The Walking Dead continues to expand despite the series ending, with many spin-offs and opportunities for old and new characters to come together.

With the main series of The Walking Dead officially over, it’s worth wondering which of the surviving characters might return if a crossover were to ever happen. The show ran for 11 seasons between 2010 and 2022, and before the Walking Dead series finale, the show had already released three spinoff series’ and announced several more installments. The larger universe of The Walking Dead, which includes Fear the Walking Dead, The Walking Dead: World Beyond, and Tales of the Walking Dead focused on new characters and stories, but also reintroduced others who previously appeared in the main series.

Of course, the franchise has since expanded beyond those spinoffs. Three new shows have been added to the lineup, all of which involve existing characters. The Walking Dead: Dead City features Maggie and Negan, The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon focuses on its namesake now stranded in France, and The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live will continue Rick and Michonne’s story. But while the narrative branching off into new shows has isolated the characters, theories persist that a Walking Dead crossover is the masterplan of the franchise. If a crossover is indeed in the cards, The Walking Dead would most likely bring back its main cast, along with a few other noteworthy characters.

9 Georgie

In The Walking Dead season 8, episode 12, “The Key,” Georgie made her first and only appearance. Still, the impression she leaves is enduring and her group’s unique approach to survival could make her a great ally in any of the spin-offs. She connects with the survivors at the Hilltop and shares her vision for humanity’s return to a somewhat normal and peaceful life. With great knowledge of history and early practices for agriculture, manufacturing, and construction, her knowledge is immensely valuable.

Maggie worked alongside Georgie to build up communities based on this knowledge and vision for peace off-screen, but when their communities were attacked, Maggie was separated and has since lost contact with Georgie. Finding that Georgie survived and reconnecting her with Maggie would be a wonderful way to throw back to the main series and provide hope for a united future where people can be civil and kind, as Georgie was to the desperate Hilltop. Her death has never been confirmed, so it’s possible that Maggie will see her again in The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2.

8 Heath

Heath joined the show in season 6 and became an invaluable member of the group at Alexandria. Primarily, he supported his fellow survivors as a supply runner and while hesitant to enact violence towards other living beings, he would step up when his friends were in danger. Heath was only in the show during season 6 and briefly in season 7 before he was captured and traded away to the Civic Republic Military or CRM. The CRM was also the group that took Rick Grimes when he exited the main series. This connection could lead to Heath appearing later on, especially since the CRM could be the crossover’s villains.

7 Morgan

Morgan is one of the most prominent characters of the main series, but wasn’t involved in the final seasons. The first ally of Rick Grimes after he emerged from the hospital and woke up in the apocalypse, Morgan was weary of others after enduring the tragic loss of his wife. Morgan and Rick formed a connection and bond as family men. Morgan soon lost his son however and struggled with the loss for a long time, before reuniting with his old friend Rick and overcoming his inner demons.

Morgan then went on to be one of the primary protagonists of Fear the Walking Dead as he led his own group, forged alliances, and cared for those impacted by the apocalypse like family. Towards the eventual conclusion of the spinoff series, Morgan decides to go off in search of his old friend Rick once more, which makes it seem very likely that the pair will cross paths in an upcoming series, potentially The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live – or, the heavily theorized crossover. Morgan is a central figure in The Walking Dead universe, and it makes sense for him to continue playing a significant role in its future.

6 Madison & Alicia

Madison Clark was one of the primary protagonists of Fear the Walking Dead from the series’ beginning. She has undergone several changes in allegiance and traveled at times with her daughter Alicia. However, they haven’t seen each other since Madison’s supposed death in season 4. Since then, Madison became the head of PADRE and was seeking to right the wrongs the organization had committed. Alicia suffered a zombie bite removed her arm, and headed off to parts unknown in the season 7 finale. As things stand, Alicia may be dead, but despite Troy’s claim about killing her in Fear the Walking Dead season 8 part 2, she could still be out there somewhere. If so, she could reunite with Madison and meet the main show’s cast for the first time after Fear the Walking Dead ends.

5 The Bennett Sisters

Hope and Iris Bennett are two of the central protagonists of The Walking Dead: World Beyond. The series saw the adopted sisters dealing directly with the CRM and actively trying to evade capture. Hope is highly intelligent and is referred to by the CRM as the “asset” due to her scientific knowledge and research which has led to her being able to influence the undead to decompose faster. Iris is more hands-on and leads from the front defending her group. She protects those around her and forms small communities to resist the CRM and their control.

The sisters clearly have a much better understanding of the CRM and its dealings than any of the core cast in the original series. The Bennett sisters could be a big help in stopping the CRM from capturing people for whatever experiments and putting a stop to their plans. They provide something that many of the core cast lack in terms of a more scientific approach and research-based methods of dealing with the undead.

4 Silas

Silas is a young man who gets sucked into the confusing military world of the CRM in World Beyond. Silas struggles to escape his past as people spread rumors of violent acts and label him a monster due to his large size. However, Iris sees the compassionate and caring side to him and he joins with her and her sister on a mission to escape the CRM. Silas deserves to have a fresh start and move on from his traumatic past. Considering that World Beyond ended with Silas working under Jadis at the CRM, he’d be a top candidate for an appearance in a CRM-oriented crossover.

3 Davon

Davon appears in a single episode of the anthology-style series, Tales of the Walking Dead. Davon is seen joining a community that has formed a small town about 15 years after the outbreak. He is accused of murder and the episode sees him proving his innocence and resolving a mystery plague of the children in this town disappearing.

Davon is devoutly against violence and finds himself injured on occasion because of his pacifism. By the end of the Tales episode he stars in, he is disgusted by the violence of the townspeople and leaves in search of another home. Davon could make an appearance in one of the spinoffs as his timeline appears to align well with when the main series ended and he could be seen joining the core cast who try their best to keep the peace.

2 Strand

Strand has a colorful history in Fear the Walking Dead. Working with the main groups but proving to be a selfish and difficult person to work with, Strand goes on to forge a path away from the others. Later, he becomes a primary antagonist as he causes chaos and destruction to indulge his selfish and greedy ways, before disappearing and creating a new life for himself under the name Anton. This gave Strand a new purpose, and this development could shape any story the franchise gives him after Fear the Walking Dead.

1 Troy

Fear the Walking Dead introduced Troy Otto as a member of a military family that Madison was once a part of. In season 3, it appeared that Troy was killed before he made a sudden return much later in the series trying to wrestle control of PADRE from Madison as revenge for her earlier attempt on his life. Troy is the final antagonist in Fear the Walking Dead. Depending on how FTWD ends Troy’s story, he could return after the show’s conclusion. After all, a six-episode arc is hardly enough time to explore the person Troy has become since his exit in season 3.