‘The Walking Dead’: Greg Nicotero Compares The Whisperers to Mike Myers

The Walking Dead has new villains coming to town which executive producer Greg Nicotero can compare only to Halloween horror villain legend Mike Myers.

The new group made their presence known in Episode 9×08 just before the show’s 2018 run came to a close. When it returns in February, it will be thoroughly exploring the Whisperers and what makes the terrifying group tick. While much of the villainous faction remains a mystery, Nicotero compares their lack of emotion to that of Mike Myers with good reason.

“The face doesn’t move, so you cannot judge any kind of emotion,” Nicotero told ComicBook.com on the set of The Walking Dead Episode 9×12. “So every time we shoot with a group of them, I look at them like, ‘that’s f—in’ weird, man.’”

Meanwhile, a group of Whisperers, including Samantha Morton’s Alpha, were nearby shooting a scene in the woods. Standing less than a football field away from where the cameras were rolling, it was impossible to tell which of these creepy bodies stumbling through the woods were human villains or the undead risen. The survivors can communicate with these new villains just as much as they can with the dead. “When you look at the faces… you get nothing there,” Nicotero said.

Myers of Halloween offered up the same emotionless, terrifying vibe. No matter the victim or detective, Myers would not open up and speak about his reasoning or motivation. The Whisperers might just offer up the same savagery.

One character who might particularly act similarly to Mike Myers is Beta, a character set to debut with Ryan Hurst in the role. Nicotero didn’t offer up many details about the character, other than some raw excitement for the actor’s enthusiasm regarding bizarre aspects. ” I like that he’s got the big beard, and Ryan’s a smart dude, man,” Nicotero said. “He had a lot of interesting about his costume and his character, and he’s got gold teeth that we made dentures. He’s like, ‘It’s not in the script, but can you make me some gold teeth?’” They did.

Of course, being a Whisperer is no easy feat for the show’s new stars or the extras accompanying them. “It’s challenging,” Nicotero says. “It’s pushing them to this whole new place of like, you gotta act, but it’s 110 degrees in your head, and you’re sweating. But they all love it.” On the day of ComicBook.com’s set visit, the Georgia sun was beating straight down on a 91 degree day, prompting a friendly little back sweat the moment any steps were taken.

The Walking Dead TV series returns for the back half of its ninth season on February 10, 2019 at 9 pm ET. Fear the Walking Dead will return for its fifth season in 2019. For complete coverage and insider info all year long, follow @BrandonDavisBD on Twitter and watch ComicBook.com’s After The Dead each Sunday night following new episodes.