With season six boasting an average viewership of 13.15 million, AMC‘s “The Walking Dead” is easily the most alive show on television. And while everyone likes to gripe about the cliffhangers and bizarro plot turns, those same folks keep tuning in week after week, so don’t expect AMC to bury their golden show anytime soon.
READ MORE: AMC Says ‘The Walking Dead’ Will Keep Going For “Many, Many More Years,” Like ‘Star Trek’
With season seven set to premiere next weekend, AMC has gone ahead and renewed “The Walking Dead” for season eight, and re-upped the post-show chat series, “The Talking Dead.” There will be no break in the horror with “The Walking Dead” expected to return in late 2017, with the new season bringing with it sixteen episodes. Outside of that, you can expect everyone involved to keep their lips sealed about where the story will go next, though this Sunday’s season seven debut will reveal who met their fate at the hands of the villain played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan.
The larger question, perhaps, is how much longer AMC can keep “The Walking Dead” before diluting its dramatic power. Some would argue that perhaps that’s already happened, though viewership numbers suggest otherwise. Thoughts? Let us know in the comments section. [Variety]