AMC Walking Dead - Negan's Return And Future Predictions

Mark October 2017 as a date in your diaries, because that's when the AMC Walking Dead season 8 will arrive, with the first episode of the TWD season marking the show's 100th episode. The exact premiere date is yet to be confirmed but it's likely to start shooting between May and November 2017. Meanwhile we are all getting very excited for the Season 7 return.

“Eeny, meeny, miny, more,” said Charlie Collier, president of AMC, SundanceTV and AMC Studios. “What a joy to partner with Robert Kirkman, Scott M. Gimple and some of the hardest-working people in television to bring The Walking Dead Season 8 to the fans. And, most important, thanks to those fans for breathing life into this remarkable series right along with us.”

As for what we can expect in the story? Well Jeffrey Dean Morgan has already confirmed, when he was on Howard Stern which was also reported by ComicBook.com, that Negan will return. Morgan's Negan TWD character has become a fan favorite so people will be pleased he gets more than just a season so show off his villainy.

We may also get to see actress Maria Bello appear in the show. Bello is a longtime fan and when talking with People magazine she said she's been trying to get a part through a friend who works on the AMC Walking Dead show. “I am obsessed with the show,” she said. “I have a friend who’s a producer on it and I’ve asked them to write me a part, which apparently they are for next season. Even if I just play a zombie. I said, ‘I’ll just come out and play a zombie for an episode, I don’t care!’ But it is my favorite show.”

AMC Walking Dead Season 8 Plotline

There may also be plots from the comics brought in to the AMC Walking Dead Season 8, like a potential backstory or prequel episode that fleshes out how Negan came to be like he is. Although nothing has been officially confirmed.

"It's not something we've really thought about," Robert Kirkman told The Hollywood Reporter in October 2016. "That story works best when Negan has been around for many years. I'm not going to go on record to say that Negan lasts as long in the show as he does in the comic. You never know. But if we do get to that point, it'd be nice to see that story adapted. I love Jeffrey Dean Morgan with a burning fury of a thousand suns and I would love to see him tell that story and see the character go through those paces. It's a great way to get more context into who this guy is. It'd be neat but there are no plans as of yet."

Lastly, if The Walking Dead season 7 sees the epic battle between the Saviors and Rick's group (or his coalition of communities) take place, AMC Walking Dead Season 8 may introduce a new set of villains. In the comics the next evil group are called the Whisperers and they're headed up by a leader called Alpha. The Whisperers like to cover themselves in the skin of dead walkers and they also impale the heads of their enemies on spikes. An image posted in October 2016 to the official AMC Walking Dead Instagram page showed just such a head on a spike (see below). And people think it might well be a hint at what's coming after the Saviors. But we'll just have to wait and see.

Looking even further into the future, season 9, 10, and beyond. Well, there's been no official confirmation. And if you're thinking even further ahead, to how does the AMC Walking Dead show end? Well it's unlikely to take place in AMC Walking Dead Season 8 that's for sure—because with Kirkman still writing the comics there's a wealth of material to draw from yet. However, Kirkman has said in a Reddit AMA from May 2016, although he may just be trolling, that Rick will die. When someone asked if Rick dies Kirkman replied "He does eventually." Everyone dies eventually, of course, and it's unclear whether Rick's death will mean the end of the show or whether it will continue without him.

AMC Walking Dead Season 8 img via Instagram