Posted Wednesday, April 25, 2018 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog

Lauren Cohan, who has played Maggie since season two, will return for the first half of ninth season of "The Walking Dead," Deadline.com reports.

Cohan had been cast for an ABC action-dramedy pilot "Whiskey Cavalier." It may or may not be picked up. Even if it is, production won't start until summer time and she will be able to shoot "The Walking Dead." Deadline says she committed to six of the first eight.

"I'm going back," she told EW at CinemaCon where she was promoting her upcoming movie "Mile 22" with Mark Wahlberg. "There's a lot more Maggie story to tell."

If "Whiskey Cavalier" goes into full production, her ability to shoot the second half of "The Walking Dead" would be far more complicated.

Her character Maggie has taken on a leadership role at the Hilltop. Pregnant with Glenn's child, she wanted Negan dead but did not approve of Rick's decision to keep him alive.

Cohan sought a major raise for season nine but reached an impasse with production, which led to her being cast on "Whiskey Cavalier."

Season nine filming for "The Walking Dead" begins next week in Senoia.