Things look dingy for Rick Grimes and his party right now and it appears there is no end to their suffering, as "The Walking Dead" is scheduled to continue for at least another season. The production has already confirmed "The Walking Dead" season 8 and here are the details that you need to know before it airs.

AMC officially confirmed an eighth season of its monster hit "The Walking Dead" in October 2016, before the seventh season had even launched. Charlie Collier, president of AMC, SundanceTV and AMC Studios in a statement said that it is always a joy to collaborate with Robert Kirkman, Scott M. Gimple and the hardest-working people in television to give "The Walking Dead" to the fans. "The Walking Dead" Season 8 will have 16 episodes.

Negan will definitely return for more evil mischief in "The Walking Dead" season 8. Comicbook reported that actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan, who had the strong task of bringing the infamous baddie from the comics to our TV screens, confirmed his return. He said that he knows he will on board for season 8.

Maria Bello, a Golden Globe nominee and self-confessed "The Walking Dead" obsessed has implied that she might be joining the show as a new character. Digital Spy quoted the actress saying that she asked her friend who is one of the show's producer to give her a part.

There is a great possibility that there may be a prequel episode in season eight, exploring Negan's past, reformed from the comic mini-series "Here's Negan." As for Rick's ongoing war with Negan, in the original comics, after an extensive and bloody battle, Rick finally gets the better of his nemesis at the conclusion of the story arc "All Out War" by cutting Negan's throat. He lives as Rick's prisoner, and then we leap two years forward, with civilization at Alexandria and Hilltop reconstructed subsequently to the conflict.

However, there is another dreadful threat prowling beyond Negan and the Saviors. In the comic series, it later presents the Whisperers. These survivors dress themselves in the skin of zombies because they believe humanity learns to live according to the powers of nature. The AMC official Instagram appeared to tease the arrival of Alpha and the Whisperers with a post featuring a guillotined head on a pike. This leaves fans to wonder if the Whisperers are the big bads in "The Walking Dead" season 8.