SgUaSD
— The Walking Dead World (@TWalkingDWorld) November 26, 2018
So, pretty much how you’d expect people to react then. And though Payne seems to be fine with his character exiting the series, Jesus will surely be missed.
But the show must go on, and go on it will, as The Walking Dead will return to our screens in February and judging by the promo for season 9B, it certainly doesn’t look like things will be getting any brighter. Danger looms on the horizon and it seems we’ve only scratched the surface when it comes to the real threats that the Whisperers pose.