Watch: The Walking Dead Cast Reviews The Season 7 Premiere

Over the weekend, the cast and crew of The Walking Dead flocked to Atlanta for an annual Walker Stalker Convention in the show’s backyard.

The event was held less than week after the AMC series returned for its seventh season with one of the most brutal episodes of its run to date. The sendoff of Abraham and Glenn featured some graphic violence and a heap of heartbreak as their family watched them being beaten to death.

Fans were up in arms after learning the identity of Negan’s victim, shouting into Internet comment sections that the show was too violent in its return. As it would turn out, The Walking Dead cast members share the opinion of intense brutality but stand by the episode. ComicBook.com had the chance to catch up with a few cast members whose characters have both bowed out in prior seasons and others who live on in the apocalypse.

“It was brutal but it was also brilliant,” Morgan actor Lennie James said. “It was somewhere we had to go to stay true to our source material.”

“When Michael [Cudlitz] (Abraham) was getting killed… And when you saw Sonequa [Martin-Green]’s face, I just couldn’t,” said Enid actress Katelyn Nacon. “My eyes were watering up.”

“How could anything compare to that?” Gregory actor Xander Berkeley said. “It’s almost like you were actually witnessing friends of yours getting killed.”

“It hurt,” T-Dog actor IronE Singleton said. “It was like watching my little brothers or sisters being abused and I couldn’t do anything about it.”

“It’s weird because they’re such iconic characters,” Fear the Walking Dead‘s Lorenzo James Henrie said. “[Steven Yeun] had seven seasons under his belt. Most people don’t even get two seasons!”

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.