After a number of Instagram posts popped up online showing him with co-stars Andrew Lincoln and Norman Reedus near the set, it has now been confirmed that Jon Bernthal is set to return as Shane Walsh in the upcoming ninth season of The Walking Dead.
Bernthal starred as Shane in the first two seasons of AMC’s zombie drama, but was killed by his former best pal Rick Grimes (Lincoln) in the season two finale, with Carl (Chandler Riggs) then putting a zombified Shane out of his misery with a bullet to the head. He was last seen in a brief cameo in season three as part of a hallucination by Rick during the group’s attack on Woodbury.
Entertainment Weekly reports that Bernthal is set to guest star in a single episode, which will presumably tie in to the upcoming departure of Andrew Lincoln, who – along with Lauren Cohan – is set to leave the show in its ninth season and will appear in just six episodes.
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The Walking Dead season 9 will get underway later this year, with the first trailer expected to arrive during next month’s San Diego Comic-Con International.