Lauren Cohan admits prolonged contract talks played a part in her Walking Dead exit

Entertainment Weekly

"I kind of felt in some ways surprised, to be honest with you," she tells EW. "And I took that, how baffled I was, and thought, 'Okay, well that’s a sign. This is maybe just not a fit anymore.' To feel like we weren’t lining up in so many ways I just thought, 'Okay, well, maybe that means something.' But in my personal life, as well as in my career, I always end up being really appreciative of things exactly as they turned out. Because as an actor and as an artist, you’re bringing your sensitivity to your job, but I need to be able to flip the switch and just look at this in a professional way. I felt like in order to be my own guardian angel I had to put on a business head to protect the personal side of me. The greatest maturation has been depersonalizing it, and the end lesson has been knowing that that’s a part of life.  I have had the best part of my life on the show, and the show has given me opportunities that I think we all dream of having as an actor, and it was just time to move on."

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