‘The Walking Dead’ season 8
Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and Michonne (Danai Gurira) return this October for ‘The Walking Dead’ season 8. AMC/The Walking Dead

The titles “The Walking Dead” season 9 episodes and their directors have been revealed. The premiere episode will be “A New Beginning,” after the time jump.

According to a report by ComicBook.com, the script of the first episode has been written by the new showrunner Angela Kang. Kang is not a newcomer to the show and has been a part of it, working as a writer and a producer.

The titles of the other episodes are “The Bridge,” “Warning Signs,” “The Obliged,” “”What Comes After,” “Who Are You Now,” “Stradivarius,” and “Evolution.” The directors are Daisy Mayer, Dan Liu, Rosemary Rodriguez, Greg Nicotero, Larry Teng, and Michael Cudlitz.

The big, confirmed exits in the next season are that of Andrew Lincoln (Rick Grimes) and Lauren Cohan (Maggie). Rick will reportedly leave in the fifth episode titled “What Comes After.” It remains to be seen how and why the character will exit the show.

According to a report by Insider, Cohan will exit in episode six, right after Rick leaves. Cohan teased in anther interview that a lot happens in the sixth episode. The actress also teased that her character’s story has been left open-ended, with a possibility of her return sometime in the future. While Maggie may return, it doesn’t mean that she will not die on the show.

The good news is that Maggie may get some additional screen time on the show. Nicotero said that they wanted to concentrate on giving Maggie a great story, knowing that she will be leaving. The producer too teased that this story will be left open-ended.

“The Walking Dead” season 9 will premiere on Oct. 7. The plot of the show will take the heroes to Washington, D.C. The big villain faction this time around is a mysterious group known as the Whisperers.