The Walking Dead is certainly the biggest draw at New York Comic Con each year, and NYCC 2017 was no different. With an exuberant crowd at Madison Square Garden, the show’s cast and crew took to the stage to offer some insight into the series’ upcoming eighth season.

Gracing the stage along with moderator Chris Hardwick, the panelists included Andrew Lincoln, Norman Reedus, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Lauren Cohan, Melissa McBride, Lennie James, Tom Payne, Katelyn Nacon, and Austin Amelio along with executive producer Robert Kirkman, executive producer Gale Anne Hurd, executive producer, director and special effects makeup supervisor Greg Nicotero and executive producer David Alpert.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a Walking Dead panel without a sneak peek at the new season. So check out the spoiler-filled description of the scene below, and then following along for the top 4 things you need to know about The Walking Dead panel below:

A van is driving down the road and pulls off to the side. Carl gets out and goes to the back, then pulls out his hat and grabs a gasoline can. He’s then walking past a bunch of rundown cars into a gas station parking lot. He hears something and pulls his gun out. He then hears someone talking to him, but can’t find where it’s coming from. He looks under a car and sees someones feet moving. He then runs to the person, points his gun, and the scene cuts.

4 – Robert Kirkman had some very interesting news about The Walking Dead and Fear The Walking Dead. “We’ve always said that we want these shows to be their own thing, and Fear The Walking Dead is finally in a place where it has its own identity. What I can say, is that there are two Walking Dead shows, and there is one character, who I’m not going to name, that will go to the other show. What does that mean? Could we see an interesting back story of a Walking Dead character on Fear, or a Fear character in the future on Walking Dead, or something else? What could it be!?! There will be more news on this in the coming months. It’s gonna be huge.”

3 – Jeffrey Dean Morgan said that he thinks that people love Negan because of the charisma and “extra spice” that he brings to this world. “Robert created this guy that’s hard not to like, despite what he does.” Morgan also went on to say that this season we begin to see glimpses of Negan’s past, which he’s very excited to explore.

2 – Many characters are trying to retain their humanity in a “world that’s decayed.” Two characters in particular are Morgan and Carol, who have come to the realization that they can’t live, or protect the ones they love, when Negan is running the show. Fans will get to see these two dig even deeper into that aspect of their characters than we saw last season.

1 – The martial arts aspect of the show will increase this year. With two characters – Morgan and Jesus – who have unique fighting techniques in the world of The Walking Dead, and the fact that the season is dubbed “All Out War,” these type of action sequences will be more prevalent. This will include the much anticipated fight scene between Morgan and Jesus that the trailer has hinted towards.

Check out the teaser trailer and full trailer for season 8 of The Walking Dead below!

Teaser Trailer

Full Trailer

The Walking Dead Season 8 premiere and 100th episode airs Sunday, October 22 at 9pm ET/PT.

Photos

[Images by Max Pfeffer for Geeks Of Doom.]

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