The Walking Dead makes its return to AMC in the US tonight (February 25) and FOX in the UK tomorrow (February 26), with the second half of season 8 looking to shock fans more than the series has ever done before. It’ll have a tough job ahead, as writers already threw a curveball the viewers’ way in the season 8 midseason finale, showing Carl Grimes (Chandler Riggs) to have a zombie bite to the abdomen and signalling his time on the show coming to an end. The character is one that still lives on in the comic books the series is based on.
The Walking Dead will include some surprises for all fans / Credit: AMC
Now, showrunner Scott Gimple has been speaking in a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, saying that huger deviations from the comic books are on the way in the back-end of season 8.
He teased: “I think emotionally we’re aspiring to evoke the same feeling that [Robert Kirkman] achieved in the book. But from the butterfly effect and different characters around that weren’t and vice versa, and even just the thrust of the story, how things play out are quite different in a lot of ways.
“There are some big changes that change the very outcome of certain aspects of the story – still trying to be true to the emotions of the story, but changing some big parts of it. It plays out very differently.”
Some of those changes may be being made right now, as it was revealed earlier this week that actress Lauren Cohan, who plays Maggie in the series, has signed on to front an entirely new series. This came as reports suggested she could be leaving The Walking Dead, unhappy with the negotiations surrounding her contract for season 9 of the show and beyond.
Whatever happens, we’re sure the fan base will be having their say. The Walking Dead viewers are some of the most vocal in the entertainment industry, so let’s hope show bosses get some positive reactions with their choices this time round.
The Walking Dead continues Sundays in the US on AMC and Mondays in the UK on FOX.
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