Meet Alpha, ‘The Walking Dead’s’ Newest Villain

The mid-season finale of AMC’s The Walking Dead Season 9 saw the introduction of a new group of characters that comic book fans have been anticipating for a long time – the Whisperers. Finally, the very first image of the leader of this group is out, and the latest Walking Dead villain, Alpha, has been revealed.

Per the official website for the Walking Dead comics, Alpha will be played by Samantha Morton (Minority Report, Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them). From the comic books, fans know that Alpha is the bald leader of the Whisperers, a group which likes to hide among the walkers. They do this by covering themselves in walker skins and copying the mannerisms of the undead.

Alpha made her first appearance in the comic books in Issue 132. This came about after her daughter, Lydia, was captured by one of the communities and Alpha eventually came into contact with Rick Grimes and his group as a result of this incident.

The Whisperers first came to the attention of the communities of The Walking Dead television series on AMC when Eugene (Josh McDermitt) and Rosita (Christian Serratos) heard what they thought were walkers talking to each other. The groups suspected the walkers were evolving. But, by the end mid-season finale episode of The Walking Dead, the Whisperers were revealed, debunking the theory put forward by Eugene of evolving walkers.

Now, a new image has been released giving viewers the very first glimpse of Alpha. While the new image shows this new character, it doesn’t actually show her face. Instead, the image shows Alpha with her face covered by a mask made from walker skin.

Previously, viewers had gotten a glimpse of Alpha without her mask in one of the trailers for Season 9B. However, the visual featured the back of Alpha’s head, so fans were not able to definitely confirm it was her.

Follow the leader. #TWD pic.twitter.com/Hjlbs57ppV

— The Walking Dead (@WalkingDead_AMC) December 19, 2018

The following synopsis for the second half of Season 9 of The Walking Dead has also been released.

“The Walking Dead Season 9 finds our groups of survivors, both old and new, continuing to deal with the impact of events that took place during the six years that have passed. Since the disappearance of Rick, many of these characters have become strangers to each other, and in some ways, strangers to themselves. What they do know is that they are in undeniable danger. They will soon realize the world just beyond does not operate as they thought. The group’s rules and ways of survival no longer guarantee their safety. A whole new threat has crossed their paths, and they soon discover it’s unlike any threat they have encountered or endured before. The group will start to question what they think they see. What may appear to be normal in this post-apocalyptic world could actually be more disturbing and terrifying than when the apocalypse first broke out. All that is certain is the stakes are high and numerous.”

Season 9 of AMC’s The Walking Dead will return to AMC on Sunday, February 10, 2019. The show is scheduled to air at 9 p.m. EST.