"Trust" is the fifteenth episode of the eleventh season of AMC's The Walking Dead. It is the one-hundred and sixty-eighth episode of the series overall. It premiered on April 3, 2022. It was written by Kevin Deiboldt and directed by Lily Mariye.[1]
Plot
Hornsby marches Daryl and troops to confront Maggie at Hilltop. After a harrowing heist, Rosita gets Connie, Kelly, Eugene, and Max to investigate the Miltons. Ezekiel helps hospital patients in need.
Synopsis
Daryl and a team of Commonwealth troopers investigate Carlson's corpse and the bloody aftermath at the apartment complex.
On the rooftop, Hornsby interrogates Aaron and Gabriel about what happened to Carlson's team. He's dubious of their story that mysterious killers slaughtered everyone except for them and then escaped. Hornsby orders troopers to search the area for the killers, starting with Hilltop.
Mercer's alarm clock goes off. Princess wakes up next to him and sees that Mercer is already awake. She asks if he's okay. Mercer insists he's fine.
Connie, Kelly, and Rosita meet with Eugene at his apartment. Rosita tells Connie that Sebastian has been sending civilians on deadly missions to get him cash. Connie shows them a list of names that an anonymous source left at her door. They spot the name of April, the woman who was trapped in the safe room where they got Sebastian's cash. Connie says they need access to Pamela's files in order to unearth more evidence. Eugene says he might know someone.
Carol drops Judith and R.J. off at school. Ezekiel joins her and thanks her for pulling strings to move up his surgery. He asks to show her a new project he's been working on, but Carol says she's busy with work that he is better off not knowing about.
Hornsby and his team encounter walkers in the woods. He orders Aaron and Gabriel to take care of the walkers by hand, in order to save ammo. They kill the walkers with Daryl's help.
Ezekiel visits Tomi at the hospital and asks him to perform a secret appendectomy on a sick friend. He says he secured an operating area where Tomi could perform the procedure. Tomi initially hesitates but considers the idea after Ezekiel pleads.
Eugene pays Max an urgent visit at the Commonwealth headquarters. Max pulls him aside, worried that they'll be seen together. Inside an empty office, Eugene tells Max about Sebastian and asks her to steal files from Pamela's office. A janitor walks in on them. Max pretends she's collecting groceries from Eugene and leaves the office.
Hornsby and his troopers arrive at the Hilltop gate. Hornsby orders Maggie to let them into Hilltop so that he can search for the killers who stole Commonwealth property. Maggie insists she knows nothing. Hornsby confers with his troopers. Daryl offers to speak with Maggie to avoid a deadly clash. Maggie tells Daryl it doesn't have to be this way. "Yeah, it does," Daryl says – circling back to an earlier episode. Daryl convinces Maggie to open the gates.
Max confronts Mercer about Sebastian and asks why he's letting Sebastian get away with it. Mercer points out that he could get removed for insubordination if he reports Sebastian, which would leave the Commonwealth citizens vulnerable. Max says Mercer has the power to change the Commonwealth. Mercer rebuffs her, but after she leaves, he seems to ponder her argument.
Ezekiel and Tomi steal supplies from the hospital. When rounding a corner, Tomi crashes into a trooper.
Hornsby's team searches Hilltop. Hornsby discovers a truck covered with a tarp and suspects it's the vehicle that left tire tracks at the apartment complex. Maggie insists the engine doesn't work. Hornsby quickly finds a simple disconnected wire under the hood and plugs the ends together. To his disappointment, it doesn't start. Maggie orders him to leave by sundown.
Ezekiel and Tomi sit in a room with handcuffs. Carol enters the room and tells a trooper she can handle the situation. She informs them that they're off the hook.
Ezekiel takes Carol and Tomi to a secret veterinary clinic that he started and brings them to the area where his friend, Theresa, is awaiting the appendectomy.
Mercer apologizes to Princess for stonewalling her. He reveals that he killed two of his men and covered it up. He says it keeps him up at night, but he would do it again. He wonders if he's part of the problem at the Commonwealth. Princess offers to figure it out together.
Hornsby corners Hershel and asks if he or Maggie have taken any trips recently. Hershel starts to look for Maggie. Hornsby produces a baseball cap that he found at the apartment complex and puts it on Hershel's head – it's a perfect fit. Elijah slams Hornsby against a wall. Troopers race over. Troopers surround Elijah. Maggie and Daryl aim their guns at Hornsby. Daryl tells Hornsby to order his troopers to stand down "before something really fuckin' bad happens." Hornsby obliges, then leaves Hilltop.
