The Walking Dead: Why Negan Is Such A Threat According To Norman Reedus

Negan might just be one of the most iconic villains to ever hit the small screen. The antagonist made his debut in the Season 6 finale of The Walking Dead, and he instilled fear into the hearts of millions. With the show set to return for Season 7 next month, cast members are speaking out about the horrifying character - and Norman Reedus definitely thinks Negan is a threat.

The actor described Negan as a "cold-blooded killer" who has the numbers to back-up his smack talk. "He's got an army of people who all call themselves Negan. They are doing everything he says. There's no way around that right now," he said. "How is Negan able to stop this group in its tracks where others have failed?"

Norman went on to pinpoint Negan's greatest weapon, and that is fear. The actor said, "Fear is a bigger motivator than love or revenge or anything else. He is putting fear in people and that does wonders. It is particularly cruel because he uses a nursery rhyme. He's not remorseful and it's not personal. It's just going to happen...just to keep the order."

Of course, fans are familiar with Negan and his love for power moves. The end of Season 6 saw Negan bashing the head of an unknown member of Rick's group just to prove his strength. Unwilling to breed rebellion, Negan puts Rick and his friends in their place with gory retaliation.

In a recent interview, Norman talked about said filming the latter half of Negan's cliffhanger was exhausting. "It was no fun," the actor admitted.

"You know, we always come back to this show every season, and we're like, 'Yeah, let's get back into it!' You know, all the actors are excited to be here and see each other and get back into where they were. But this was one of those where it's like, 'Oh, f—. Here we go.' It was definitely not a joyous reunion. I mean, it was nice to see everybody again, of course, but it wasn't the same as in previous years."

Norman even told fans how he felt Negan was affecting Rick's group following the Season 6 shocker. The actor described the fallout of the bloody encounter and said each character on The Walking Dead reacts differently to Negan's entrance.

"It affects the group completely differently," Norman said. "You know, everyone, it affects them differently. Some relinquish power. Some accept it. Some fight it. There are people questioning it. There are people pointing their fingers. There are people blaming themselves. Other things happen that completely destroy people. The group is completely broken apart at this point. Negan has come in and completely shaken up everything. Loyalties are broken, belief in one another, belief in ourselves. Each individual is completely broken, and they don't all handle it the exact same way."

The Walking Dead will return for its seventh season October 23 at 9 PM ET on AMC.