The casting of any given Walking Dead star on another series is usually an ominous portent of things to come, as we expected of Corey Hawkins after joining FOX’s 24: Legacy. Season 7 surprisingly took a different route with Heath’s fate, for which the actor claims AMC and FOX are negotiating a return appearance in the future.

You’re warned of full spoilers through the current season of The Walking Dead Season 7, but the year’s ante-penultimate episode finally caught us up with Heath and Tara on their supply mission, after the series dispatched the two late in Season 6 (Hawkins to film 24: Legacy, Alanna Masterson for her pregnancy). “Swear” unsurprisingly threatened both Heath and Tara at various points of their separation, though the former’s fate was left curiously open, as Tara only found their RV missing, with a card reading “PPP” in the dirt.

Obviously, The Walking Dead wouldn’t commit to killing off Heath outright (the comic character remains alive some 50 issues past the current story) but will the thirteen-episode 24: Legacy keep Hawkins off AMC indefinitely? As the actor tells Yahoo, they’re currently attempting to figure that out:

Listen, [TWD showrunner] Scott Gimple is a genius and master in how he’s been able to continue to craft the show. We’ve been in conversations about it. We all joke about how there’s like a red (laser) dot that appears … like somehow, someone’s lurking in the closet, and as soon as you open your mouth about The Walking Dead, it’s like, ‘Uh oh,’ you know? I’ll just say that we’ve been in conversation about it, and how we could make this work. My obvious priority right now is Eric Carter.

Both 24: Legacy and Walking Dead shoot in Atlanta, at least keeping alive the possibility of a return appearance, and it’s also worth noting that Season 7 has already wrapped production. Whether the remaining eight episodes include Heath’s return (maybe he, or his new friends got some swanky boots?) remains to be seen, but Season 7B already has a great deal of reunions on its plate.

The Walking Dead will finally “Rise Up” in its February 12 premiere, but will an update on Heath’s fate come with it?

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