The Walking Dead has cast Carl's Whisperers girlfriend, Lydia in the upcoming Season 9 of the AMC series. Actress Cassady McClincy will play the character in a recurring role. Lydia is the daughter of Whisperers leader Alpha and love interest to Carl Grimes in Robert Kirkman's comic books, which some fans see as a bizarre, though welcome addition to the cast. Carl, played by Chandler Riggs, is no longer alive, leading to questions about how the show will move forward, since he was originally thought to carry the torch like he does in the comics.

In The Walking Dead comics, Lydia is a part of survivors who disguise themselves in walker skin to blend in and go by unnoticed, known as the Whisperers. The clan was first teased at this year's San Diego Comic-Con, and fans have been excited ever since. But since one of Lydia's main connections to the story in the comics is Carl Grimes, there's a big question as to how she will be portrayed in the upcoming Season 9 of the hit series.

The Walking Dead showrunner Scott Gimple recently talked about the death of Carl Grimes and explained that his story arc in the comics will still be told, but through different characters. Gimple said, "It just will have to be with different people and it's a different way to tell those same stories," which is definitely a way to keep the TV show from going along exactly with the source material. However, many fans of the show would be pretty happy if they stuck a little closer to Robert Kirkman's comics in the future, though it may be too late for that now.

Andrew Lincoln is set to exit The Walking Dead during the ninth season, which will also throw a new curveball at the future of the AMC series. Lincoln maintains that one character isn't the most important component of the show and praises the writing of this season. However, it will be very interesting to see where The Walking Dead goes from here. There are a lot of characters on the show to focus on, but there are also new additions that could end up taking the show in a brand-new direction, which is what it may need to continue.

Cassady McClincy's casting as Lydia comes just a few weeks after it was announced that Samantha Morton will be taking on the role of Alpha in The Walking Dead Season 9. Brett Butler was also cast as a character from the comics as Tammy Rose, who clashed with Carl and Maggie in the source material. For the show, she is described as a "salt-of-the-earth" Hilltop resident. The Walking Dead returns to television on October 9th for the first 8 episodes of the season. The remaining half will premiere sometime in early 2018, giving fans a chance for two cliffhangers as they prepare to say goodbye to Rick Grimes. The casting news was first announced by The Hollywood Reporter.