The Walking Dead showrunner Scott M. Gimple remains optimistic about Lauren Cohan returning as Maggie for Season 9.

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THR reports Cohan, who's been on the hit series since the second season, has been locked in contract renegotiation with AMC for months. The actress recently signed on to star in the ABC action drama pilot Whiskey Cavalier as the female lead, and currently does not have a contract to return for Season 9.However, Gimple is still confident an agreement could be reached to have Cohan remain on the show. "We're talking; I'm pretty positive," Gimple said. "We're figuring it out. The timing could work well, so all good."The showrunner also noted just how common these contract renegotiations, adding, "We've had people do other shows and other gigantic movies that take America by storm. We're figuring it out with each other and trying to let people be able to do other things and stick around. I shan't even entertain the thought."It remains to be seen if Cohan will indeed return as Maggie, as sources tell THR AMC and Cohan are far from coming to an agreement.In the meantime, read IGN's review of Season 8's midseason premiere, "Honor," which we think is "an effectively sad, but overlong, episode." Also be sure to check out our ranking of The Walking Dead characters by how much we care

Alex Gilyadov is a freelance writer for IGN. Be sure to check out his YouTube channel and follow him on Twitter