‘The Walking Dead’ season 8, episode 1 to feature old grey-haired Rick

Fans that have seen the official trailer for “The Walking Dead” season 8 can’t wait for episode 1. Clocking in at more than five minutes, the somewhat long preview is filled with interesting titbits and action sequences. None is as interesting, however, as the clip’s final scene, where an older Rick (Andrew Lincoln) with grey hair and Moses-like beard is shown lying in bed, with a cane close to him.

Spoiler alert: This article contains plot details about the eighth season of “The Walking Dead,” which will premiere in October of this year. Australian viewers will be available to watch the new season on Foxtel.

Everybody knows that next season is all about the All War Out. The Alexandrians, the Kingdommers and the Hilltop people are set to battle Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), the Saviours and the Scavengers. The war will determine the surviving characters’ fates, and none of them will ever be the same after the carnage.

The old Rick that fans have seen in the season 8 trailer is a product of the All Out War. In the comic book series, he ends up with a broken leg following the vicious battle. The story then takes a time jump at least a couple of years into the future, where a grey-haired Rick supports himself with a cane. The question is: will the AMC series follow the comic book time hop?

“The Walking Dead” creator Robert Kirkman teased about senior Rick at the Television Critics Association summer press tour last week. He said that fans will get to know all about the aged protagonist right from the season’s first episode. Kirkman, however, did not confirm the timeline of old Rick in the TV series to keep the comic book enthusiasts in the dark of the show’s direction.

“I don’t know, maybe it was Rick waking up from his coma,” he said. “Wouldn’t that be weird?” Kirkman added that the intriguing trailer titbit was included on purpose to keep fans excited and curious.

“Comic book fans know where a scene that kind of looked like that would fall, but it also doesn’t seem like we would be getting to that just yet if you were a comic book fan, so there’s a mystery to that,” said Kirkman. “We all know it’s the All Out War storyline, so [in] season 8 we’re trying to do a more fast-paced season – a more action-packed season, really focusing on momentum – and we feel like, over the first seven seasons, we’ve set all the characters into place. Now it’s time to break them, to a certain extent,”

“The Walking Dead” season 8, episode 1 airs in October 22 in the US and October 23 in Australia. Stay connected with IBTimes for updates about the AMC show.