The Walking Dead season 8 now has an official premiere date. They say war is hell, but one could argue that Rick Grimes and his ragtag group of zombie apocalypse survivors have already been through hell and come back many times over. Over the course of The Walking Dead's 7 previous seasons, Rick and company have fought off a band of cannibals, tangled with self-proclaimed wolves, and battled a mad governor, losing friends and family members along the way. Oh, and that's all without mentioning the omnipresent threat that a swarm of walkers could conceivably eat any one of them at anytime.

Still, the greatest challenge to ever face Rick's group is no doubt the sadistic Saviors, and their psychopathic leader Negan. So fearsome and vicious is Negan that the normally badass Rick tried his best to adjust to a life of servitude under the thumb of the despotic ruler. There's really no pleasing Negan completely though, and as Rick would soon find out, even the slightest infraction against Negan's rules can lead to people losing their lives.

This Friday, The Walking Dead season 8 invades Hall H at the annual San Diego Comic-Con event, and fans in attendance are expected to be treated to the first footage from the new season. An actual premiere date for season 8 hadn't been announced ahead of the event, but a banner inside the SDCC venue has now revealed when fans can expect to see more undead action (see below). The Walking Dead season 8 premieres on Sunday, October 22.

This means that October 22 will in fact be when Rick and Negan's all-out war commences. Of course, that war won't be without casualties, and before The Walking Dead season 8 premiere is done, fans may very well be longing for the days when only Glenn and Abraham had died at the business end of Negan's bat. Still, Rick and company have been through hell before and come out the other side. There's no reason to believe that they can't do it once again.

As for The Walking Dead and SDCC, both Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead - the spinoff TV show that is currently in the middle of its third season - will be present and accounted for at this year's 'Con, along with their fellow AMC comic book adaptation Preacher. You can expect the first proper trailer for The Walking Dead season 8 to drop online either during or right after the show's SDCC panel, this weekend.

NEXT: All the Big TV Shows Being Presented at SDCC 2017

The Walking Dead season 8 premieres October 22 on AMC.

Source: AMC