Parents Television Council Says The Walking Dead Crossed The Line

Spoilers for The Walking Dead Season 7 premiere follow.

The Walking Dead‘s Season 7 premiere was, undoubtedly, the most brutal and graphically violent episode of the AMC series to date. Following up on the biggest cliffhanger in recent years stemming from the Season 6 finale, the new episode saw not one but two core characters get their heads bashed in by Negan’s “vampire bat” laced with barbed wire.

The show did not shy away from showing the brutality of people losing their heads to a bat, sparking a ton of controversy over whether or not the show had gone too far. If you thought the episode was too much for TV, you were not alone.

The Parents Television Council is condemning the recent episode of The Walking Dead. In a interview with THR, PTC president Tim Winters sounded off about the TV MA show.

“Last night’s season premiere of The Walking Dead was one of the most graphically violent shows we’ve ever seen on television, comparable to the most violent of programs found on premium cable networks,” Winter said. “It’s not enough to ‘change the channel,’ as some people like to advocate, because cable subscribers — regardless of whether they want AMC or watch its programming — are still forced to subsidize violent content. This brutally explicit show is a powerful demonstration of why families should have greater control over the TV networks they purchase from their cable and satellite providers.”

Winter went further to clarify where his statements are coming from, citing the guidelines for TV ratings and claiming The Walking Dead overstepped their bounds.

“When you look at definition of MA and what content of the show is, it’s unquestionable they chose what best represented the content,” Winter said. “This certainly raises question of if there should be an even more severe rating than TV MA.”

The Walking Dead‘s timeslot allows it to get away with a bit more blood and gore than a show which might air a bit earlier but is still a hour shy of earning any F-words or other things of the sort.

“I understand violence is inherent to the storytelling here but the manner in which the depictions were made … it crossed the line,” Winter concluded.

Executive producer Greg Nicotero is standing by episode. Speaking to ComicBook.com on Monday morning, Nicotero – who also directed the premiere – told his side of the story.

“It’s unfortunate that people want to take a negative spin on it because as far as I’m concerned I’m dedicated to watching a show to see where it goes next,” Nicotero said. “That means we have done something to affect these people in a way they don’t necessarily know how to process.”

MORE on The Walking Dead season 7 premiere:

Kingdom Preview Released / Norman Reedus On Daryl’s Future / Season 7 Premiere Recap (SPOILERS) / Who Is King Ezekiel / Where’s Daryl Now? / Negan’s Comic Book History /Twitter Reactions to Negan’s Kill / Was the Premiere Too Violent?

The Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on AMC. For complete coverage and insider info all season long, follow @BrandonDavisBD on Twitter.