The Season 8 finale of The Walking Dead saw Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) finally do as his son, Carl (Chandler Riggs), asked and allow Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and the Saviors to survive even though they defeated them in the All-Out War. So, how will this affect the show moving forward? Can we see Rick’s group settle down for a while or will there be more conflict on the horizon — as there always seems to be in The Walking Dead universe?
According to a recent interview by departing showrunner Scott Gimple, Season 9 of The Walking Dead will be “a very, very different show” to what viewers have already seen. He told Vulture that, as Rick’s group attempts to build a new world in Season 9 of The Walking Dead , viewers will see an evolution of storylines.
While there is the prediction of a time jump between Seasons 8 and 9, just like there was in the comic books series after the All-Out War concluded, some storylines left over from Season 8 will still be resolved moving forward into Season 9 of The Walking Dead .
Gimple told Vulture that it is likely viewers will see more of a structure to civilization being formed and that fans can expect to see more in relation to Georgie’s (Jayne Atkinson) group as well as the potential to expand on Jadis (Pollyanna McIntosh) and the helicopter storyline.
While the formation of civilization might be foremost moving forward into Season 9 of The Walking Dead , Gimple hinted that there will be hiccups along the way — especially in relation to Maggie’s (Lauren Cohan) reaction to Rick letting Negan live in the Season 8 finale.
While Maggie might be determined to deal with Negan herself, Gimple suggests she will put the people of Hilltop first and foremost above all else in Season 9.
“Without going into it too much, her reaction to Rick letting Negan live was gigantic. She didn’t get to make the choice about Negan, and I don’t think Maggie is the type of person to just shrug, but I think she put her leadership at the Hilltop first.”
It is likely the new showrunner, Angela Kang, will put her own stamp on the series as well. Scott Gimple describes her take on Season 9 as a “great deal of ambition” in relation to what she wants to achieve.
While Scott Gimple is leaving The Walking Dead , he is not traveling far. He has taken on the role of Season 4 showrunner for the companion series, Fear the Walking Dead .
Season 9 of The Walking Dead will air later this year on AMC.
