Since making the initial announcement about Rick Grimes' standalone features, AMC and Scott Gimple have kept mostly quiet about further details regarding the upcoming Walking Dead projects. Former series star Pollyanna McIntosh now has a slightly better idea of what to expect, and has revealed an update that the actress' fans will almost definitely cheer for. It appears Jadis does indeed have a future in this universe. In her words:
Yeah, it's being spoken about by Gimple now, so I can be very clear in assuming. We're going to see where Rick is, so she would be there. That's a long winded way to say, 'Yeah, I hope so.' Things are in process right now. It's exciting. I'm not ready to leave her behind yet.
Because this is The Walking Dead, where Scott Gimple obsessively shields viewers from the franchise's many secrets, Pollyanna McIntosh technically still can't confirm that Jadis will be present when Andrew Lincoln makes his big return to The Walking Dead. However, she can assume with authority, which is nearly as good as confirming at this point.
Thankfully, that wasn't all that she told the crowds at Fan Fest San Jose. Pollyanna McIntosh also made it vaguely clear that Rick's Walking Dead's movies will at least start off focused on the mysterious community that the helicopter pilot calls home.
There will definitely be more of an understanding of the community that they came from and that I'm going to with them, so yes.
This years-in-the-making helicopter mystery is one that has kept Walking Dead fans talking for ages now, though the show only offered some legitimate clarification and answers in Season 9. Learning about the pilot's community is fairly essential now, since it's not only a presumably interesting new area to explore, but it's also the area that Rick has been a part of for the past six years of the narrative. Plus, it's the place where Heath ended up after going missing in Season 7.
This location is one where at least some of the people are fully involved in human trafficking in one way or another. Of the group's still-mysterious "A" and "B" distinctions, it appeared as if Rick was tagged with the letter that meant he was less doomed. But we still want to know what happens to those who are given the other label. Are they used as slaves of some kind, or are they killed off for sport?
We'll still be waiting a while to learn those particular details, but Pollyanna McIntosh did appear to clear up one nagging issue that has affected her character throughout the early episodes in Season 9: her multiple names. It looks like the personality fans learned about first will be the one that stuck whenever viewers reconnect with her.
She's always been Jadis. Whether she's choosing to be considered as Anne or not at this point is a good question, but I don't think she needs to be Anne anymore.
Indeed, she was Jadis for the entire time she was known to be the leader of the junkyard dwelling Scavengers, and only became Anne the Artist once her villainous persona got chipped away after Simon and the Saviors murdered all of her cohorts. "Anne" is probably a name that is only meant to reflect how peaceful her surroundings are, and she may not ever find another mostly calm situation like she had in Alexandria again.
Recently, Pollyanna McIntosh went public in talking about the new Rick movies, but didn't have much to offer at the time beyond a sense of curiosity similar to what fans were feeling. It appears she's had a conversation or two with Scott Gimple & Co. in the meantime, though. Maybe by three weeks from now, she'll know the entirety of all three movies' plots, and will be able to share all the secrets with anyone who listens. Or...not.
Another big question that viewers definitely have is what kind of relationship will have developed between Jadis and Rick at whatever undisclosed location they've been living at. The standalone features likely won't need to make the same six-year time jump that the TV series did, so the story could well pick up inside the very same helicopter where Rick was last seen, second after his final moments in The Walking Dead's AMC series.
Considering three different Rick-centered movies have been confirmed, it's safe to guess that the narrative will change up a bit from one film to the next. So while the story may start off in the recent aftermath of Rick's transport to a new community, there's no guarantees that all three flicks will remain at that location. Nor that Jadis will be around for any possible story arcs that go beyond the helicopter pilot's home turf.
How interesting would it be if Rick got into some kind of altercation -- who could see that coming? -- and was then forced to flee the area in a helicopter, with Jadis as his co-pilot? I probably wouldn't need to see an entire episode of them shooting the breeze and telling stories from their days before the outbreak, but I think fans would want to see Rick attempting to travel back to Alexandria and his loved ones at some point. Even if his attempts don't go as planned.
When recently speaking with showrunner Angela Kang, I asked about the show possibly bringing Georgie back, or if the show could take viewers to whatever community she and Maggie are at. Since, for all we know, that area and the helicopter pilot's home are one and the same.
For now, though, it sounds like the producers are holding back any big road trips until possibly next season, assuming distant settings aren't just held for non-flagship series projects. (Not that I'm against seeing a full-fledged Georgie spinoff.) Here's how Kang put it.
I think, you know, there's a world of opportunity. We're only just starting to get into the next season now. Scott Gimple and I have talked about, you know, we sort of have a notion of Georgie's group and sort of what they're up to out in the world. Where those stories land, or if they land or whatever. That's all to be talked about and figured out.
Here's hoping some more answers come soon. The Walking Dead returns to AMC for the back half of Season 9 on Sunday, February 10, 2019, at 9:00 p.m. ET. While waiting to hear more about The Whisperers, Negan and those 'X' scars, set yourself up with all the other great shows hitting TV with our fall premiere schedule and our midseason TV rundown.
