After an agonising wait for fans, The Walking Dead is finally airing its long-awaited season 10 finale, though some fans are now calling it a "faux-nale" following the announcement that six "bonus" episodes will now actually round off the season next year.

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The landmark season of the zombie drama was put on hiatus as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, with US broadcaster AMC pushing the finale from April to October.

The next episode is called 'A Certain Doom' and a new teaser suggests it will live up to its name, opening with series veteran Daryl saying: "We're not all gonna make it through."

But if you think you know how the episode might go down, think again; producer Greg Nicotero has hinted at a big surprise, saying that "people's jaws are going to drop" when they see how it unfolds.

Here's everything you need to know about The Walking Dead season 10 finale.

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When will The Walking Dead season 10 finale air?

The finale was due to air on 12th April in the US, but this is no longer the case, with the production team announcing that the finale will instead air as a special on Sunday, 4th October 4th at 9/8c on AMC in the US and on Monday, 5th October at 9pm on FOX in the UK.

And, confusingly, the finale won't be the last we've seen of season 10. Speaking at The Walking Dead's Comic-Con@Home panel, showrunner Angela Kang revealed that there will be six extra season 10 episodes created to run in 2021.

"We will not be airing season 11 episodes this year as we normally would in October, but we're excited to announce an extended season 10, where there will be six extra episodes to follow the finale," she said. "Those will run in early 2021 if all goes well. We're working on those now and will have more to share soon."

It's unclear why creating six extra season 10 episodes would be easier than beginning work on season 11, though this could be to do with already-planned storylines that don't need a lot of crowd scenes.

Why is The Walking Dead finale delayed?

A statement by AMC read: "Current events have unfortunately made it impossible to complete post-production of The Walking Dead season 10 finale, so the current season will end with its 15th episode on 5th April."

Executive producer Greg Nicotero clarified the statement with one of his own: "Post production for those who are curious involves VFX, music, sound mixing and sound FX.

"This process usually goes up to about three weeks from air date. I'm finding out about this same time you guys are and it's disappointing but the episode will not disappoint. Be safe everyone."

"Obviously COVID has disrupted a lot of things for every workplace, including ours," showrunner Angela Kang later said during the Comic-Con@Home panel for The Walking Dead, adding that the change meant that season 11 of The Walking Dead would be delayed.

"The writers' room for season 11 has been going remotely the past few months. We haven't been able to start production but we will get back to work as soon as we safely can.

Instead, spin-off Fear the Walking Dead's latest season will begin in October alongside new series The Walking Dead: World Beyond.

The Walking Dead season 10 finale trailer

The first full-length trailer for the finale came courtesy of FOX TV UK in July, following The Walking Dead's Comic-Con@Home panel.

More recently, a new teaser is ramping up the hype even further for an epic night of Walking Dead, where at least one character on the show looks set for a gruesome death.

"We're not all gonna make it through," Daryl tells the ragtag group of survivors, as they prepare for an epic face-off against an incoming horde.

The trailer also reveals Maggie Rhee (Lauren Cohan) will finally be back, but whether or not she can help Daryl et al is still a mystery.

Sunday 4th October is billed as a "special event" for The Walking Dead, as it also sees the long-awaited debut of spin-off series World Beyond, starring Julia Ormond (Gold Digger).

What will happen in The Walking Dead season 10 finale?

A first look at a scene from the finale shows Beta (Ryan Hurst) and his army getting ready to attack the hospital full of survivors - and it's possible not everyone will make it out alive.

Producer Greg Nicotero previously spoke to Fandom about the series finale, which he promised would include a jaw-dropping final two minutes that "tees us up" for season 11.

‘There are a lot of character storylines that are [wrapped up]. You get little bits of information here, here, and here. You want [to] end that chapter and start the next chapter in the finale," he said.

He revealed, "We address lots of stuff with Daryl, we address lots of stuff with Negan, we address lots of stuff with Beta, we address lots of stuff with Carol."

The finale will also see the return of Lauren Cohan's Maggie Rhee, as revealed some time ago.

"She's coming back," Cohan said during the show's Comic-Con@Home panel. "It's not just a visit. She's moving from pen pals to real life friends. She and Carol have been in communication. And it's good that she's coming back.

"It felt like I never really left," she added. "I spent a whole month catching up with everyone. When it came time to reinhabit Maggie and act, I wasn't overwhelmed by the crazy excitement of seeing everyone. It was amazing."

Lauren Cohan as Maggie Rhee - The Walking Dead
Lauren Cohan will return as Maggie Rhee in the series finale Jackson Lee Davis/AMC

"It’s already been revealed that Maggie’s return is in the finale, and it tees us up very well for season 11 that it’s a little agonising for me to not be able to talk about" added Nicotero. "Because the last two minutes of the finale are going to just… People’s jaws are going to drop."

Could this mean that there'll be a huge twist waiting for viewers at the end of the episode?

Series showrunner Angela Kang also delved into some of the finale's storylines during an interview with Entertainment Weekly.

“We'll see some more of the new characters as they're featured this season, and we will see more of the epic conflict we've been witnessing all season with the survivors and the Whisperers,” she said. “And we'll see that Maggie is. We'll know what's happened with her and what that means for our group."

Meanwhile, in July, Kang expanded on this with some more information about the power dynamic we'll see play out in the finale.

Speaking on AMC’s Friday Night in With the Morgans, she said, “Obviously, we’ve got this new power group of four with Princess and Ezekiel and Eugene and Yumiko who are off on the road. We’re going to see some interesting turns in that.”

And she added, "Now that Alpha’s gone and Beta is having to step up into that leadership role with his kind of half Alpha/Beta face, we’re going to see our people take their stand against Beta and the Whisperers."

And it looks like all of the show's major players will appear prominently in the action, with Kang further commenting, "There’s some pretty cool things going on with Negan. We’ve got Carol kind of in her quest for redemption. We’ve got some awesome stuff with Father Gabriel. We know that we’re waiting for the return of Maggie. Daryl has got some awesome business going on. It’s the whole cast. Everybody’s great.”

You can take a look at some first-look images from the finale below to further whet your appetite:

The Walking Dead
AMC

The first-look images gives us a glimpse of Daryl (Norman Reedus) and Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), the pair of whom can be seen chatting in the picture below.

The Walking Dead
AMC

And in slightly more scary news, we also see the leader of the Whisperers - and he certainly looks frightening - teasing an epic conclusion to the series.

The Walking Dead
AMC

Watch The Walking Dead season 10 in the UK

Once the finale does come around, it will be available on FOX UK and NOW TV for British fans who will be chomping at the bit for zombie action by the time it eventually comes around.

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