Lincoln gave more insight into the death in Entertainment Weekly, and also talked about his initial stunned reaction:
"Scott Gimple always makes a phone call to everybody, and he said to me, 'You're going to hate this one.' And I mentioned four names. None of them were right, and he had to tell me that it was the kid. I was so shocked that he said three times, 'Are you there? Are you there? Are you there?' I didn't know what to do. I didn't know what to say.
When someone from the old guard goes, there's a part of you that goes with them. It's like what they say — when formative people in your life die, a part of you dies because what is carried in that relationship is your memories and your history, and all those kinds of things. It's not that dramatic, OK. It's a job and all those kinds of things, but certainly for Chandler and my relationship — he's a kid. I saw this child grow into an amazing young man in front of my eyes, and one of the best parts of this experience has been watching that young man turn into who he's become today."
In another interview, Lincoln talked a little bit more about how it all goes down. "It's a very sad farewell, and a farewell that I never thought would happen. Neither did most of the rest of the cast, I would imagine," he said. "He is the linchpin. It goes back to the flash-forward where my mercy prevails over my wrath. There is a balancing of the scales in Rick's life that happens in the back eight episodes. A lot of it is because of what is said in episode nine, by his son."