From burning the sick to switching sides and even romantic rendezvous, The Walking Dead is full of betrayals of all kinds. They happen between people who are sworn enemies, those who were once friends, and some who were even supposed to be friends at the time the betrayal happened.
Some betrayals, fans could see coming from a mile away. But others were totally shocking, leaving viewers in awe that they were really seeing what they were seeing on screen.
Updated on November 13th, 2022 by Christine Persaud: With only a few episodes left until The Walking Dead officially ends its 11-season run, fans are excited to see how the story ends. As the main group faces challenge after challenge, each testing their loyalty to one another, betrayals continue. In some cases, the betrayals are actually good ones that are in the best interests of fan-favorite characters. But they are always shocking and exciting.
Carol Burning Sick Friends, Rick Banishing Her
Carol has, for the most part, been a fan-favorite character. But there's no denying she has done some deplorable things, even if they were often impossible decisions and done in the best interests of her group.
One of the saddest things about Carol was when she took two sick of her camp out into the courtyard where the group was staying and burned their bodies to prevent them from potentially infecting others. It was a smart decision but also one that saw Carol betray her friends, especially Tyreese who had a spark with Karen. The betrayal was two-fold, however, as it then led to Rick betraying his long-time friend by exiling her for what she had done.
Lori And Shane's Relationship
It begs an interesting question: Lori, believing her husband to be dead, began a relationship with his best friend and partner Shane. Not that much time had ed and fans were left wondering if Lori had been attracted to Shane all along and vice versa.
Emotions may have been running high due to the situation they were in. Nonetheless, fans saw it as a massive betrayal that Lori took up so quickly with another man, in the middle of an apocalypse, before she could have possibly had time to mourn the presumed death of her husband. Lori was one of the The Walking Dead, and while her death was the catalyst for his fury, that wasn't necessarily a good thing.
Abraham Ditching Rosita For Sasha
While Abraham and Rosita's relationship seemed a casual one of convenience, they had definitely grown to care deeply for one another. So much so that Rosita was very hurt when she discovered not only that Abraham had feelings for Sasha but that he had begun to act on them. He hadn't bothered to break things off with her beforehand, even if their relationship was never really defined.
While Abraham and Sasha's romance was only just beginning, Abraham should have given Rosita the courtesy of discussing it with her that he was no longer interested in continuing their trysts. It was one of few romantic betrayals on the show, cut even deeper when, in Abraham's final living moments, he looked to Sasha to say a sort of goodbye.
The Governor Leaving Andrea To Die
Andrea at first thought she was doing something good for the group by partnering up with the Governor, beginning a romantic relationship with him in hopes of also finding a better life for herself and potentially becoming the female leader by his side.
While she should have expected that she would not be able to change him, the Governor not only betrayed Andrea by tossing her aside but even left her in a room, tied and bound with a stabbed Milton. He knew Milton would eventually die, turn, and attack the defenseless woman. The Governor felt he was the one who was betrayed in the scenario, and Andrea not seeing who he truly was is part of what made her one of The Walking Dead characters who got worse as the show went on.
Shane Attempts To Kill Rick
Tensions were running high between Rick and Shane right from the beginning, fueled by the fact that Shane had been having intimate relations with Lori and that she was pregnant, most likely with his child.
But it all came to a head when it was clear their leadership styles would not align and there was conflict about who should lead the group. But in the most shocking betrayal, Shane felt the only answer was to kill his former best friend. Rick was, of course, one step ahead and killed Shane first. It was a pivotal moment in the show when Carl shot the reanimated Shane and others finally learned that everyone turns.
Nicholas And Glenn On The Dumpster
It was an episode that had viewers talking as they analyzed every detail and wondered if fan-favorite character Glenn was really dead. After first abandoning Noah, leaving him to die in one of the most gruesome deaths on The Walking Dead, Nicholas then almost killed Glenn.
After the two became trapped on top of a dumpster, surrounded by walkers, Nicholas decided he wanted to give up and shot himself in the head, causing his body weight to fall forward on top of Glenn and knock them both down to the ground.
