SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers from the Season 8 finale of The Walking Dead, entitled “Wrath,” and reveals the fate of Negan. Proceed with caution.
UPDATE: In the end, no one killed Negan. Rick slashed his throat in the Season 8 finale, but ordered he be saved (in keeping with Carl’s dying wishes). Maggie was enraged, wanting to kill Negan herself. In the end, Negan survived and got patched up in the infirmary. Meanwhile, Maggie, Jesus, and Daryl plotted to turn against Rick and Michonne for letting their hated enemy live.
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Negan has been the big baddie on The Walking Dead for two seasons now, subjugating (or “saving”) numerous survivor communities and smashing in the heads of disobedient residents as a show of strength.
As Season 8 nears its conclusion, so too will the all-out war between the Saviors and Rick Grimes militia. Rick has pledged numerous times to kill the Saviors leader, but Negan has more lives than a cat (recently demonstrated when he survived a car crash, being shot at, falling several stories, AND being surrounded by undead walkers all in a single episode).
Who will kill the show’s biggest villain? There are plenty of characters who are out for revenge. We rank the likely ones.
Rick Grimes
Rick has come the closest to actually killing Negan, crashing into his car and chasing him into a warehouse filled with walkers. He even wrestled Negan’s prized possession — his bat Lucille — away and set it on fire. He probably has most cause to kill the Savior leader. Negan murdered two of his closest friends: Abraham and Glenn. He nearly killed his son Carl, and ordered the massacre of the Kingdom warriors and the destruction of Alexandria. They hate each others’ guts.
Maggie
Like Rick, Maggie has plenty of reason to kill Negan. He murdered her husband, Glenn, earning her the title “the Widow.” The Saviors have made multiple attacks upon Hilltop, resulting in massive casualties. To protect her community and her unborn child, Negan is better off dead.
Jadis
After Negan fled the walker-filled warehouse, he was picked up by the Scavenger leader Jadis. Once former allies, Jadis has nothing but hate for the Saviors after they killed her people. She doesn’t know yet that the order came from Simon, not Negan. She may spare his life, as she knows Negan still wields lots of power — or at least bargaining power.
Dwight
Dwight’s hatred for Negan runs so deep that he turned on his fellow Saviors and is secretly working alongside Rick. Like Rick, Dwight has plenty of motivation. Negan burned Dwight’s face with an iron as punishment for once fleeing the Saviors. Negan also married Dwight’s wife, Sherry, which has further fueled his hatred.
Only a handful of Saviors — namely Eugene and Laura (the soldier who survived the ambush) — know of Dwight’s deception. He may be able to get close enough to take him out.
Eugene
After being captured, Eugene has gone from prisoner of war to willing participant. Early in his captivity, he gave Sasha deadly pills, knowing that she would reanimate and attack Negan. But since then, he’s been loyal to his captor. He led an undead horde away (using an iPod and makeshift drone) from Sanctuary, saving Negan, the Saviors, and of course, himself (Eugene has always been a coward).
If he ever wants to reunite with Rick and company, he’ll have to prove his loyalty … by killing the Savior leader.
No One/Negan Lives
Ironically, the living may not take Negan down. He’s been covered in walker guts twice — once when fleeing the trailer, and after the car crash. Father Gabriel has been sickened and blinded by the viscera, but Negan has yet to show any symptoms. However, now that he’s injured, his immunity may be compromised.
In the comics, Negan actually survives the all-out war and is captured. He eventually befriends Carl in the comics and is still alive. On the show, Carl envisioned Negan as a member of his utopian society, but now that he’s dead, it’s unlikely that optimistic future will come true.
Who do you think will kill him? Will he even die?