Rick Grimes finally returned to The Walking Dead in 2024 after his character’s lengthy disappearance, but his whole arc with the CRM could have been avoided if the protagonist had killed Negan. Having led the show since 2010, Andrew Lincoln exited The Walking Dead in 2019 for personal reasons, but his character was never killed off. Instead, Rick was taken in a helicopter after sustaining an injury and wasn’t seen again until season 11’s finale. His full return came two years later in his spinoff show, which revealed he had been captured by the CRM and was forbidden from leaving.

https://screenrant.com/the-walking-dead-rick-crm-capture-kill-negan-op-ed/