Amid widespread speculation about his future in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), legendary wrestler The Undertaker shocked showbiz pundits today with the announcement that he has joined the cast of hit AMC horror-drama The Walking Dead.

The so-called Phenom has not been publicly seen since his shocking loss to Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 30 last year, as he has been in rural Georgia filming the fifth season of the gory zombie soap opera.

Though he did not appear on the much-anticipated season premiere last Sunday, and the show’s producers are notoriously tight-lipped about plot plans, it is believed that The Undertaker will appear next Sunday as the reunited survivors wander away from the barbaric dystopia of Terminus.

Episode Two is titled “Dead Man Walking,” and has the following summary on the AMC website: “The survivors encounter an enormous half-human walker who appears to be under the control of a mysterious urn, and who can mysteriously make the sun rise merely by lifting his tattooed arms. Meanwhile, Carl goes missing and Rick panics.”

Leaked photos from the episode seem to depict the new character vanquishing enemies by picking them up, turning them upside down and dropping them straight onto their heads (resulting, of course, in a squishy explosion of CGI blood).

It’s unknown whether The Undertaker’s character will be good or evil, but many suspect he’ll be a par-human-part-walker creature called a “tweener.” One production photo suggests his character will sometimes appear to be completely human while riding a motorcycle.

According to Hollywood insiders, another former wrestler will also appear on the show: The Zombie from the revamped ECW (but he’ll only appear once as a bit part, get killed, and never be seen again).