Andrew Lincoln

Rumor has it two of the series’ biggest stars are leaving during the upcoming season.

It is a confusing time to follow The Walking Dead. A few major upsets had fans wondering if Season 9 might break from the comic entirely, but first photos from the Georgia set tease a strange new (albeit familiar) look for the AMC zombie drama. Is that time-jump happening after all?

Soft ratings on The Walking Dead Season 8 have raised questions of the series longevity, and we at last have an answer. The flagship AMC drama will return for a ninth season with (most of) its cast intact, though Angela Yang will take over for Scott Gimple as showrunner.

The Walking Dead has reached an age where AMC must naturally consider an endpoint, or at least where stars might jump ship. Even Rick might leave this world behind at some point, and both Andrew Lincoln and showrunners are already considering the possibility.

Considering The Walking Dead’s reverence for the comics, fans weren’t entirely surprised Season 8 might tease a certain time-jump ahead. The trailer seemed to suggest as much, but star Andrew Lincoln cryptically hints “It’s an older Rick … that means that it’s in the future.”

It’s been an exceptionally punishing year for fans of The Walking Dead, who first endured the cop-out of Negan’s entrance, a summer spent waiting, and about eight episodes since of misery under The Saviors’ reign. Rick will finally fight back when Season 7 returns in February, and Andrew Lincoln insists “There’s a lot more levity, if you can believe that.”

The Walking Dead has the unique problem of promoting Season 7 without eliminating any cast from Negan’s potential victim pool, but at least two were pretty easily crossed off the list. A new clip from Season 7 fresh out of NYCC sees Rick and Negan in a deadly post-Lucille staredown, but is Rick about to wind up with a major injury of his own?

‘The Walking Dead’ acrobatically leaps through its next 2016 hour with the introduction of a fan-favorite comic character, and a long-awaited hookup, but is “The Next World” as fun as last week promised? Find out in our full review of tonight’s Rick and Daryl road show!