The Walking Dead had a cast of hundreds… but that’s because so many of them didn’t make it out alive.

In a world where walkers you’re their next meal, you need an army of people alongside you to survive and find some kind of peace in your colonies.

And sometimes humans are even more cruel than the walking dead you’re keeping out – as this cast of characters know all too well.

As a result, no one appeared in every episode, and only 10 characters made it past 100 of the 177 episodes in the main show, and while some shuffled off into spin-offs, others met their maker in brutal and gruesome ways.

As you head into the series, here’s some of the main people you’ll need to know.

Played By: Andrew Lincoln (Love Actually, Afterlife)

The leading man of the series, we’re introduced to Rick Grimes after he wakes up in hospital after time in a coma, after being shot in the line of duty as a sheriff's deputy.

Once he wakes up, he goes on a mission to track down wife Lori and son, Carl. Soon, his leadership instincts take over and he begins to take charge among the rest of the survivors group, ruling with kindness and humility, even if sometimes blinkered by his own code of morals that don’t often match the situation at hand.

Played By: Norman Reedus (The Boondock Saints, The Bikeriders)

Fighting for survival alongside his brother, Merle, Daryl is often quite quiet and reclusive in his nature, not easy to trust but knowing he needs people to survive.

He has been trained in survival methods for years, he is aggressive, strong and resilient in the face of protecting the rest of the survivors.

Once you’re on his good side, he is fiercely loyal.

Played By: Melissa McBride (The Mist, Living Proof)

Carol is a woman who considers intelligence a weapon, and is constantly learning from those around her to be more adept at weaponry and medical care in order to make herself useful.

After losing her daughter as a result of the apocalypse, her motherly instinct has never gone away, and she often takes younger survivors under her wing.

Over time, she becomes a close confidante of Daryl Dixon, with the two learning to rely on each other.

Played By: Lauren Cohan (The Boy, Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice)

Caring and intelligent, Maggie has leadership qualities that come naturally to her, though she’s also willing to play whatever role is needed within the group.

Initially sympathetic towards walkers, she has become hardened through experience and realizes she now has to fight for her survival by any means necessary.

Played By: Christian Serratos (The Twilight Saga, Selena: The TV Series)

Naturally feisty and brave, Rosita joins survivors Abraham and Eugene on their way to Washington DC, before they ultimately settle in Alexandria.

She can also be extremely vengeful, with a laser-focus on avenging those that have wronged her, or on behalf of who she’s lost.

She functions best when she’s part of a group, and struggles more when she’s on her own.

Played By: Josh McDermitt (Creepshow, Suits: LA)

Eugene is not well-equipped when it comes to fighting for his life, often coming across as a coward in the face of walkers, not good at communication, and lacking a lot of social skills.

However, what he lacks in combat skills, he makes up for in intelligence, making himself useful to whatever group he finds himself associated with - often turning junk into useful things to help the day-to-day lives of survivors.

Played By: Danai Gurira (Black Panther, All Eyez on Me)

Suffering the loss of her boyfriend and son, Michonne became a lone wolf and a fierce sword fighter. However, once she finds Rick and the survivors, she becomes a core member of the group both in leadership and as a friend.

She is someone who trusts her gut above all else, and it has often saved her from going down the wrong path.

Played By: Seth Gilliam (The Wire, Teen Wolf)

A former priest at St Sarah's Church, Father Gabriel maintains his faith even as the outbreak signaled the end of humanity as he knows it.

He is traumatized from barricading himself in his church from a horde of walkers, allowing his congregation looking for sanctuary to be mauled outside.

As a result, he is searching for some kind of repentance when he first meets the survivors, but struggles to trust them, or be useful to the team as a pacifist with no fighting skills.

Played By: Ross Marquand (Impress Me, X-Men ‘97)

Aaron is the type of person who isn’t afraid to throw himself in the line of fire to help others.

Previously a politician in Washington before the outbreak, he was transported to the Alexandria safe zone alongside a group of others, and was put in charge of bringing others into the fold.

He finds Rick Grimes and the rest of his survivors, and becomes a reliable ally.

Played By: Chandler Riggs (A Million Little Things, Break Up Season)

The son of Rick and Lori Grimes, Carl starts the series as a shy and timid boy who doesn’t speak to many people.

However, he is kind-hearted and, despite his initial fears of the world around him, soon learns to adapt to the new life among the group of survivors.

Over time, this involves him taking a more active role in the group.

Played By: Jeffrey Dean Morgan (Supernatural, Watchmen)

The leader of The Saviors, Negan is absolutely brutal with his iron-fist rule.

Speaking with a southern charm and a disarming persona, that only makes his violent acts more terrifying when he does turn violent.

His weapon of choice is a baseball bat wrapped with barbed wire.

Played By: Lennie James (Genius, Save Me)

Morgan was once a family man living a peaceful life, but the outbreak has caused him to break down over the trauma he’s suffered.

His mental health is a constant battle for him, showing clear signs of PTSD and depression.

Despite this, he is a good fighter, using a wooden staff as his weapon of choice.

Part of the group, Morgan can be reckless – the more he lashes out, the more it costs him.

Eventually, Morgan went on to front the spin-off series, Fear The Walking Dead.

Played By: Khary Payton (Teen Titans Go!, Young Justice)

Ezekiel may be theatrical in his nature – hence the pet tiger – but is quite the leader.

Kind-hearted, his bravado is often for show, and it doesn’t take long for people who get to know him to realize that.

But to those outside his circle, he uses his wild nature to appear more menacing to potential outsiders who threaten his people.

Played By: Steven Yeun (Nope, Beef)

Glenn is one of the most liked members of the group. Loyal and resourceful, he has earned the role of supplies runner for the survivors as he can be trusted to think on his feet and improvise when things go wrong.

He goes through life with a spring in his step, despite the world he finds himself in, and leads with compassion.

Over time, he develops a romantic attachment to Maggie.

Played By: Jon Bernthal (The Punisher, We Own This City)

Shane is Rick’s childhood friend, and they’ve done everything together – even partners at work on the police force. Shane is also close to Rick’s family and, when he fell into a coma, Shane looked after Rick’s wife and son, Lori and Carl.

Eventually, Shane and Lori’s relationship turned sexual as they found a group of Atlanta Survivors, of which he became the leader.

So when Rick arrived at the group and took over from his position, he took the hit hard.

Shane is a good leader and with important skills and knowledge to bestow upon the group, but his feelings threaten to cloud his judgment.

Played By: Samantha Morton (The Serpent Queen, The Burning Girls)

Alpha, real name Dee, is the leader of a group known as The Whisperers, who are defined by their human flesh masks they use to blend in with the walkers.

She proves to be a formidable foe against our group of survivors, and a terrifying force against anyone in her group who steps out of line.

At one point, she even killed her own husband.

Thriving in a position of power, she considers our groups of survivors a threat, and so needs to make sure they bow to her authority, or face the consequences.

Played By: Michael Rooker (Guardians Of The Galaxy, Fast X)

It’s hard to like Merle Dixon. He’s rude, violent, racist, a misogynist, and has a fuse so short he could burst into a violent rage at any given moment.

But his sense of humor and matter-of-fact nature at times seem to win people over.

He toys with people’s emotions and is deadly with firearms, learning to track and hunt like his brother, Daryl.

Fearless, he even cut off his own right hand and later used an attachment blade in its place.

His brute force is an asset to the team – and he proves to be a saving grace on more than one occasion.