‘The Walking Dead’ Kills Off Spoiler in Shocking Twist

The Whisperers have officially reached The Walking Dead, and they've claimed their first major victim.

As revealed in Sunday's mid-season finale, the new enemy group sew themselves into the skins of walkers to move freely among the dead, taking advantage of their deceptive camouflage to catch their prey off guard — a ploy that worked on interim Hilltop leader Jesus (Tom Payne), who was stabbed and killed by a Whisperer posing as a mindless walker.

Jesus' fate is borrowed from the comics' Darius, a little-seen Alexandrian who is on horseback when he suffers multiple stab wounds from a Whisperer disguised as a walker. The comics would also see Aaron later stabbed by Whisperer Beta, who tells him, "You should not have come here."

Unlike Jesus, Aaron would survive his wounds. In the show, Jesus is run through with a blade by a Whisperer who warned him, "You are where you do not belong."

Emerging as the first major threat in the post-Negan era, the Whisperers of Robert Kirkman's comic book series were responsible for more than a dozen deaths of noteworthy characters, including King Ezekiel of the Kingdom and a pregnant Rosita.

Of their comic book victims, some have been long dead in the television series: Olivia (played in the show by Ann Mahoney) died in Season Seven, shot in the face by Savior Arat (Elizabeth Ludlow), and Savior doctor Carson (Tim Parati) burned alive later that same season when he was thrown into a furnace by Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan).

Erin (Tiffany Morgan), another Alexandrian whose comic book counterpart was killed by the Whisperers, died in Season Six as a victim of the invading Wolves. Other comic book victims of the Whisperers included Amber (played in the show by Autumn Dial), one of Negan's "wives," Alexandrian teen Josh, and Hilltoppers Larry, Oscar, Samuel, and Doug.

Also killed by Whisperer leader Alpha (to be played in the show by Samantha Morton) is Ken, whose comic book story is currently playing out with Eugene (Josh McDermitt). In the show, Ken (A.J. Achinger) was killed in the Season Nine premiere after he was bitten by a walker and kicked by a horse.

Other significant victims included Luke — who joined the show midway through Season Nine, played by Dan Fogler — and Tammy Rose, whose live-action counterpart remains a member of the Hilltop colony (played by Brett Butler) and wife of blacksmith Earl (John Finn).

Father Gabriel (played in the show by Seth Gilliam) also fell victim to Beta (to be played by Ryan Hurst), who brutally stabbed Gabriel and left him to die at the gnawing mouths of an approaching herd of walkers, who quickly left behind nothing but bones.

The back half of The Walking Dead Season Nine, returning in 2019, is expected to adapt a major turning point from the comics, which revealed Alpha and her Whisperers murdered numerous members of the Alexandria, Hilltop, and Kingdom communities during a celebratory fair, later erecting a border made out of spikes — each decorated with the decapitated and reanimated heads of the victims.

It remains to be seen if Ezekiel (Khary Payton) and Rosita (Christian Serratos) will receive their comic book deaths on the pikes, as showrunner Angela Kang has teased the television series will "remix" the fan-favorite storyline to keep it fresh for comic book readers.

The Walking Dead returns with the back half of Season Nine in early 2019.