Tyreese
Tyreese is a fictional character from the comic book series The Walking Dead and was portrayed by Chad Coleman in the American television series of the same name. He is a prominent character in both mediums, acting as group leader Rick Grimes' right hand man in the comic book series, up until the end of "Made to Suffer".
Introduced in The Walking Dead #7, Tyreese is a strong-willed and devoted father and protective leader of his fellow survivors. He is often conflicted with Rick in his leadership and stability, but nevertheless remains loyal to him. A role model to his fellow survivors, particularly Rick's son, Carl, Tyreese is a strong and able-bodied fighter who favors a hammer to firearms in both mediums. Despite this, Tyreese is shown to suffer from emotional fragility, especially after the death of his daughter. He strongly rejects the nature of suicide, and remains unsympathetic to those who commit it. His death leaves a significant mark on the survivors, particularly his girlfriend, Michonne.
In the television series, Tyreese is the leader of a group which was once composed of 25 survivors. He travels from Jacksonville, Florida to Georgia in search of a safe haven after losing many of his group members. Unlike his comic series counterpart, Tyreese is not a father, but acts as the primary caretaker of Rick and Lori Grimes's daughter, Judith, in Rick's absence. He shares a close sibling bond with his younger sister, Sasha. In the fourth season, Tyreese faces many difficult decisions and obstacles, such as the mysterious murder of his sick girlfriend Karen and the deaths of Lizzie and Mika Samuels, whom he had protected. Tyreese cannot bring himself to kill another human being, even an undead one. A featurette for the fifth season Blu-ray and DVD, as well as the action figure releases of the character, reveal his full name to be "Tyreese Williams." He was initially a recurring character in the third season until he was promoted to series regular for the fourth and fifth seasons. Chad Coleman's performance has been praised by critics.
Appearances
Character biography
In the comics, Tyreese is described as having failed his brief stint in the NFL as a linebacker for the Atlanta Falcons. Throughout the following years he went through a variety of unsatisfying jobs, such as a bouncer and, up until the outbreak, a car salesman. He was a divorcé with a teenage daughter named Julie, over whom he had always remained fiercely protective. His relationship with Julie, however, was often strained because of the tension between him and Julie's boyfriend Chris.In the television series, Tyreese is introduced as being from Jacksonville, Florida, along with his sister, Sasha. He and Sasha hid in a neighbor's underground bunker as the outbreak occurred for seven months. Upon leaving the bunker and heading out on their own, they came across another group of survivors. Their camp was eventually overrun and the group gradually became smaller until it narrowed down to him, Sasha, and a family of three surviving out in the woods.
Comic book series
Tyreese, Julie, and Chris meet up with Rick's group on the highway as winter begins to approach. He quickly becomes an essential asset to the group, providing them with muscle, as well as leadership qualities, which earned Rick's trust in him. Within a matter of days, he and Carol engaged in a subtle romantic relationship, with him often acting as her emotional and physical protector. He continually struggled putting up with Julie and Chris's sexual antics, and failed with his attempt to establish ground rules for the two of them. Shortly following their arrival at Wiltshire Estates, his relationship with Carol escalated and resulted in the two of them having sex.After fleeing Wiltshire and settling into an abandoned prison, Tyreese had the misfortune of discovering the outcome of a suicide pact between Chris and Julie, that resulted in Julie being shot dead and Chris remaining alive. In a fit of hysterics, Tyreese strangled the boy to death and mutilated his corpse. Surprisingly, he got over what had transpired rather quickly, much to Rick's confusion and concern. The two continued to have a strong relationship, with Tyreese often giving Rick guidance and assisting him with various physical things. Upon the arrival of Michonne, Tyreese found himself seduced by her in the gym, and initially attempted to keep it hidden from Carol, unbeknownst to the fact that Carol had witnessed the event happen first-hand. After a few woeful attempts to compete with Michonne, Carol ended their relationship and forced him to move to another cell block, where he continued to see Michonne, albeit in vain because of his regret over losing Carol. Carol ultimately attempted to commit suicide by slashing her wrists which, soon after, led to a violent altercation between him and Rick. This event marked the point where their close friendship was severed.
When the rest of the group decided Rick was unfit to lead following the fight, Tyreese was later made part of the decision committee, along with Hershel and Dale. His relationship with Rick continued to be strained; however, the two still managed to cooperate and work with each other at various times.
As the group prepared for war against Woodbury, Tyreese led a handful of people to a nearby National Guard station where Woodbury retrieved many of its supplies. They were nearly ambushed by The Governor's men. Tyreese was devastated upon witnessing Carol kill herself in front of the group; however, his grief quickly turned to anger because of how he saw suicide as a pathetic act. Nevertheless, her death drove him deeper into the arms of Michonne. During the attack on the prison, he and Michonne attempted guerilla warfare, only to be ambushed in their attempt and Tyreese captured and taken as a hostage. The Governor planned to use him as leverage so as to gain access into the prison; however, when this fails, as Tyreese begs the group not to listen to the Governor's demands, Tyreese is slowly and brutally decapitated in front of the group. In the aftermath of the assault, Michonne kills his re-animated head.
