Andrew Lincoln says he left Walking Dead to spend more time at 'home'

Andrew Lincoln says it was time to come home. The 44-year-old actor told Entertainment Weekly on Monday that he decided to leave the AMC hit to spend time with Arthur and Matilda, his kids with wife Gael Anderson.

Andrew Lincoln says it was time to come home.

The 44-year-old actor told Entertainment Weekly on Monday that he decided to leave the AMC hit to spend time with Arthur and Matilda, his kids with wife Gael Anderson.

The London native, who is set to cease playing Rick Grimes after the program's ninth season, explained that he wants to spend more time at his home in England, as the show is filmed in Georgia. 

Explanation: Andrew Lincoln, 44, told Entertainment Weekly on Monday that he decided to leave The Walking Dead to spend time with his kids Arthur and Matilda 

Explanation: Andrew Lincoln, 44, told Entertainment Weekly on Monday that he decided to leave The Walking Dead to spend time with his kids Arthur and Matilda 

'I have two young children, and I live in a different country and they become less portable as they get older,' Lincoln told the publication. 'It was that simple. It was time for me to come home.'

He said that 'completing the show was like releasing air finally,' and that 'it was very satisfying the last two episodes in particular.'

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Lincoln, who has been on the show since its 2010 debut, opened up about the emotional experience of attending San Diego Comic-Con amid his pending exodus from the series.

'Doing a panel and having to talk to people in Hall H and then have all my friends hug me at the end?' he said. 'The s*** got real, is the truth of the matter.'

Rock on: The actor was at the SiriusXM booth at San Diego Comic-Con earlier this month

Rock on: The actor was at the SiriusXM booth at San Diego Comic-Con earlier this month

Stalwart: Lincoln has played Rick Grimes on the show since its 2010 debut 

Stalwart: Lincoln has played Rick Grimes on the show since its 2010 debut 

Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Norman Reedus opened up to Variety earlier this month about the leadership Grimes brought to the program, with Reedus calling him the quarterback of the ensemble cast.

Reedus, who plays Daryl Dixon on the show, described the dedication Lincoln applies to his day-in and day-out dealings on the show.

'He's the first call I get when I wake up. He calls me, we talk about the day as we're driving to work, we get to work, talk about the day, at lunch he's in my trailer, and then we wrap and he calls me on the way home,' Reedus told the outlet. 'It's been like that every day.'

Morgan said, 'Andy has always been the guy, and the show is going to miss him, we're going to miss him. It's going to be a different vibe, there's no replacing him.'

The Walking Dead's ninth season debuts on AMC October 7. 

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