The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live star might have just revealed Rick’s fate

Jessica Cullen
Lesley-Ann Brandt as Thorne in The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live

A behind-the-scenes image from one of The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live stars might have just revealed where Rick winds up before the end of the show.

Throughout The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live, it’s been Rick against the CRM. Then, Michonne came into the picture, and now Rick is tasked with not only protecting himself, but Michonne and his family, too.

Trapped inside the CRM with suspicious eyes upon them, Rick takes drastic measures to try to get Michonne out safely. But she’s more stubborn than he is, and the end of Episode 3 saw her flinging them both out of a moving helicopter to try and get free.

Rick’s CRM brainwashing is in question at this point. Is he playing a long game, or have they genuinely manipulated him into fearing for his life? While we still have a ways to go before The Ones Who Live can give us that answer, one cast member has shared a picture that might just hint towards where Rick ends up. (Warning: spoilers below!)

The Walking Dead star’s Instagram post suggests Rick joins the Echelon program

An an image shared on Lesley-Ann Brandt’s Instagram, Brandt and Andrew Lincoln are seen wearing the CRM’s uniform with red stripes, which fan think reveals Rick’s eventual Echelon briefing.

The Echelon Briefing, as it’s referred to in the show, is a briefing received only by the highest-level and most trusted of CRM operatives. Thorne receives the briefing not long after Okafor dies, and at the end of Episode 3, she tells Rick that his time will soon come.

Image from Lesley-Ann Brandt's Instagram of her and Andrew Lincoln

However, Episode 3 also ends with Rick and Michonne falling out of a helicopter. So, even if they escape, then this image likely means that Rick will find his way back to the CRM and eventually becomes part of the Echelon Briefing.

“The actress inadvertently spoiled that Rick joins the Echelon program,” one fan on Reddit wrote.

“Why is Rick wearing the red stripes…. that don’t look good at all,” another commented after seeing the photo. Another added a line from the show, saying: “…The men in the red striped suits who go off and no one’s knows what they do….”

“So, this brings about an interesting thought,” another user wrote. “If Rick is with the red guys, and if he joins in on the attacks, he can never be sure that he isn’t bombing the people he loves. Judith, RJ, Michonne, everyone else. He wants to protect them by staying with the CRM, but he could actually be hurting them.”

Right now, Rick and Michonne are potentially free from the clutches of the CRM. If this image is to be taken literally, then we could be seeing Rick back at the CRM all too-soon. Still, here’s hoping that the end of The Ones Who Live will have them both back home for good!

For more on The Walking Dead, check out our guides: How to watch The Ones Who Live / How to watch Daryl Dixon / How to watch Fear the Walking Dead / How to watch Tales of the Walking Dead

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About The Author

Jessica Cullen is a TV and Movies Writer at Dexerto. She's previously written for The Digital Fix, Cosmopolitan, Refinery29, Slate and more. Aside from being the residential Yellowstone expert, she also loves Westerns, '90s action movies, and true crime. You can email her here: jessica.cullen@dexerto.com.