Will Juan Gabriel Pareja, Morales from Season 1, Return to The Walking Dead?

Not many characters from the original cast of Season 1 of The Walking Dead are still alive today. Jacqui decided to “opt out”, Amy met the true death while heading to the shitter, poor Dale got his innards ripped out, and Andrea…well, don’t even get me started about Andrea.

But one of the biggest mysteries of the entire show – possibly a bigger mystery than what actually caused the zombie apocalypse – was when Morales (played by actor, Juan Gabriel Pareja) decided to abandon the original Atlanta survivors near the end of the Season 1. Instead of going to the CDC, Morales and his wife decided they would be better off heading to Birmingham, Alabama to find some of their family members who lived there. After that, we never heard from the Morales family again. And honestly, it felt a bit strange to viewers that a large portion of the cast would just be cut out of the series all together for no apparent reason.

In July and October, Pareja took to Twitter to post a few interesting tweets that set the Walking Dead fan-base on fire. The first tweet features a badly bruised and beaten “Morales” donning his typical Walking Dead attire – a wife-beater and collared dress shirt, similar to what he wore in Season 1 of The Walking Dead.

Look ma, I got a shiner! #setlife pic.twitter.com/dIIqS0yWOU

— Juan G. Pareja (@JuanGPareja) July 10, 2014

The second tweet is even more convincing; featuring Pareja in a photo similar to those released of actual cast members as promo shots and portraits for previous seasons. The photo also features a rather provocative statement at the bottom: “Not Dead.”

Excited to see the #WalkingDead family again & all the fans @WalkerStalkerCon this weekend! #MoralesLIVES pic.twitter.com/XpJb0NtONP

— Juan G. Pareja (@JuanGPareja) October 14, 2014

There is the definite possibility that these two photos are completely unrelated. The second photo seems like it was more promotional, as it was posted prior to Pareja’s appearance at a big Walking Dead-related convention. However, with the return of Morgan and Sam in the Season 5 premiere, as well as Scott Gimple’s affinity for tying up loose ends, is it possible that we will see Morales return in some capacity during Season 5?

What’s more intriguing is the fact that the text used at the bottom of the second photo greatly resembles the logo and font used in Telltale’s The Walking Dead video game series. Is it possible that the Morales family might make an appearance in an upcoming episode of the critically acclaimed video game?

We’re interested to hear your thoughts, so be sure to sound off in the comments section below.

• Author
• Recent Posts

Sebastian C.

Sebastian is the lead host of The Walking Dead Enthusiasts Podcast. In his spare time, you can find him watching trashy reality television like Survivor and Big Brother.

Latest posts by Sebastian C. (see all)

• When does The Walking Dead return? The Walking Dead Season 10, Episode 9 Release Date - January 19, 2020
• 1006 & 1007 – Bonds & Open Your Eyes – The Walking Dead Podcast - November 27, 2019
• 1005 – What It Always Is – The Walking Dead Podcast - November 15, 2019