As revealed by The Hollywood Reporter, Love, Simon and Ozark actress Cassady McClincy has joined the cast of The Walking Dead for the upcoming ninth season of AMC’s zombie drama, where she will play the recurring character Lydia.
The new season of The Walking Dead (the first under incoming showrunner Angela Kang) is set to jump ahead in time and introduce the new antagonists the Whisperers, a group of survivors who wear walker skins to blend in with the undead. The group is led by Alpha, who will be portrayed in the show by Samantha Morton (Minority Report).
In the comic books, Lydia – who is the daughter of Alpha – is romantically involved with Carl Grimes, and the two teens find themselves caught in the centre of the conflict between the survivors and the Whisperers. Although given Carl’s fate in the TV show, that’s obviously not going to be the case here.
SEE ALSO: The Walking Dead season 9 gets a batch of promotional images
In addition to McClincy, the series has also cast Brett Butler (Grace Under Fire) and John Finn (Cold Case) as Hilltop residents Tammy Rose and Earl, Rhys Coiro (Entourage) as the rebellious Savior Jed, and Zach McGowan (Black Sails) as Justin, a hostile savoir.
Other new cast members for the ninth season include Dan Fogler (Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them) as Luke, Nadia Hilker (The 100) as Magna, Eleanor Matsuura (Into the Badlands) as Yumiko, and Lauren Ridloff (Wonderstruck) as Connie.
SEE ALSO: The Walking Dead showrunner has revealed changes coming Maggie’s way in season 9
The Walking Dead season 9 premieres on October 7th on AMC.