Daryl, Aaron, and Gabriel quietly confer by a campfire as they realize the troopers won't stop searching until they find the killers. Daryl suspects a plan is afoot. A trooper tells Hornsby that he found something.
Ezekiel credits Carol with inspiring him to build the veterinary clinic. Someone informs Ezekiel that Theresa's appendix burst and that she needs to get to a hospital. Already in surgery, Tomi says there's no time, then proceeds to operate. After removing the appendix, Tomi sews up Theresa's abdomen and says her prognosis looks good.
Max visits Eugene and agrees to steal the files. Eugene vows to stand by her side. They kiss.
Leah cleans a gun at her camp in the woods. Commonwealth troopers find her camp, but no one is inside the tent. Leah ambushes them, injuring two of them. Hornsby asks Leah to hold her fire so that they can talk. Leah emerges from the darkness with a rifle. Hornsby smiles and says he's here to offer her a job.
Other Cast
Co-Stars
- Antony Azor as R.J. Grimes
- Kien Michael Spiller as Hershel Rhee
- Nicholas Velez as Theo
- David Alexander as Janitor
Uncredited
- Angel Theory as Kelly
- Jason Butler Harner as Toby Carlson
- Matt Bushell as Trooper Romano
- Lucas Hammond as Trooper McHugh
- Nathan W. Collins as Trooper Phillips
- John Prozny as Trooper Sorensen
- Kenneth Ford as Trooper Lim
- Gonzalo Menendez as Commonwealth Soldier
- Gloria DeWeese as Kim
- Terri Joe Kennedy as Theresa
- Brandon Pagel as Hilltop Resident
- Lance Kilmer as Hilltop Resident
- Lane Haynes as Hilltop Resident
- Laura Kelly as Hilltop Resident
- Meredith "Duffy" Hale as Hilltop Resident
- Rachel Hernandez as Oceanside Resident
- Casey Shirley as Riverbend Resident
- Dean Grimes as Riverbend Resident
- Kent De Mond as Riverbend Resident
- Tamasha Bolden as Riverbend Resident
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Deaths
- 1 unnamed Commonwealth resident (Off-Screen)
Trivia
- Last appearance of Toby Carlson. (Corpse)
- Last appearance of Theo.
- Last appearance of Kim. (Alive, Unknown)
- The title of the episode, "Trust", refers to Maggie's refusal to trust Lance Hornsby and Daryl asking her to trust him instead.
- This episode was made available for streaming to subscribers of AMC Premiere on March 27, 2022.
- This episode marks Cailey Fleming's 25th appearance on the TV Series.
- In this episode, Angel Theory (Kelly) remained uncredited and was not listed under "Also Starring", despite having speaking lines.
- April's full name is revealed to be April Martens and she is on the list of names that Connie and Kelly had received in "Rogue Element". However, there are way more names on the list than just the people that Sebastian had sent into Cooper's House.
- Ezekiel's cancer surgery was a success and while he still has a ways to go with his recovery, his prognosis is good.
- Mercer's first name is revealed to be Michael.
- It has been six months since the events of "No Other Way" with the events of this episode tying into the six month time skip at the end of that episode.
- It's revealed that the visit by the Commonwealth Army, Daryl and Lance to the Hilltop was to search for the missing Riverbend residents and the weapons that they had supposedly stolen.
- Daryl drops an f-bomb in this episode, using the word "fucking" when threatening Lance.
- This is the first f-bomb in the show to air on TV which is uncensored and in the subtitles.
- While not subtitled, Mercer can also be heard saying "I don't wanna fuck it up" to Princess.
- Director Lily Mariye celebrated her birthday during the filming of this episode.[2]
- Recurring background survivor Terri Joe Kennedy, who has portrayed an unnamed Kingdom resident since Season 7, was finally given a name, Theresa, in this episode.
- In the Talking Dead episode for "Trust", Ian Anthony Dale, who portrays Tomi Okumura, revealed that there was a deleted scene where he takes some pills with alcohol before having an emotional moment and throwing the glass across the room. This scene was meant to take place before Ezekiel enters Tomi's office to ask for help.
Comic Parallels
- Mercer and Princess having sex is adapted from Issue 184.
Episode Highlights
TBA
Goofs/Errors
- April's name on the list seen in "Rogue Element" lists her full name as April Kelly, but in this episode, her last name is now Martens. This is possibly a production goof for "Rogue Element" or her name was changed at some point between the writing of the episodes.