AMC’s The Walking Dead is no stranger to introducing compelling new characters each season. The cast has grown from being a small group of survivors to a massive collection of unique and memorable people who occupy various settlements within the show’s canon. While not every character is as important to the larger plot of the series, they all serve as meaningful reminders that society is thriving again and that the world Rick began to rebuild will continue to grow and prosper.
Then again, not every character introduced on The Walking Dead is a good guy with a goal of reforming society. In fact, the show’s villains remain some of the most interesting figures introduced on the program, such as Alpha and Beta from the current antagonistic group The Whisperers, The Governor from seasons 3 and 4, and everyone’s favorite scoundrel, Negan.
In the sneak peak of the show’s tenth season finale, we’ve been given a glimpse of a new character with an iron mask and dual weaponry. Considering his aesthetic and defensiveness when he encounters Aaron and Alden in the clip, it’s easy to assume he may be a new adversary of some sort, though nothing has been confirmed about the character since. Either way, the new addition looks pretty cool and is sure to play an important role in some of the story threads coming up.
Of course, a few theories about the masked man have floated around since the clip first emerged. One suggests that he may be Mercer from the Commonwealth’s military, a character introduced fairly late in the original comic story. Another, meanwhile, claims he may be former Alexandria resident, Heath, who was last seen while scavenging back in season 7 before disappearing without a trace.
To date, there’s been no confirmation on just who’s behind the mask, but Aaron actor Ross Marquand has now opened up about the new mysterious character during a Comic-Con@Home panel, stating:
“It felt to me like as much of a huge introduction to a character as we saw in Season 3 with Michonne, when we see her finally come into it. It felt like that, and it was just very exciting to see it all come together. That reveal was just so exciting and scary at the same time, too, because he looks like something out of a horror movie.”
So for now, we can say we know for sure that the character is certainly male and will provide a unique element to the show when he arrives in the season 10 finale of The Walking Dead on October 4th.