The Walking Dead season 8 premiere: Who is John Bernecker - the stuntman episode 1 was in loving memory of

The show's 100th episode was in loving memory of two people

The Walking Dead season eight has begun with an episode we described as “taut, thrilling and disarmingly optimistic" (full review here).

Viewers will also have noticed that the episode was 'in loving memory of' two people - one is George Romero, the Night of the Living Dead filmmaker attributed with pioneering the zombie genre (despite his candid views on the series). The other was a man called John Bernecker - but who is he?

Bernecker was the veteran stunt performer and fight choreographer who passed away after falling more than 20 feet off a balcony onto a concrete floor back in July 2017. Production on season eight was halted after the incident which saw Bernecker suffer a serious head injury - his family later removed him from life support.

His extensive list of credits included Get Out, Logan and forthcoming Marvel film Black Panther.

Upon his passing, showrunner Scott Gimple said: “Our production is heartbroken by the tragic loss of John Bernecke. John’s work on The Walking Dead and dozens of other movies and shows will continue to entertain and excite audiences for generations. We are grateful for his contributions, and all of us send our condolences, love, and prayers to John’s family and friends.”

The show's stars, including Norman Reedus (Daryl), Jeffrey Dean Morgan (Negan) and Lauren Cohan (Maggie), all paid touching tribute to Bernecker following his tragic death.

You can now watch the trailer for the eighth season's second episode.

The Walking Dead season eight continues in the US next Sunday on AMC and airs in the UK tonight (23 October) on FOX and NOW TV at 9pm.

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