Characters Negan Didn't Kill On The Walking Dead Finale

Fans are pretty livid over AMC's decision to leave The Walking Dead season six finale as a cliffhanger. No one knows for sure who got up close and personal with Lucille, and there's allegedly a reason for that: Many speculate that the cast members may have been renegotiating their contracts, so the showrunners weren't sure who'd have their, er, turn at bat until after filming was over. (Still, Greg Nicotero told Entertainment Weekly that the cliffhanger ending was planned all along and that even the cast didn't know who got killed.) Here are the survivors who likely escaped Negan's deadly swing from The Walking Dead season six finale, for now. Here's an undead warning: there are a lot of potential spoilers ahead!

We know, we know. Steven Yeun supposedly signed a one-year contract in his last negotiation for The Walking Dead with AMC, and it's well-known that Glenn Rhee gets the blunt end of the bat during this scene in the comics. However, the show is known to deviate from the source material. By this point, Glenn's survival and Glenn's death can equally surprise us. On an episode of @Midnight a while ago, TWD creator Robert Kirkman blurted out, "Eventually a character named Negan is introduced, and he's going to bash in Glenn's brains with a baseball bat called Lucille." That can either be a very obvious spoiler or a huge red herring. In the comics, Maggie cuts her hair after Glenn dies. In the show, she already had Enid hack away at her locks. There's still hope for Glenn! On the other hand, there are no dumpsters for him to hide under this time.

Let's be real, Andrew Lincoln isn't going anywhere. Rick Grimes is the face of The Walking Dead. He is not going to die until the show does or when Carl is old enough to lead the group himself.

There are two big reasons we think Negan likely spared Carl Grimes from Lucille's wrath. One, he warned the group in the episode, "Anybody moves, anybody says anything, cut the boy's other eye out and feed it to his father." It'd be a pretty empty (though genius) threat to say that and then whack Carl anyway. Nevertheless, we think this line suggests both Carl and Rick survive. Two, in the comics, Negan develops a strange bond with Carl, often chatting him up, offering life advice, and generally having a respectful relationship...after Carl tries slaughtering a slew of Saviors.

The only reason Michonne may die is because, well, what else happens to Rick's love interests? Still, Michonne's role goes far beyond just being Rick's girlfriend. She's strong, independent, and would be an asset to getting supplies for the Saviors. She's also clearly a fan favorite character, so don't expect her to leave the series anytime soon.

Daryl Dixon is recovering from a gunshot to the shoulder (which scared viewers into thinking he died during the penultimate episode this season). Negan has an occasional self-imposed rule against killing the injured, in the comics at least. Then again, Daryl was never even in the comics. Norman Reedus is one of the show's big cash cows, so it looks like no one has to riot just yet. On the other hand, Daryl would probably never be killed by a random walker or raider out in the wild—this might be the only time to say goodbye. If he were to die and the show wanted to build up Negan as its most hated villain ever, this is probably the way to do it. Nevertheless, we've got our fingers crossed for someone else.

Killing Maggie instead of Glenn would be a huge shocker, as well as a devastating one, considering she's pregnant and clearly ill. In the comics, Negan spares Maggie, thinking she's Sophia's mom. Since Sophia is dead in the show, he may spare her if he realized she's pregnant. Considering Judith died in the comics and survived on the show, this may be one infant too many for Alexandria, as bleak as that sounds. Then again, we don't think AMC would present something that horrific.

Negan's first kill is supposed to be a brutal, devastating blow not just to the victim's skull, but also to the audience. While Ross Marquand may be one of the most likable actors around, his character, Aaron, hasn't quite been developed enough for his death to really hurt viewers all that much. Aaron is also still alive and kicking in the comics. If he's going to go, it probably won't happen for a while.

Like Aaron, the audience hasn't really been able to bond much with Rosita. All we really know about her is that she's good with cars (remember when she corrected everyone at the fire truck?), she's good with weapons, and she's having a tough time getting over her split from Abraham. The only impact her death would leave is a lack of gratuitous short shorts, which isn't enough to eke out any emotional response from most of the viewers.

Let's be real here: Sasha's character up to this point was relegated to the tough cookie sharpshooter. Similar to Rosita, she hasn't really had too much of a chance to shine or have many memorable moments on her own. Killing Sasha off would only end things for her character on a whimper. This would be a bizarre cop out pick and wouldn't be worth the backlash the show is already facing for its cliffhanger season finale.

Vulture reports that Michael Cudlitz, who plays Abraham Ford, may have accidentally slipped with a huge reveal. Cudlitz recently tweeted a controversial message to Josh McDermitt, who stars as Eugene, telling the mullet-sporting actor that he "had a blast working with him." Does that mean Eugene or Abraham is getting the bat? Signs point to Eugene making it out alive, but not with his friend. The show has spent a good portion of season six developing Abraham's character, showing how he's helped Eugene step up his own survival skills. What's more, Denise getting Abraham's comic death, the breakup with Rosita, and his discussion of a future (and a kid!) with Sasha are all death knells pretty much. The writers and showrunners may be trying to increase the audience's care for the badass ginger, as well as the rest of the survivors' bond with him, just to increase the heartbreak that comes with Negan swinging for the fences.