Greg Nicotero Reveals Most Exciting Aspect of 'The Walking Dead' Season 9

With changes on the horizon for The Walking Dead, the team behind the AMC series is particularly excited about a few upcoming aspects of the zombie drama.

Speaking to members of the press at San Diego Comic Con, the cast and crew were asked to describe some of the new elements of the series coming up and why now is the time for them. As revealed in the extended look at the new episodes, the Whisperers are on their way to the AMC show as well as several new locations.

"We're super proud of the trailer," executive producer Greg Nicotero said. "I watched it as we were cutting it together numerous times, and we really wanted to come out of the gate this year showing you guys that the show has been reinvented. We get to see Washington, D.C. and that great shot of Rick on horseback riding through and bashing the head in of a walker. So, with the new characters that we saw in the trailer and just that little tease at the end, for me personally I think it's one of the most exciting times that has been on the show in a long time because we have this new threat. It was really well-introduced in the comic book and it was something really exciting. Knowing that we did that little bit of a tease, I love that that's where the show is headed. It's just different. It's something we've never done before."

Chief content officer Scott Gimple offered some insight about what to expect when the show returns under the helming of new showrunner Angela Kang.

"It's a slightly new timeline," Gimple said. "It is a new interpersonal kind of issues that lead not only to different kind of conflicts, but seeing character combinations so deeply sort of tied up with each other, that even though we've seen these characters for years and years, we just haven't seen this. There's so much new in this. I've worked on this with Angela to get things going in a support capacity, but I will say I've never been more of, like, a fan than I have before I was on the show. I see dailies a little bit, but I get to watch the shows new, almost like as the first fan, which is a heavy, heavy responsibility."

Nicotero added on to Gimple's remarks, complimenting the stars of The Walking Dead. "I will also say that the level of commitment to the actors," Nicotero said. "There was a particular scene that Andy and Norman shot together, and they rehearsed it over and over again. They spent so much time, because we have these great opportunities to put these characters together that have a great chemistry that we want to see where their relationships are going. This season so far, we've really had the opportunity to explore them."

The new dynamics have incited more behind-the-scenes banter than recent years, it seems.

"So, we're always on the phone talking about scenes, and 'What do you think about this line?' and 'How about this?' 'I love where this is gonna go,'" Nicotero said. "It feels like the level of collaboration and the level of dedication. When these guys, I would walk past our screening room and him and Norman would be in there working on a scene. Then it wasn't shooting for a week, but they were really just, really wanting it to be great. That was amazing to me to know that still after nine years, they want it to be great. They want it to be great for you."

Fear the Walking Dead returns for the back half of its fourth season on August 12th at 9 pm ET on AMC. The Walking Dead returns for its ninth season on October 7th. For more updates and insider info all year long, follow @BrandonDavisBD on Twitter!