Fans got quite the shock in The Walking Dead mid-season finale, but Robert Kirkman might've given them a small sliver of hope.

Kirkman appeared with several members of the cast on a Walker Stalker Cruise Q&A panel. One of the questions regarded Carl Grimes, who was revealed to have been bitten by a walker. The show is definitely hinting that this will be Carls last hurrah, but Kirkman threw out a small chance he might make it.

"He's not dead yet," Kirkman said. "He might not die. You never know. But I think if, were that to happen, I think that it would have some interesting ramifications on Rick, that I think would energize and really kind of set things in motion in a really interesting way leading to the resolution of All Out War in a way that will make for a very exciting back half to season 8, so I think it's going to be really cool."

He was also asked whether that death would change the comic at all, there isn't much chance of that happening.

"As far as whether or not I think it's going to change things for the comic in a way that is detrimental to the show, I definitely don't," Kirkman said. "I think that there's a lot of great stuff from the comic that will be adapted into the show in season 9 or beyond. Comic book fans might be excited about the possibility of the Whisperers showing up in the show. I'm not confirming that, but I definitely would not rule it out."

Now, there would be some changes of course, as Carl is still around in the comics when the Whisperers are introduced, but according to Kirkman, maybe he'll still be around in the show too.

The Walking Dead is certainly giving off the impression that Carl will die by the end of season 8, though they have faked fans out before. If they managed to pull this off, it could their biggest magic trick yet, though we'll just have to wait and see.

The Walking Dead returns for the second half of its eighth season on February 25, 2018. Fear the Walking Dead will debut its fourth season after The Walking Dead concludes its eighth, at 10 pm ET on April 15. For complete coverage and insider info all year long, follow @BrandonDavisBD on Twitter.