Georgia-born 'The Walking Dead' actor dead at 76

ATLANTA — Scott Wilson, the actor best known recently for playing Hershel on Georgia-filmed 'The Walking Dead,' has died, according to the series' official Twitter account. Wilson was 76.

Wilson played veterinarian Hershel Greene on the series from 2011 to 2014. Earlier Saturday, it was announced that Wilson would return for 'The Walking Dead's' 9th season, which premieres tomorrow.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that he died due to complications from leukemia.

Wilson was born in Thomasville, Georgia in 1942. He left for Hollywood in 1961 where he went on to become a prolific character actor with over 50 movie credits to his name. Some of his most notable roles were in "In The Heat of the Night," "The Great Gatsby," "Dead Man Walking," "Monster" and "In Cold Blood."

Wilson landed the part of Hershel while visiting his 97-year-old mother in Georgia. The series films all over Georgia, including in Senoia, the site of Hershel's fictional farm.

Wilson had been a routine presence at comic cons nationwide over the years and was scheduled to appear later this month at the Walker Stalker convention in Atlanta.

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Wilson reflected on his career in a 2011 interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Rodney Ho:

"It's been up and down. It's always been. You have dry spells. At different times, you are starting over. If you love it, you stay with it. That's what I'm doing. I've accomplished more than I would have hoped to have accomplished. I don't want to be a big movie star. I can be someone who walks the streets and not get mobbed. I want to be as fine an actor as I can be. I am still striving to be as good as I can be."

Cox Media Group