The Walking Dead season 7: First sneak peek throws fan favourite's safety into doubt

Does this 50-second clip provide proof of who Negan killed?

Having dropped a tantalising trailer and a batch of new images, producers of The Walking Dead have gone one further and released a sneak peek of the upcoming season.

The 50-second clip is - upon the first watch, anyway - sparse in content and places villainous Saviour Dwight (Austin Amelio) front and centre.

However, as the footage begins, you'd be forgiven for thinking Dwight was actually another Walking Dead character - namely, fan favourite Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus); when we first see Dwight, he's riding the latter's beloved motorcycle.

A few select shots also show Dwight is wearing Daryl's vest.

Naturally, the short clip is designed to make viewers question whether it was Daryl who the Saviours' leader, Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) killed in the closing moments of season 6.

We know that Dwight has a particularly intense vendetta against Daryl following their first encounter in the episode "Always Accountable" in which he steals Daryl's motorcycle and crossbow. We later see Dwight attempt to kill Daryl with his own weapon, instead accidentally striking Denise (Merritt Wever) through the eye.

But now he's added Daryl's vest to his loot; what exactly is Dwight's game? Has he picked up an extra souvenir following Daryl's death? Time will tell.

The Walking Dead season 7 will air in the US from 22 October. Episodes will air the following night on FOX in the UK.