What happened to Corey Hawkins in The Walking Dead?
One minute he was there. The next, he was gone. Literally.
If you were watching The Walking Dead back in 2016, you probably remember the confusing exit of Heath, played by Corey Hawkins. It happened in the Season 7 episode "Swear." Heath and Tara were out on a long-range supply run when things went sideways on a bridge covered in sand and walkers. Tara fell off the side, and when she eventually made it back to the spot where they got separated, Heath was just... gone. No body. No tracks. Just a broken pair of glasses and a mysterious keycard with "PPP" scrawled on it.
Fans waited. We waited for seasons. We expected a payoff that never really made it to the main screen. Honestly, it’s one of the weirdest "disappearances" in TV history because it wasn't a death; it was a vanishing act that stayed unresolved for nearly a decade.
The real reason Corey Hawkins left the show
It wasn't drama. It wasn't a "creative differences" blowout. Corey Hawkins was just becoming a massive star.
Right as his character was gaining traction in Alexandria, Hawkins landed the lead role in 24: Legacy. He also had a huge breakout moment playing Dr. Dre in Straight Outta Compton. When Hollywood calls for lead roles in major franchises and Oscar-contending biopics, you don't stay as the fifth or sixth lead on an ensemble zombie show. Showrunner at the time, Scott Gimple, and later Angela Kang, both confirmed that they wanted to keep him, but the schedule just didn't work.
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They left the door open. They didn't kill Heath because they hoped he’d come back for a guest spot. But then Kong: Skull Island happened. Then In the Heights. Then a Tony nomination for Topdog/Underdog. Basically, Corey Hawkins became too "big" for a return to the bridge.
The CRM connection: Solving the Heath mystery
Even though we never saw him again on the flagship show, we actually do know what happened to him. It's just buried in Easter eggs and off-screen interviews.
Angela Kang eventually confirmed that Heath was taken by Jadis (Anne) and the Scavengers. If you look closely at the junkyard in later episodes, you can actually see the RV that Heath and Tara were driving. Jadis was "trading" people to the Civic Republic Military (CRM) in exchange for supplies.
- Heath was a "B": In the CRM's weird classification system, people were labeled "A" or "B."
- The Trade: Jadis traded Heath to the helicopter people long before she ever traded Rick Grimes.
- The Fate: This means Heath likely ended up in the Civic Republic, possibly as a laborer or a citizen, though we haven't seen his face in any of the spin-offs like The Ones Who Live or World Beyond.
It’s a bit frustrating. You've got this major comic book character who just becomes a footnote in a massive conspiracy.
Why the PPP card still haunts fans
That "PPP" card Tara found? It’s the ultimate "what if."
For years, fans theorized it was a secret code for a new group. Some thought it stood for a specific power plant. In reality, it seems to have been a plot thread that the writers just couldn't pull on once Hawkins' schedule stayed booked. While Tales of the Walking Dead briefly showed another PPP card in a different episode, it didn't give us the closure we wanted regarding Heath.
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Honestly, at this point in 2026, it feels like the window has closed. The CRM story arc largely wrapped up with Rick and Michonne’s return. If Heath was going to show up, it probably should have happened then.
Where is Corey Hawkins now?
If you're missing Heath, you can find Corey Hawkins basically everywhere else. He’s moved into a different league of acting. Recently, he’s been gaining massive praise for The Piano Lesson and is slated for high-profile projects like Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey.
He didn't need the apocalypse.
The most likely scenario? Heath is still out there in the rebuilt world, living a quiet life in one of the safe zones, or he's a casualty of the CRM's old experiments that we'll never hear about. It’s a rare instance where the actor’s success actually "killed" the character’s chances of a resolution.
What to watch instead for closure
If you are still looking for answers about the group that took Heath, your best bet is to watch:
- The Walking Dead: World Beyond (Season 2): This gives the most depth into how the CRM "processing" works.
- The Ones Who Live: This shows the final fate of the organization that kidnapped him.
- Corey Hawkins' Filmography: If you just like the actor, go watch The Color Purple (2023) or The Last Voyage of the Demeter.
Heath's story is a reminder that in a world of walkers, sometimes people don't die—they just move on to better contracts.