The Walking Dead Showrunner Promises Conclusive Finale

03/18/2017 09:26 am EDT

Everyone remembers the cliffhanger. Negan brought his bat down on The Walking Dead's sixth season and the world was left wondering who the AMC series' new villain killed.

With only three episodes remaining in the show's seventh season, fans are beginning to wonder if the team behind the zombie drama will leave them with another question mark for the off-season.

Speaking to showrunner Scott Gimple ahead of The Walking Dead's PaleyFest panel, ComicBook.com wanted to know just that and how the Season 6 finale's reaction from fans influenced the ending to Season 7.

UP NEXT: Full TWD PaleyFest Panel Recap

"We never want to do the exact same thing we did the previous season, however much it would've been interesting to see how people would've reacted to do just another giant cliffhanger with, 'Who's gonna die this time?' That would've been repeating ourselves," Gimple said. "In the spirit of trying to do it differently every season, this is a more conclusive ending and, in some ways, it's kind of the ending of the last two seasons while still promising this big story coming up. I just put the finishing touches on the last episode and I hope that the audience finds the ending as satisfying as I did."

The Season 7 finale will be Episode 99 for The Walking Dead, meaning that the "conclusive" episode will lead into Season 8's Episode 100. While Gimple can't reveal any story points heading into the milestone episode, he does have a vision for it (and beyond) which he is eager to share.

"What I'm hoping for the season premiere to be next year is the kick off of the next 100 episodes," Gimple said. "The promise of more story and another future. Every 8 episodes we try to reinvent ourselves and we're going to try and do it again in a way that's very pronounced and I hope people dig it."

MORE WALKING DEAD: Andrew Lincoln's Amazing Series Ending Idea / Melissa McBride Wants A Rick/Carol Reunion / Lennie James On Morgan And Rick Going Forward / Will Carol Kill Negan? / Why Carol Does Not Blame Daryl For Lying

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

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