‘The Walking Dead’ Creator Robert Kirkman and Star Andrew Lincoln Tease What’s Ahead

The Walking Dead‘s extended season six premiere was intense, emotional and everything that a zombie apocalypse drama should be. While leaving lots of viewers completely satisfied with the well-crafted opener, the inevitable questions that pop up after an episode of that caliber began to rise, with some fans wondering: where exactly will the series go from here?

There was conflict coming from every turn when we met back up with our characters. From the humans within the gates of Alexandria, to the zombies outside of the gates, to the humans outside of the gates, Rick and co. may be behind high walls for the moment, but last night’s episode reminded us that even still they’re barely safe.

Creator of the comics and series executive producer Robert Kirkman and star Andrew Lincoln had a lot to say about last night’s premiere, Kirkman speaking with The Hollywood Reporter and Lincoln chatting with EW, and both touched on what fans can expect moving forward throughout the season after that big of an episode.

Creator Robert Kirkman on where the show is headed this season after that impressive premiere(via THR)

“It goes to all kinds of interesting places. That herd at the end of the episode is an ever-present danger and it certainly hasn’t been handled. You’ve got the horn, which is drawing them to Alexandria and that’s bad news. It’s probable that there’s a storyline in the comic involving that big herd coming to Alexandria, which also might offer insight into some of the craziness that we have in store. The Wolves are also still in the mix, which is something that wasn’t part of the comic book. This is our most intense season yet. Our premiere is one that’s very much on its feet, it’s a very fast-paced episode and that pace isn’t slowing down anytime soon. If anything, it’s probably going to pick up before it slows down. When we got to Alexandria, there was some concern that everything is nice and clean and [questions about] how the show will continue to be exciting. Season six answers that question in a big way.”

Star Andrew Lincoln on what’s ahead for the next few episodes (via EW)

“The next two episodes are insane, 2 and 3. I’ve always said this, episode 1 is like a bow being pulled back, and in the last 30 seconds are the bow being released. Two and 3 are nonstop crazy action. It’s insane. The next eight episodes are all huge. I mean they’re kinetic, but also the scale of it. It feels like a season finale each episode and the ambition of each episode. They’re very different. Four is incredible, it’s like an indie movie in the middle of Walking Dead, it’s crazy. And then 5, 6, 7, 8 — it just keeps building and building. You’ll see that the show opens up. We’ve been looking internally for so long, it’s like everybody lifts their eyes to the horizon this season and it opens up a whole new world. It’s amazing.”

Robert Kirkman on Rick and his group’s overall attitude toward Alexandrians

“We’ve seen there’s not a lot of respect for these people. They definitely feel sorry for them but they know these people are not capable of surviving. Rick and his crew are moving in and we see how everybody is adapting to this new community and how they necessarily really fit in. You do have Carter’s faction out there who seemingly want to have a mutiny to get Rick and his crew out of there. There’s a lot of conflict brewing moving forward, despite the fact that you have this massive herd and the Wolves in the mix. There’s no end of problems that Rick and his crew are going to have to deal with. The people in Alexandria represent one of those problems.”

Oh, and for those of you that thought you may have noticed a little something-something between Morgan and Michonne (possible ‘ship name: Morchonne), you may be right. “There is certainly a romantic connection between the two of them in the comic and whether that materializes in the show remains to be seen but it’s certainly possible,” teased Kirkman. “They’re pretty friendly in the premiere.”

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Photo Credit: AMC