We've heard about how Negan's arrival has changed The Walking Dead. We've gotten but a glimpse at his dastardly behavior. But are we really ready for what he has in store once season seven premieres in October? After hearing executive producer Gale Anne Hurd describe the guy, we're not so sure.
E! News caught up with Hurd during the Television Critics Association summer press tour, where she was on hand to promote her new USA series Falling Water, and she broke down why Jeffrey Dean Morgan's big bad guy is unlike any other villain we've ever seen on the show before.
"I think Negan is the ultimate villain. He's been the ultimate villain in the comic book, and I think Jeffrey Dean Morgan is bringing him to life the way that I imagined because he is larger than life, he is charismatic, and he really enjoys what he does. He doesn't seem to have much of a conscience about it, and that's the kind of person we haven't seen before," she revealed. "Everyone else had a justification that they were reasoning as to why they did what they did, some of the evil things. They always had an excuse. Well, Negan rules."
Hurd's warning about Negan echoes what much of the cast has been saying about the villain whenever they get the chance. "It's Negan's world now and we're all living in it," she said."
When E! News spoke with Morgan on the set of The Good Wife, he had a message for fans: "Bring on the hate mail. I'm ready." So, yeah—Negan isn't messing around.
Of course, Negan isn't the only addition to the world of The Walking Dead in season seven. As the trailer, released at Comic-Con revealed, another major corner of the world in the comic books is leaping from the page to the screen. "We're also very excited to bring Ezekiel, the Kingdom, and his pet tiger Shiva to life," Hurd said. Yes, you read that right—pet tiger.
Are you ready for Negan's lack of conscious? Sound off in the comments below!
The Walking Dead premieres Sunday, Oct. 23 at 9 p.m. on AMC.