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‘The Walking Dead’ Season 7 Premiere: Six Huge Spoilers Revealed (Who Dies by Negan’s Bat?!)

In the immortal words of The Walking Dead‘s biggest baddie: It’s going to be pee-pee pants city here real soon. AMC’s hit series comes back on Sunday, October 23, with a season 7 premiere that is its most anticipated return in ages. Earlier this year, the show signed off with a swing and a hit by a terrifying new villain, as Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and his friends watched in helpless horror as Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) put a big, bloody dent in the head of one major (and, as of now, still-unrevealed) character. 

Related: PHOTOS: TV's 10 Most Shocking Deaths of the 2015-2016 Season

And come Sunday, all eyes will be on AMC as they roll out the next dispatch from the zombie apocalypse. Here’s everything we know so far about what’s in store for season 7.

Related: PHOTOS: The Walking Dead Cast: What They Look Like on the Red Carpet

Somebody Is Going to Die.

As previously noted, last season ended on the biggest cliffhanger in The Walking Dead history as Negan bashed in the brains of his mystery victim — which means that this season, we’re guaranteed to lose a beloved character within minutes of the opening credits. (Or even in the cold open, if the showrunners are feeling really sadistic.) The identity of Negan’s bashee is one of the show’s most closely guarded secrets — at the time that filming wrapped on season 6, not even the cast knew which one of them would be bleeding to death in the first moments of the upcoming premiere — so gird your loins for some serious upset, just in case they’ve offed your fave.

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Oh, and P.S.: It Might Be More Like Two Somebodies.

Because The Walking Dead showrunners are sadistic maniacs who could never be satisfied with just one earth-shattering death, we’re looking very closely at a recent interview with producer Greg Nicotero, in which he seemed to imply that more than one person will be shuffling off this mortal coil in the first episode of season 7. A slip of the tongue, or an accidental spoiler? We’ll have to wait and see.

And That’s Not Including the Zombies.

In addition to losing at least one beloved human character in the upcoming premiere, The Walking Dead will definitely keep up its long tradition of violence against the undead this season. According to folks in the know, at least 60 walkers will be stabbed, shot, smashed and splattered to pieces by the time we hit episode two.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan in The Walking Dead
Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan in ‘The Walking Dead.’

A Royal Setting

After introducing us to the Saviors and the Hilltop colony last year, this season is all about the Kingdom — some residents of which Morgan (Lennie James) encountered briefly in season 6. They ride horses and wear armor, and they’re led by one badass, tiger-befriending despot known as King Ezekiel (Khary Payton). That’s right, Negan: We’ll see your barbed wire-covered baseball bat and raise you a damn tiger.

Questionable Fashion Choices

The bad news is, Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) is already one of the 11 potential victims of Negan’s barbed-wire bat o’ death. The worse news is, even if he survives the opening minutes of season 7, we still know that Dwight (Austin Amelio) is running around this season wearing Daryl’s clothes — none of the potential explanations for which are even remotely OK.

The Biggest, Baddest Big Bad Yet

We’ve been promised a showdown for the ages with Negan in season 7, the biggest since our fearless heroes were captured and nearly turned into human barbecue by the cannibal creeps at Terminus. And let’s be honest: At some point, in all likelihood, someone from the original cast will come up with a creative plan to defeat him. But don’t get your hopes up for a swift resolution to this latest setback for the Grimes gang, m’kay? Negan’s entrance in the season 6 finale heralded the arrival of a fearsome villain the likes of which The Walking Dead has never seen, and he’s gonna be the big swingin’ … um, bat of the zombie apocalypse for a fat chunk of the upcoming season.

Tell Us: Who do you think dies in the season 7 premiere?

The Walking Dead airs on AMC Sundays at 9 p.m. ET.

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