Alicia’s Infection Will “Define Her Course of Action” in ‘Fear the Walking Dead’

If you’ve seen glimpses of actress Alycia Debnam-Carey looking sweaty and delirious in AMC promos, you may be wondering what’s wrong with Alicia on Fear the Walking Dead.

Well, as the Walking Dead spin-off resumes tonight, Sunday, April 17 — with the midseason premiere, “Follow Me,” airing at 9 p.m. ET — Alicia will still be dealing with the walker bite she got in Season 7’s first half.

In the Season 7A finale last December, Alicia amputated her arm to stop herself from turning into a walker, but she told ally Morgan (Lennie James) that she hadn’t cut off her limb in time. “The infection’s still inside of me,” she said. “My body’s trying to fight it, and it’s only a matter of time before I lose.”

AMC’s trailer for Fear the Walking Dead Season 7B shows Alicia having fever dreams of PADRE, the location that purportedly has the resources to rebuilt civilization. She later tells Morgan that a voice in the dream told her that a walker would lead them there — and that the voice was coming from her.

In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, FTWD co-showrunner Andrew Chambliss explained Alicia’s medical crisis. “As we saw in the end of 7A, she was suffering from a fever caused either by the walker bite she sustained or by the way in which her arm was amputated,” he said.

Andrew also revealed that the fever will steer Alicia’s storyline in Season 7B. “That fever and its accompanying infection is going to be something that will be with her over the course of the season,” he said. “It will be something she’ll be struggling with and will also define her course of action and who she becomes going forward. … She’s going to be pretty sweaty. I think Alycia Debnam-Carey got tired of being spritzed down with a spray bottle.”

At the end of Season 7B, viewers also saw Alicia confront former friend Strand (Colman Domingo), who killed her friend Will (Gus Harper) in a twisted effort to keep Alicia away from his tower. That didn’t work, of course, and after realizing what Strand did, Alicia wages war against Strand in the midseason finale.

“It’s a journey that we’ve been on for a really, really long time — watching her be a reluctant leader, but also finding all these tools and learning from mistakes, and growing from mentors throughout her journey in the apocalypse,” Alycia told Decider recently as she hyped up Season 7B.

She went on: “To finally see her come to a point of autonomy and self-belief and drive is really satisfying and gratifying. It feels like we’ve finally got to the apex of Alicia coming into her own.”

Fear the Walking Dead returns tonight, Sunday, April 17, at 9 p.m. ET on AMC.