‘The Walking Dead’ Season 5: Robert Kirkman Teases New Big Bad on the Horizon

The fourth season finale of AMC's 'The Walking Dead' left our heroic survivors in something of a pretty pickle, more literally than you might think, but the fifth season might bring about the biggest bad of all. Find out what series creator Robert Kirkman had to say about the fifth season potentially introducing a famous comic villain even worse than the Governor!

You're warned of potential spoilers both from 'The Walking Dead' and its literary counterpart, but now that the Governor is officially dead and gone, and Rick prepares to deal with those hungry Terminus folk, fans have already begun looking forward to future antagonists. Specifically, the character of Negan has come up a number of times, and while showrunner Scott Gimple expressed an eventual intent to use the character, Kirkman told MTV News that more discussions than we might have thought have already happened.

Even as a pipe dream, what does Kirkman have to say about fan suggestions pushing 'Mad Men''s Jon Hamm for the villainous role?

He's not tall enough! That's a joke. I think Jon Hamm would be perfect. I think after 'Mad Men' has run, Jon Hamm is going to have a Tom Hanks-level film career, so I don't think he'll be coming back to television anytime soon. Although that would be cool!

As far as Negan casting goes, Scott and I are always talking about who we would put in that, it's definitely on our minds, and there are definitely a lot of candidates. But I wouldn't expect Negan too terribly soon, although he is definitely in the plan. It's a 99% lock that he's going to be in the show eventually, so be on the lookout for that.

Either way, we're wondering how far into the fifth season writers intend to push the Terminus story, considering Rick and his caged group of survivors would presumably plan an escape attempt (or at least some bloody revenge) at a moment's notice. We'd imagine at least the back eight episodes put the remaining survivors on the path to a new sanctuary, so it isn't inconceivable to think a new villain pops up before the fifth season finale, Negan or no.

Well, what do you think? Could Kirkman and Gimple be keeping coy about a Negan appearance with good reason? Who would you want to see take on the villainous role? Sound off in the comments with your suggestions, and tell us what you want to see from 'The Walking Dead' season 5!