The Walking Dead Season 10 Premiere Features a Jaws Easter Egg

The Walking Dead's Greg Nicotero is quite good at what he does in part because he is a true fan of the horror genre and good cinema. What he does is come up with some of the make-up gags and set pieces on AMC's zombie series, so the fact that he snuck a Jaws reference into the Season 10 premiere of The Walking Dead which he directed should come as no surprise. It's not the first time Nicotero has pulled off such a feat -- and the director/executive producer opened up about ahead of the episode's debut set for this Sunday night.

"There's a lot of cool stuff that's in there. In the first episode there a few little nods," Nicotero told EW. "I wouldn't even necessarily say tribute zombies, but I'm always putting a few Easter eggs here or there just to remind people how much I love certain things. So there could be a shark tooth on the beach that might've been from a shark from my favorite movie. You never know. A few things like that. But in terms of tribute walkers, this season really has kind of led us in a direction where a lot of the stuff with the Whisperers and a lot of that stuff, we haven't really snuck any in just yet. But we still got a bunch of episodes to go so we'll see."

Of course, this Sunday's episode also marks the beginning of the end for Danai Gurira on The Walking Dead as the upcoming tenth season will be her last as Michonne. It's something which is tricky for the team behind the series to discuss as a means to not ruin the details of her exit.

"Well, it's a little hard to talk about a lot of that stuff, because we want to preserve those stories," Nicotero said. "But the truth of the matter is, every character that leaves the show, we always feel like we have to send them off with respect and with this sense of love that we have for their characters. I directed Danai in a couple of her first episodes, so I felt like I was one of the first people here to really meet her and one of the first people here to get to direct her. So watching her as a writer and as a producer and a creator, to watch her evolve has been a fascinating experience for me."

What's your favorite Easter egg or pop culture reference in a previous episode of The Walking Dead? Share it in the comment section or send it my way on Instagram or Twitter!

The Walking Dead returns for its tenth season on October 6.