The Walking Dead show boss teases epic Negan redemption with Alpha betrayal in season 10
THE Walking Dead will return to screens next month and Negan looks to be at the centre of a major twist.
The AMC zombie drama first introduced Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) as an evil brute, with his most infamous seen seeing him cave in the head of Glenn Rhee (Steven Yeun) with a baseball bat.
However since then the character has transformed into something of an anti-hero, seemingly renouncing his ruthless ways for a more balanced approach to violence.
In the first half of season 10, we saw Negan flee Alexandria and be appalled after discovering the murder of a mother and son.
After avenging them he successful infiltrated The Whisperers, impressing Alpha (Samantha Morton) with his feats or survival.
In the Robert Kirkman comics upon which the series is based, Negan ends up beheading Alpha after winning her trust and getting her alone.
If show bosses opt to follow suite this would represent a major opportunity for redemption, given how Alpha has wrought terror on the allied communities.
Now AMC boss Sarah Barnett has opened up about turning things around for Negan after his dastardly debut back in 2016.
"I think that with 10 seasons of television — something like ER or Grey’s Anatomy — shows go through spurts," she told The Los Angeles Times when asked about the poor critical reception of the show’s sixth, seventh and eighth seasons.
"We’ve done a lot of research on the response to it and we certainly have our own thoughts about it,” she went on.
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"It’s true to say that that season with Negan became a little too hopeless for audiences.
“I think that there was creative intention behind it that was really smart and thoughtful, but it I think it probably pushed people to a place where it was a lot to take at a time when maybe people just didn’t want to see that."
Show runner Scott Gimple, who oversaw seasons 6 through 8, oversaw a major decline in ratings.
However since Angela Kang took over in season 9, The Walking Dead enjoyed its highest ever ratings on Rotten Tomatoes.
The recent trailer for the second half of season 10 teased a terrifying showdown between Beta (Ryan Hurst) and Michonne (Danai Gurira).
However, fans suspect that Maggie Rhee’s (Lauren Cohan) return could spell disaster for Negan, as the pair have unfinished business.
The Walking Dead will air on FOX in the UK on February 24 and be available to stream on NOW TV.