The Walking Dead season 9: This is when Andrew Lincoln will leave as Rick Grimes

It's time to prepare your goodbyes

AMC has confirmed when Andrew Lincoln will leave The Walking Dead – and it’s sooner than expected.

Following the airing of standout season nine episode “Warning Signs,” the show’s official Twitter page posted: “After this week Rick Grimes has TWO EPISODES LEFT. You don’t want to miss a second of it.”

The news comes after the synopses for every episode ahead of the mid-season finale were released, bar the sixth hinting that could be the last we see of Grimes. Going by the above, Lincoln’s final scenes will air in the fifth episode, titled “What Comes After.”

The synopsis for the episode reads: “Rick is forced to face the past as he struggles to maintain the safety of the communities and protect the future he and Carl envisioned.”

It seems the events of Rick’s expected departure episode will change everything. The synopsis for the season’s seventh episode reads: “Carol seeks out an old friend living alone in a wilderness teeming with walkers; survivors make the perilous trek to a new home.”

The mid-season finale’s synopsis reads: “A small rescue mission braves a dangerous herd in their hunt for a missing comrade, only to discover a surprising threat that could doom them all.” The episode is titled “Evolution.”

Critics are hailing the current season of The Walking Dead as its best in years. Lincoln’s departure paves the way for Daryl star Norman Reedus to take over as the show’s lead making him one of the highest-paid actors on television.

The Walking Dead continues in the US on AMC every Sunday with the simulcast airing in the UK at 2am. The episode is also available to watch on NOW TV ahead of its repeat on FOX at 9pm the following evening