The Walking Dead's eighth season sounds like it's going to fully unleash Daryl Dixon.
Fans have watched along over these last eight years as Daryl has evolved beyond the bloodthirsty loner he was back in season one — but it's starting to look like he'll be regressing during All Out War with Negan.
Since Daryl spent half-a-season locked in a dungeon as one of Negan's slaves, we can certainly understand his rage. And, according to Entertainment Weekly, that rage is only growing in intensity.
"He's just got revenge on his mind this year," Norman Reedus teased. "He's ready to kill everybody, no matter what the group says, no matter what anybody says. He's just like, 'Nah, screw it. Everybody dies.' He's very focused on revenge."
This change, or regression, in Daryl signals a season that Norman promises will echo the earliest years of The Walking Dead, when the core cast largely remained together rather than strewn across various communities.
"The people I like working with the most are the ones I'm working with again," he said. "The gang's back together. The fight's back in it. Last year was so rough.
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"It didn't feel like our show and I know it is our show, and you've got to do stuff like that, but last year felt so disconnected. Everyone was so disconnected in the core group. So it feels like it used to feel again which is really exciting."
With war bringing out the primal side of Daryl, it's interesting to note that Andrew Lincoln recently tipped Rick as showing a similar disregard for his own life in the struggle with Negan.
"I think he's ready for battle. I've always said that Rick is very much like a shark. He needs to keep moving, otherwise he dies. Giving him something to do with his grief and pain is essential. Kicking Negan's ass is as good a reason as any," Lincoln said at New York Comic-Con.
"I think he's very focused. You saw him in the beginning of the scene last season on his knees, but he's a completely inverted Rick. He's a man who's willing to die. He's free for all intents and purposes."
The Walking Dead launches its eighth season on Sunday (October 22) on AMC in the US and October 23 on FOX in the UK.
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Justin is a freelance entertainment journalist and writer. He first joined Digital Spy as a freelance entertainment reporter in 2010 and also worked as a sub-editor for the brand, serving as Night News Editor from 2016 to 2024. Over more than a decade, Justin has covered numerous major entertainment events from the US and has interviewed a wide-ranging group of public figures, from comedian Steve Coogan to icons from the Star Trek universe, cast members from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and reality stars from numerous Real Housewives cities and the Below Deck franchise. Justin has also been on the ground to cover major pop culture events like the Star Wars Celebration and the D23 Expo. He's written for titles across the Hearst network, plus the likes of CBR and Us Weekly.
