After the episode aired, some fans began speculating that this junkyard group is actually the Whisperers, and that their leader Jadis – played by Pollyanna McIntosh – is actually the boss of the Whisperers, Alpha.

For those who don’t read the comics, the Whisperers are the next major antagonist after the threat of Negan and the Saviors have been dealt with. They end up killing characters such as Rosita and Ezekiel.

They dress themselves in the skin of zombies for camouflage and to walk among the walkers. This group targets the living, believing the undead should be left unharmed.

But what does McIntosh make of the fan theory?

“I’ve heard a lot of rumours about Alpha from the fans, but I don’t know anything about them,” she told The Hollywood Reporter.

“I knew that wasn’t my character, and I didn’t want to sully my performance by reading the comics for the first time.”

McIntosh added that the producers have not told her anything about Alpha or the Whisperers.

“I don’t know anything at all,” she said. “All I heard is fan rumours. As far as talking to producers or anyone on the show, it’s never come up.

“I don’t know anything about her. I just know it’s not me.”

The Whisperers probably won’t emerge until the end of season eight or during season nine, following the timeline of the TV series.

Talking Dead host Chris Hardwick makes a point to correct Andrew Lincoln’s Star Wars reference when it comes to that scene between Rick and Winslow.

When The Walking Dead’s Andrew Lincoln compared his battle with Walker Winslow to a scene from Star Wars, Talking Dead host Chris Hardwick was quick to correct him in a good humored way.

Hardwick points out that everyone knows that the epic battle scene between Luke Skywalker and the Rancor was in Return of the Jedi, not Star Wars. (Please note the italics on the word “everyone” because that is meant to be tongue in cheek. Just to clarify…)

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It’s quite possible that Lincoln was thinking of the scene where Luke, Han Solo, Chewbacca, and Princess Leia end up fighting a monster in a trash compactor. That scene was indeed inA New Hope, the first movie of the originalStar Wars trilogy and it is very a propos given that Rick is battling a monster in the middle of a garbage heap.

Lincoln also references Mad Max and Star Trek, and it’s true that the Scavengers’ home is a lot like the desolate wasteland of the  Mad Max universe. And Rick’s battle with Winslow was also a lot like Captain Kirk’s fight against the Gorn in Star Trek.

That fight scene also reminds me of Tim Allen’s epic battle against the Rock Monster inGalaxy Quest.