The Walking Dead: Andrew Lincoln On What Negan Brings To Season 7

If you ask Andrew Lincoln who the biggest baddie on The Walking Dead, he's going to say it's Negan. The leather-clad leader is one violent dude, and he's clearly not afraid to bash in some heads to prove a point. The actor recently shared his thoughts on the notorious villain, and Andrew says that Rick Grimes has met his match with Negan.

During a recent Q&A, Andrew was asked whether he thought Rick had met his match, and the actor said "without a doubt. Everything is changed. The playing field has irrevocably changed."

Andrew went on to say Negan will bring a lot to Season 7 when it premieres as well. "We are seven years in and we are only unleashing now probably the greatest villain of the series. It's a very thrilling and exciting time. It does feel like we are smashing everything and starting over."

And, according to Andrew, Negan proves to be a much bigger threat than past villains. While The Governor was more about secrets and sly dealings, the actor said that Negan is someone who is "very clear" about his actions.

"You didn't know what the Governor was doing," Andrew explained. "Negan is very clear. He is very open with the people he meets. There is a charm, but there is a terrifying logic as well."

Of course, Andrew isn't the only actor who has said Negan is a major threat. Norman Reedus described the character as a "cold-blooded killer" during a recent Q&A. The actor said Negan had a tool in his arsenal that made him so feared - and, no, Norman wasn't talking about Lucille.

Instead, the actor said Negan ruled his Saviors and even Rick's group through fear.

The actor said, "Fear is a bigger motivator than love or revenge or anything else. He is putting fear in people and that does wonders. It is particularly cruel because he uses a nursery rhyme. He's not remorseful and it's not personal. It's just going to happen...just to keep the order."

When asked about Season 7 of The Walking Dead, Norman said that everything "looks really bad. It looks like they are about to have a complete change of lifestyle."

The Walking Dead Season 7 premieres Oct. 23 at 9 p.m. ET. If you want to check out the brand-new synopsis of Season 7, you can read it below:

Up until this point, our characters have lived through conflicts... Disease, hunger, scores of the undead, tragedy, betrayal, and unthinkable loss. Through this, they've become formidable. Powerful. Unstoppable.

To start Season Seven, that power is taken away. They had found safety and stability. They had created a home. They thought the world was theirs. They thought they knew the world. They were wrong.

The first half of Season Seven sees our group fractured, broken, bereaved, and picking up the pieces while living under the thumb of oppression. Negan will have successfully brought the survivors under his control, brutally convincing them to live under his rules with a deadly and horrific example of what happens if they don't.

Other characters are unaware of what's happened, but have become separated from the group either by incident or choice -- they will learn that they can't escape this new turn of their world, either. This half season is about these characters starting over.

The overall theme of the season is beginning again. The world isn't what they thought it was. It's bigger and it's even more dangerous.