Fear the Walking Dead fans are wondering who will be the first main character to be killed off in Season 5. Since Episode 7 aired, many believe it could be Alicia Clark, played by Alycia Debnam-Carey.
In Season 5, Episode 7, entitled Still Standing, which aired on Sunday, Alicia Clark got her face and mouth sprayed with radiation-contaminated walker blood.
The blood came from the walkers that had previously been exposed to radiation from the nuclear power plant meltdown.
We saw people die after inhaling toxic fumes from burning bodies that had previously been exposed to radiation, so fans have reasons to fear that getting radiation-contaminated blood in her face could prove fatal for Alicia.
Is Alycia Debnam-Carey leaving the show?
Most fans can’t believe that the show will kill off Alicia Clark after the loss of her other family members. Fans are therefore speculating that the showrunners are only using the situation with Alicia to heighten tension.
Showrunners Ian Goldberg and Andrew Chambliss weighed in on the question of Alicia’s death in an email interview with Entertainment Weekly. The show-runners affirmed that radiation-contaminated walker blood is lethal, as Grace made clear when she first met Alicia and Morgan.
But they hinted that she might not have experienced the same level of exposure as the other people who died. They also talked about Alicia’s willingness to put her own life at risk to protect the people she loves.
Many fans believe that Goldberg and Chambliss’ comment could be hinting that the widespread optimism that Alicia will survive the exposure to radiation-contaminated blood is misplaced, especially following the deaths of several primary characters, including Travis (Cliff Curtis), Madison (Kim Dickens) and Nick (Frank Dillane).
Some fans have compared Alicia’s role in the Fear the Walking Dead series to young Carl Grimes (Chandler Riggs), Rick and Lori’s son from The Walking Dead.
His shocking death in The Walking Dead Season 8, Episode 9, titled Honor, caused major upset and heartbreak, although the death of the character did not come unexpectedly.
However, since Alicia is the only surviving Clarke family member from the premiere, there is a concern that killing her off could make more fans who have an emotional attachment to the Clark family lose interest in the show and stop watching it altogether.
Fans hoping the character will survive have been scrutinizing the statement by the showrunners to Entertainment Weekly. Some fans speculate that one might need to actually swallow the blood to die, and that Alicia really didn’t swallow any poisonous walker blood.
Fear the Walking Dead airs on AMC Sundays at 9/8c