"The Walking Dead" season 12 is all plotted out and scheduled, confirming AMC's plans for the series further down the road.

With news of "The Walking Dead" season 5 scheduled for an October run and with 16 episodes to boot, fans are already foaming at the mouth in excitement. Show-runners jumpstarted more than anticipation for the next season, though, revealing their plans for the series extend as far as season 12.

TV series go through a bumpy ride of viewership ratings with each follow-up season, and "The Walking Dead" is three seasons away from the dreaded seven-season itch. A solid following from fans and great adaptation from the graphic novels should ensure the show pulls through, though.

Producer David Alpert gave hints while answering a question on plans to work with "pre-existing material" on the next seasons. "I happen to love working from source material, specifically because we have a pretty good idea of what season 10 is gonna be. We know where season 11 and 12...we have benchmarks and milestones for those seasons if we're lucky enough to get there." (comicbookresources.com)

"The Walking Dead" season 12 is confirmed, if the solid following sustains and AMC still picks up the show for future runs.

Screenrant.com considers Alpert's comment with the plot of the graphic novels, how the differences will play out on future episodes.

"The Walking Dead has diverged a bit from the comic book source material at times, so it's hard to know how vital those "milestones" and "benchmarks" will be and what form they will take. However, if Alpert is referring to the source material that has already been released by Image Comics and Robert Kirkman and not some kind of story bible, then it seems natural to wonder if the Alexandria camp will play a large role in the later seasons of the show and what that could mean for the future of the show." (screenrant.com).

"The Walking Dead" season 12 should keep Rick's crew desperate and running if producers want to keep their audience.