This week's cover: 'Walking Dead' star Norman Reedus says 'Bite me'

The Walking Dead returns with its midseason premiere on Sunday, and what better way to celebrate than with a new Entertainment Weekly cover featuring star Norman Reedus wearing a custom-made “Bite Me” T-shirt? No better way! And not only can you now get the issue right here, but you also bid to own the original shirt worn and signed by Reedus himself—just head over to charitybuzz.com to bid, with proceeds going to one of Reedus’ favorite charities, Oxfam. (Or you can get an official EW replica of the shirt at shop.ew.com.) 

Our cover package also has all the inside scoop on what to expect in the next eight episodes, and according to showrunner Scott M. Gimple, that includes a lot of changes—in terms of action, setting, and overall tone. “The story will shift quite a bit,” Gimple warns. “We are going to see a show that in its look and circumstances is very, very different from what we’ve seen.”

Those changes will begin this Sunday with an episode that will feel unlike any other of the zombie drama. “That is going to be a fan-favorite episode in a lot of ways, and it’s going to be a fan-hated episode in a lot of ways,” creator Robert Kirkman admits. “Because it is somewhat brutal. But there’s a lot of magic in that as well. It’s going to be very unique.”

We talk to the stars and producers about where things pick back up, where they’re going, and the bevy of new faces we will be encountering along the way. “I think by the end of the season we’re carrying more characters than we’ve ever had in the whole other five years,” says star Andrew Lincoln.

Not only that, but we followed Reedus around with a camera to document a day in the life on set for the man who plays Daryl Dixon, and then had Reedus give us the stories behind the photos. Put it all together and you have the ultimate Walking Dead midseason premiere pre-game package.

For more on The Walking Dead, pick up the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly. Click here to buy it now.