The Walking Dead season 8 promotes three characters to series regular status

The characters will likely be handed more screen time in the upcoming batch of episodes

The Walking Dead may have just ended for another year, but production on its eighth season is about to begin - and three recurring characters have just been promoted to lead star status.

With three main characters failing to make it out of season alive (a moment of silence for Abraham, Glenn and Sasha), there were three spots to fill: these have been allocated to The Scavengers leader Jadis (Pollyanna McIntosh), Negan's right-hand man Simon (Steven Ogg) and Enid (Katelyn Nacon) will all have their roles expanded in time for the all out war storyline which commenced in the recent season finale.

Jadis was last seen betraying Rick (Andrew Lincoln) in his battle against The Saviours, while Simon - seen in season seven harassing Hilltop's former leader Gregory (Xander Berkeley) - will most likely step into the shoes of Negan's former ally Dwight (Austin Amelio), no working undercover for Alexandria.

Enid - the teenage love interest of Carl (Chandler Riggs) - has appeared on the show since season five.

The characters who failed to make the series regular cut this time around are Father Gabriel (Seth Gilliam), Jesus (Tom Payne) and Ross Marquand (Aaron).

While The Walking Dead saw a dip in ratings across its seventh season, it still remains one of the most-watched dramas currently on television.

It'll return in the UK and US this October.