Dwight Sides With Rick And Friends
Dwight was a good guy deep down and had one of Fear the Walking Dead. While he struggled with the heinous things he did under Negan's thumb, including killing Denise, he wanted to redeem himself by the end, and he did.
Dwight completely betrayed Negan and helped Rick and his group escape to safety, leaving Negan angered and upset that one of his closest allies would turn their back on him.
Eugene And The Saviors
Dwight wasn't the only one who betrayed Negan and the Saviors. Eugene was a loyal Savior for quite some time, responsible for helping them build weapons and come up with strategic plans to further their positions. Fans kept waiting and hoping that Eugene was playing a long game and just pretending. But the truth was that he felt appreciated and loved where he was. With that said, he was also constantly struggling with feelings of guilt because of it, and the realization that his old group never recognized his worth.
However, in the end, Eugene pulled off the ultimate betrayal by rigging the Saviors' guns that were supposed to take out Rick and the others, so they would backfire and kill his men instead. Eugene finally showed his true allegiance, and it saved everyone at that moment.
Gregory Makes A Deal With The Saviors
Gregory made a calculated decision to betray the residents of Alexandria who he had agreed to partner with against the Saviors and instead, get in bed with the enemy. He did this mainly for selfish reasons and because it was the easier way out. However, when his betrayal was discovered, he lost Hilltop, one of the strongest communities in The Walking Dead, and was killed at the hands of Maggie.
The betrayal led Gregory to not only lose his ers but also lose the respect of the Saviors, who realized that the people were firmly behind Maggie and the decisions she would make for them.
Jadis And Rick
Another betrayal that involved Negan, Rick thought he had forged a pretty tight partnership with Jadis and the Scavengers. But it turned out that Jadis was opportunistic and only interested in taking whatever the better deal was to serve her and her people. She didn't care about loyalty or betrayal and turned her back on Rick at the drop of a hat, as soon as Negan offered her something more than he was.
She not only captured Rick and stripped him of his clothes and dignity, but also introduced him to her ally Winslow who she covered in armor full of spikes for Rick to try and escape from.
Stephanie Tricking Eugene
All Eugene wanted for so long was to find a companion. So when he believed to have found someone who was on the same wavelength, both figuratively and literally via the radio, he was over the moon. Setting out to find Stephanie led him to the Commonwealth where he eventually met with the beautiful woman he believed to be his soulmate.
However, he later discovers she's actually an undercover agent named Shira who was playing him the whole time. While he later meets the real "Stephanie," who turns out to be Max, and they do become a couple, the heartbreak Eugene felt after discovering that he had been duped was one of the biggest betrayals both for the character and on the show.
Lance Hornsby Going Behind Pamela's Back
It was obvious that Pamela was very emotionally manipulative of Lance, who it was later revealed was the son of her former driver. She put him in a position of power only because she knew she could keep him under her thumb, and he would obey her at all costs. Or so she thought.
In one of the biggest twists of the final season, it was revealed that Lance was working behind Pamela's back, trying to create his own power by acquiring communities by any means necessary. His final ultimate betrayal was putting an end to her reanimated son Sebastian, and leaving his famous coin on the body to be sure she knew it was him. Despite realizing how she treated Lance, Pamela was visibly distraught and betrayed when she saw what he had done.
Mercer And The Commonwealth
Fans have loved Mercer since he was introduced. He's clearly a man in a great position of power in the Commonwealth who struggled with some truths about the community. Even so, he continued to do his job because he viewed it as simply a job. As he told Princess, Mercer didn't believe that he could make a difference anyway. And to him, the alternative for most residents living outside the walls would have been worse.
But following Eugene's inspiring speech, and seeing how Eugene's death would ruin his sister, he had a change of heart. In one of the most exciting lines of the show to date, and one of the few big F-bombs ever on the show, Mercer tells a shocked Eugene: "Time to f**k s**t up." Fans likely punched their hands in the air knowing that Mercer was finally on their side and ready to betray Pamela.
