Did ‘The Walking Dead’ just confirm a major fan theory?

There’s a lot to see in the Season 8 trailer for AMC’s The Walking Dead, but does THAT scene at the end spoil a huge fan theory for the show?

Earlier today, the San Diego Comic Con trailer for The Walking Dead Season 8 hit the web. It gives fans their first look at the upcoming new episodes of the long running series, and it looks pretty intense. But apart from all of the action, the most peculiar scene just may be the final one shown in the video clip.

We can see what seems to be a call back to the pilot episode of the series. Those familiar wilted flowers are laying by Rick’s hospital bed, from back when he was still in his coma. But when it shows Rick himself is when things get really weird.

We see Rick Grimes, with a full beard, laying in the bed. His hair and beard are also graying rapidly, showing that’s aging quite a bit. Let’s just say he looks a lot more like Hershel than he does Rick in the clip. But what does this all mean?

Of course, AMC isn’t giving us an explanation, because they want to get us talking. But this is a hint that one of the most popular fan theories on the show could be proven true. Have you heard the one about the zombie apocalypse all being in Rick’s head — just a fantasy his mind has been creating until he wakes up? Because it’s a very real theory which fans have been speculating for years.

Could you imagine such a reveal? An older Rick wakes up in the hospital, and is later surrounded by nurses. His gray hair could suggest he’s been sleeping for a very long time, and has been fabricating everything that’s been happening in his head the whole time. Is AMC going to give us a swerve and reveal this, putting a sudden end to the show?

Honestly, it’s not bloody likely. This, as mentioned above, is more just to get the fans talking, which is obviously has. But with plans to keep this show going for years and years more, it’s far too soon for such a reveal to happen. Chances are, this is just Rick flashing back to the start of the apocalypse in some kind of dream, and will soon enough wake back up in the much more horrifying reality he now occupies.

In any case, find out for sure when The Walking Dead returns on October 22, 2017, at 9 p.m. EST on AMC.