10 Actors Who Begged For Their TV Characters To Die

9. Jeffrey DeMunn - The Walking Dead

Why He Wanted To Die

Actor Jeffrey DeMunn, who played fan favourite character Dale Horvath on The Walking Dead, has been a regular collaborator with its first season showrunner Frank Darabont, appearing in his films The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile, The Majestic and The Mist.

Despite a hugely successful first season, Darabont argued with AMC over the second season's episode order and budget, eventually prompting him to walk and file a still-ongoing lawsuit.

With Darabont's departure, DeMunn also decided to quit. He said, "Dale's death was my decision...I was furious about how Frank was pushed out of the show. I spent a week not being able to take a full breath. And then I realised, 'Oh, I can quit.' So I called them and said, 'It's a zombie show. Kill me. I don't want to do this anymore.' It was an immense relief to me."

How It Happened

Dale is killed mid-way through the second season, being ripped apart by a walker and then eventually put out of his misery with a bullet to the head by Daryl (Norman Reedus).

The death proved especially shocking to fans of The Walking Dead comic, where Dale survives much longer, and set an early precedent that the show wouldn't be strictly adhering to the plot-lines and fates in the source material.

Still, Dale clearly deserved a longer tenure than this, and it's all down to AMC giving Frank Darabont the run-around. Shame.