The Spoiling Dead Fans is quite possibly the largest ‘The Walking Dead‘ spoiler site online and you can find all kinds of reveals ahead of time there. However, for the eighth season’s midseason finale “How It’s Gotta Be,” they knew what happened at the end but refused to share it in advance. In fact, they went so far as to say back on December 7th, 2017 that “We have our reasons for doing this which we’ll share after the episode. We know this is disappointing for thousands of people that depend on us, and we fully expect some backlash. We’re ready to take the heat.”

As to the reason they held it back? I have to really talk about the reveal at the end of the episode to go into it so if you’ve somehow remained free at this time, it’d be best to turn back now.

The reason the site held the news? It was a request from Chandler Riggs himself. It is almost impossible to imagine anyone who doesn’t know that Carl Grimes was shown to have been bitten by a walker at this point and that he is apparently going to die from the bite when the season returns in February, but Riggs asked that it not be shared. Scott M. Gimple has stated that this is a “one way ticket” so before his last performance, Chandler discreetly reached out to The Spoiling Dead Fans and pleaded his case:

“So I’ve come to realize that you all have probably figured out the big reveal at the end of 808.

I get that you guys have been doing this since we started, but I have a request. Out of respect for me, for Carl, and for one of the last few seasons of the show, I’m using you to not spoil the ending of 808 once your sources inform you of what happens.

I poured my heart into a couple of episodes this season, and 808 is one of them. I’m so proud of my performance and a lot of it rides off of a surprise ending. Of course this is what you all do, but the integrity of what happens is pretty crucial to my performance throughout the rest of the episode and I’d really appreciate it if you all would hold back just this one time.

This is the only time I’ll request something like this, so don’t worry about me coming back later and doing the same thing.”

Now, AMC is known for trolling fans with surprises that don’t pan out. Glen’s dumpster dive for instance. This could always be a case where we find that Carl is immune or the mysterious helicopter arrives just in the nick of time with a cure. Likely, we’re about to say our goodbye to Carl though. Not only has his father been shown to be quite angry about how this went down, but Chandler even cut his hair which would be a bit elaborate for this to be a ruse.

All of that being said, I’m glad they listened. While some fan sites had reported this was going to happen, this is one of the largest and Riggs’ performance has never been better. I don’t know if he was trying to emote more or if the crew just finally gave him the right screen time and lines, but this was one of the first times I was glad that Carl wasn’t in the house, even if it means he’s about to end up as a Walker.

Are you surprised that The Spoiling Dead Fans were willing to keep this a secret? Do you feel that they did the right thing by holding it in? How would they react if we all find out that Carl will end up okay next season? Share your thoughts below!

Source: Comic Book