His role as a strong defender of the group and generally righteous man had a lasting impression on the survivors of the assault. Michonne sadly refers back to Tyreese when confiding in Rick about her loneliness, signifying he had more a lasting emotional impact upon the detached Michonne than she had previously led her fellow survivors to believe. She briefly tried to have a one night stand with Heath to move on from this but he turned her down, having been told about Tyreese from Glenn earlier and tries to encourage her to face her demons rather than ignore them. Glenn recalled the story of his miraculous survival in the prison gym to several Alexandria citizens at the group's welcome party, all of whom were stunned and in awe upon hearing this.
Television series
Season 3
In the episode "Made to Suffer", Tyreese and his group discover the prison and proceed to sneak in, through the exposed back side of one of the buildings. They are no sooner locked in a cell block by Carl, while Rick and others are away at Woodbury. Donna, having been bit in the woods, succumbs to her infection and dies, and Tyreese takes it upon himself to prevent reanimation by destroying her skull with his hammer. In the episode "The Suicide King", while in the process of burying Donna outside, Allen proposes ambushing the group and taking over, however Tyreese refutes the idea, acknowledging that despite the circumstances, they're 'good' people. Once Rick arrives back, his mental instability forces Tyreese and his group to clear out.They stay nearby the prison in the woods and are eventually discovered in the episode "I Ain't a Judas", by Andrea and Milton, the latter of whom takes them to Woodbury. The Governor welcomes them with open arms, once they agree to provide a layout of the prison. In the episode "Prey", they are shown to have settled into the town, all four of them taking on active roles within the community. Tyreese and Sasha serve as the community's primary wall-guards. While they are on watch, Andrea reveals to them that the Governor has done terrible things and is planning worse, before she escapes over the wall. Tyreese is later taken to the Biter Pits to help collect captive walkers, and gets into a fight with Allen. He later asks the Governor why he keeps the walkers, but the Governor assures him that they are used only as a scare tactic.
In the episode "Welcome to the Tombs", Allen is recruited as part of The Governor's army for the war against Rick's group. The Governor attempts to recruit Tyreese and Sasha as well, however they want no involvement in the bloodshed and opt to stay behind with the children while the rest of the able-bodied go off to fight. Allen, as well as most other Woodbury citizens who went off to fight, are gunned down by The Governor after their raid fails. The lone survivor of the massacre, Karen, guides Rick's group to Woodbury, where Tyreese is keeping watch. He lets them all in, guides them to a room where they find Andrea bitten, and stands vigil outside the door while Andrea shoots herself. Awakened to The Governor's maliciousness and concerned for everyone's well-being, he and Rick agree on moving everyone to the prison.
Season 4
In the season premiere "30 Days Without an Accident", Tyreese is shown to have adapted to life in the prison and begins a romantic relationship with Karen. He goes with others on a supply run that turns deadly for a young man named Zach; upon returning to the prison he spends the night with Karen. In the episode "Infected", a mysterious, deadly illness spreads through the prison. After he learns that Karen and David—another survivor—are sick, they are both quarantined by the prison's council. Sometime soon afterward, while attempting to visit her, Tyreese finds that both she and David have been dragged outside, murdered and set afire as a means of disposal. In the episode "Isolation", when Rick and Daryl attempt to calm him, he turns violent and begins to attack them. During this, Rick flies into a rage and badly beats Tyreese before Daryl pulls him off. After recovering, Tyreese finds out his sister Sasha is also sick and goes with Daryl, Michonne and Bob to find medicine. In the episode "Indifference", they get the supplies and return to the prison to treat the surviving patients. In the mid-season finale "Too Far Gone", Tyrese discovers a dissected rabbit in the tombs and tells Rick and Daryl he thinks it was the same person who killed Karen, but when they try to tell Tyreese who really killed Karen, they are interrupted as The Governor attacks the prison. Tyreese takes part in the fight with The Governor's group and he is cornered by two of the Governor's soldiers, but both are killed by Lizzie and Mika Samuels. The children then run towards the prison, with Tyreese following them, telling them to go the other way.In the episode "Inmates", following the attack on the prison, Tyreese is split into a group with Lizzie, Mika and Judith where they are soon joined by Carol, who doesn't mention anything about her exile from the group by Rick. They follow a set of train tracks where they discover a sign indicating that a place called Terminus promises sanctuary and community. In the episode "The Grove", the group takes a break from following the train tracks to Terminus, and find a house in the middle of a pecan grove. Carol and Tyreese later return from a hunting trip to find that Lizzie had killed Mika and was about to kill Judith, thinking that everyone would understand that Mika was just a changed person after reanimating as a walker. Viewing Lizzie as too dangerous to be around other people, Carol and Tyreese discuss Lizzie's fate, and Carol is forced to shoot Lizzie in the head. Afterward, Tyreese learns that Carol was responsible for killing both Karen and David. She slides a.38 Colt Detective Special revolver across the table, telling Tyreese to do what he has to do. Tyreese refuses to kill her, saying that he forgives her, but he can't forget what she's done because it has now become a part of who she is. Tyreese, Judith and Carol leave the pecan grove and resume following the train tracks.