'Walking Dead' Season 5 Spoiler: Walkers Gnaw Off Rick's Beard!

"The Walking Dead" Season 5 will finally return on Sunday, Oct. 12, and fans are eager for the show's return after a long seven month hiatus. No doubt, seven months is an extremely long time and a lot has happened to the characters since we've last seen them. According to the latest photos of Andrew Lincoln on Twitter, the Rick Grimes actor completely shaved his beard off!

According to the Facebook fanpage The Spoiling Dead Fans, the "beardless" Rick has been seen on set and filming. For die hard "Walking Dead" fans, the beard was symbolic for everything Rick Grimes and his group of survivors have endured. Fans were shocked when they realized it was removed. It seems like the mystery of Rick Grimes' beard could be the biggest plot arc of Season 5!

In a past interview, Andrew Lincoln did admit a love-hate relationship with his thick beard. "I love this beard, it's become a very close friend. But the moment I get a razor I'd consider shaving it off," said Lincoln.

"I wanna cry, that beard was awesome. He looked so good with it. He won't look as badass as before. Sad," said a disappointed fan on Facebook. Fans were also concerned that other members of the cast would also return to Season 5 with an unrecognizeable look.

"Nooooooooooooo, I don't want Daryl's hair cut, lol. I hope he doesn't go that route, he didn't cut it at the prison...it seems like it would be the last thing on his mind," wrote another fan post.

Even though we don't have the slightest inkling what the loss of Rick Grimes' beard means to Season 5, we do know that writer Scott M. Gimple is ready to really hit the floor running with the upcoming episodes. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Gimple revealed that this season will unfold the consequences of the choices the characters have made last season.

"You know, last year it was is Rick the farmer or the gunslinger?" explained Gimple. "Now, it's like, okay, he's definitely not the farmer, he's the gunslinger. But what does that mean? Who is he going to be? What is his identity going to be at the end of the day if he can't go back? It's going to be an interesting journey for all of these characters."

Be sure to check out the clean-shaven face of Andrew Lincoln in the Twitter post below! How does it compare to the shaggy beard we's worn in the TV series? Let us know in the comment section below!

To truly get a sense of all the things to look for in "Walking Dead" Season 5, be sure to check out our compilation of leaked spoilers here. "The Walking Dead" Season 5 will finally return on Sunday, Oct. 12.